We were lucky to catch up with Michele Wells recently and have shared our conversation below.

Michele, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

I met my boss in a meeting when I was interviewing for my position. At the time she was not the person that I expected I would be reporting to, but in transition, after I was in my position she moved into the new role. A few things that made her the best boss I ever had were her empathy and her ability to empower. Knowing I was new to my role she was able to communicate her understanding of the stressors that came along with it. She came alongside me to complete reports and establish protocols that would enhance my portfolio as I moved forward in the position. She did not leave me to “figure it out” on my own. This is how she empowered me to be confident in the role. I did not lack confidence in myself, but in any new position when “you don’t know what you don’t know” it can be somewhat intimidating. She was always a phone call away. She brought me alongside when she was forging a new path (piloting a program) and would seek my input. She always made me feel that my input was valuable. She also sent notes of encouragement for a job well done and even when it was difficult did not leave me unaware of what might be coming due to budgeting issues. She did not always have all the answers but would do her best to find out what was needed so that there was a full picture of the circumstances ahead of me. I appreciated her honesty, her willingness to advocate and the training that she gave me along the way.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a social work educator of 20 years. I was trained as a social work practitioner and practiced as a social worker for 10 years before becoming an educator. I moved into the profession of social work because of my personal life experiences. I grew up in a family where addiction was an issue so my practice as a social worker was primarily in addiction counseling. I was able to move into clinical counseling roles before I took the education pathway. As a social work educator, I have had the privilege to mentor and counsel numerous students in their career paths. I have seen people shift their careers to the passion of serving others. I know that my passion for service was heightened as I began serving students in this way. I believe this has evolved into my passion for coaching. I serve women who want to go for a promotion, change careers, or start their own business. I help women to do this by helping them first to look within themselves and at their experiences. I help them to eliminate the fears and the limiting beliefs. I help them to clarify the values and the strengths that they have so that they can be the best version of themselves in their endeavor to forge ahead in their lives. My coaching program BOLD Voice, is a 12-week coaching program that helps women to build their confidence so that they can make moves they need to make and walk in the purpose they see for their lives. I had to embrace the confidence to pursue my educational goals to be positioned where I am today and I want women to know that they have within themselves what it takes to attain the goals that they want. I work with women one-to-one as well as in group settings. I offer a mini course called Confident Reset in which participants can identify and strategize how to regain their confidence. I am most proud of being a product of what I teach. I have not always had confidence or felt bold enough to forge a new path. Stepping into coaching has been a great blessing and growth experience for me. It has confirmed the importance of operating in a space where you are intentional about growing through the journey. That is what I want women to know. That we are always growing. There is no failure, only growth! I am the author of my book Bold Choices: Transition to 2.0. The book is all about moving to the next level and learning the lessons on the journey to get to the destination. What I want women to know is that there is a way through. Obstacles come through how we allow past experiences, thoughts, or negative words to shape us. There are some things that we had no control over, but now we have the power to break down and break through the obstacles. My B.O.L.D. means to Breakthrough Obstacles to Lead in Your Destiny. We are the leaders of our lives so let’s be intentional about getting in the front of the line and taking the lead!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

As a child, you can hear things that can be hurtful. Negative words can shape your view of who you are and what you offer. This is what happened to me. I had to unlearn the self-imposed limit of not being good enough. I had to unlearn trying to please other people. I had to unlearn the negative self-talk. I had to realize that I did not have to own those negative words that others spoke to me, but I needed to create a new dialogue that used affirming words. I had to change my mindset to recognize and focus on what is positive and good about me that I can offer to others.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I have had to pivot a couple of times. Circumstances had nothing to do with me, but because of the financial considerations of my employment, my job/program was eliminated. This was not something that I planned for but at the moment I had to deal with it. I was blessed to have had the right connections when this happened to me (on two occasions) so that I could pivot to my next. This situation brought an influx of fear, anger, and anxiety. I went there for a minute, but in the pivot, I had to choose the growth mindset. My challenge to the reader is to put in place those practices that keep your mind and emotions steady when the unexpected occurs. These are the types of things that have to be understood. You prepare before you have to prepare. Your mindset has to be trained to automatically see the glass half full and not half empty. That is how I was able to get through the pivot.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.drmichelewells.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michelereneewells/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michelereneewells/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michele-wells-phd-msw/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH0w_4JkpUy0uFQZiZ00vMg