Today we’d like to introduce you to Laurinda R Andujar.
It’s an honor to speak with you today. Why don’t you give us some details about you and your story. How did you get to where you are today?
Greetings, my name is Laurinda Andujar. I am the founder of Heal the City Inc, a not-for-profit organization, and She Blinked LLC. My organizations assist individual contributors and organizations in the area of personal and professional development. I have been in the talent development field for well over 30 years. I think I have a knack for recognizing and developing talent. Honestly, my story is very similar to that of many others. I was 17 when I started my first job. I was with that organization for 27 years.
One day I woke up and said there has got to be more. I mean, at the time, I wasn’t failing in life. I had a great job, and my family was healthy. We did what families do, spend time together. We went on family vacations together. We laughed and joked. I even volunteered for mission trips and was active (enough) in church. Yet and still, I felt unfulfilled.
The emptiness I felt, coupled with many unanswered questions to my lackluster experiences, were the catalysts that I desperately needed to change. I began to ask questions geared towards personal development. That led me to self-reflect. I admit those inward glances were not pretty; however, they were necessary. As I began to implement small changes consistently, I experienced growth. As I began to grow, I desired to share the wealth.
I’m sure your success has not come easily. What challenges have you had to overcome along the way?
Success didn’t come easy for me. The biggest challenge that I had to overcome was that of my mind. I was afraid of the accountability that comes with knowledge. I believe that many people struggle in this area as well. If it were not so, we would see more entrepreneurial success stories. It is critical to understand that “To whom much is given, much is required” does not only apply to material things. It is also applicable to the knowledge we acquire and what we accomplish with that newfound knowledge.
The second challenge that I struggled with was taking all the great ideas that were taking up space in my head and turning those ideas into tangible resources for others. Not only did these resources have to be tangible, but they also had to apply to any circumstance while adding value to the individual. Being able to accomplish these tasks would enable me to be viewed as a trusted advisor.
The third challenge I had was understanding that I AM THE BRAND! My organizations are an extension of me. People will only support my products if I am trustworthy, mindful, intentional in my connections, strategic, and viewed as a thought leader. I also need to be consistent in my dealings with others. When I speak of consistency, I am referring to product, communication, and interactions. As a business owner, I must stay abreast of the latest trends, technology, and the needs of the communities I serve.
Let’s talk about the work you do. What do you specialize in and why should someone work with you over the competition?
If you can’t tell by now, I love what I do. If you are not familiar with what I do, simply put, I am a transformational leadership coach that focuses heavily on teaching soft people skills to help people navigate relationships, whether it be business or personal. At Heal the City Inc, the focus is more so on personal development. This would be for the person having issues recovering from emotional setbacks stemming from grief and trauma. This person might attend an 8-week course with me to address any challenges they are facing or a structured growth plan to address the behaviors that have them stalled in an unproductive pattern.
Once the person has met all benchmarks and achieved their personal goals. We would reassess the situation, and either create new goals or begin to work on a professional goal assessment. That’s where SheBlinked LLC comes into play. As a certified John Maxwell team member, I have access to many valuable tools to help the busy professional grow. Being a talent development professional for over 30 years, I have developed content based on various leadership belief systems. These systems have a proven track record of success. I have mentees that have followed my work for decades and continue to reach out for guidance.
To answer the question of why someone should work with me over the competition. My answer is simple, don’t compete. I collaborate. My professional network is quite impressive.
What’s your best piece of advice for readers who desire to find success in their life?
I have a team of motivated servant leaders who understand the assignment. For instance, say that I am working with a client who needs help in an area I am not skilled in. I will pass the baton to someone else. The project objective is always more than the person conducting it.
The best advice that I can provide for anyone seeking to be successful in life or anything, in general, is to remember this; you don’t know what you don’t know until you don’t know it. That’s is when you need it. That is a long way of saying become a lifelong learner. I can’t count the amount of time that I stumbled across some information, and I started digging deeper. I was later able to add value to a random conversation that earned me a seat at the table.
People NEED trusted advisors. Find your niche and continually add to your academic toolbelt. Adding to your knowledge tool belt will get you indoors you never thought possible. There are many intersections on the information highway. IP addresses collide, and voila, magic happens. Who knows if your niche is people and policies, you may find yourself at a tech convention speaking to the importance of guiding your team from an HR perspective? Look for instances where you can collaborate. Remember it is always collaboration over competition. No one can detract from the value you bring to the table. Just be YOU!
Speaking of success, what does the word mean to you?
Success has a different meaning to me each year. This year’s success is overcoming the challenges that this pandemic has thrown at me. Success is the ability to operate a business better than usual, on a fraction of the revenue that I had generated before. Success is the impact that my organization and team have on the community. We have grown exponentially. Success is not lacking because this pandemic has made it possible to barter for services.
A coin isn’t the only currency in business. We can share knowledge. I can provide training for your organization or mentoring, and you can trade tech updates as payments. I’ve run my not-for-profit organization without grants before I was incorporated, and because of this, I have learned creative ways to provide the services the community needs without killing my pockets. It has also taught me to be responsible with my spending.
Success is leaving this earth and the individuals on it better than I found them. Now that is true success!
What’s next for you?
I am excited to reveal that I have been invited by Instagram, as a paid creator for Reels. So, I will be working the social media outlets to gain more awareness of my brands. I am also working on my Candid Conversation with Friend’s Podcast. Twice a month, I invite my colleagues to join along as we tackle tough conversations on life, love, and leadership.
Eventually, I would love to take it to television, as the response has been phenomenal thus far. I am also working on the re-release of my first book, She Blinked: The Book of Me. The feedback has been tremendous. I have also been invited to contribute to several book projects and am working on my book projects. I am planning at least two in-person conferences next year in 2022. I know for sure Louisiana is on the agenda.
Finally, how can people connect with you if they want to learn more?
Please Find all My Social Media Pages Below:
Twitter https://twitter.com/passhunsgate?lang=en
Clubhouse: https://www.clubhouse.com/candidconvoswla
IG: https://www.instagram.com/i_am_laurinda_andujar/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/sheblinked_llc/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/heal_the_city_inc/?hl=en
FB: https://www.facebook.com/laurinda.andujar/
https://www.facebook.com/ThePasshunatePoet
https://www.facebook.com/HealTheCityInc
https://www.facebook.com/SheBlinkedLaurindaAndujar
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU60L40u0CRVlHKLVtwbfqA
https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurinda-andujar-6ba12920/
Website www.laurindaandujar.net
Email Contact La@laurindaandujar.net
