By now, you should be familiar with the name and story of Stacey Abrams. Stacey Abrams is a Spelman alumna, mom of 2 beautiful daughters, and Georgia Democrat politician who (along with her team and network of activists) spearheaded the Herculean task of flipping Georgia blue and boosting Joe Biden’s Presidential victory.
After losing a hard-fought governor’s race in 2018 by just 55,000 votes and widespread voter suppression claims, Stacey Abrams committed to demanding and promoting fair elections in Georgia and across the United States.
In celebrating Stacey Abrams’ hard work and Joe Biden’s victory, we should not ignore the lessons Stacey Abrams’ career journey can teach us.
Read on for four important career lessons we can all learn from Stacey Abrams.
Don’t Let A Loss Be Your Legacy
After losing the Governor seat in Georgia in 2018, Stacey used her loss as an opportunity to fight for fair elections.
Her legacy didn’t end with a loss, and yours does not have to either. Do not let a rejection for a job, promotion, or business idea be your end. Ask yourself, what can you learn or change from your loss or defeat? Is this life’s way of telling you to look at a different path to accomplish your goal?
Any type of a loss, deafest, or rejection can be discouraging, but it does not have to be the end of your story. The choice is yours – do not let a loss be your legacy.
Create the Change You Want To See
In her non-concession speech, Stacey announced the launch of Fair Fight Georgia, an organization created to empower voters and increase voter registration, protection, and turnout.
On the blog, I often talk about the importance of complaining with solutions. Creating the change you want to see is a step beyond this recommendation. It is okay to place reasonable blame on your boss, unfair practices, or even bad weather. However, we must recognize that to be a successful professional, partner, or entrepreneur, we must take the appropriate steps to improve things that directly impact our goals, livelihood, and resources. This does not require a monumental push or action – like the fair fight launch – but an attempt to create the change you wish to see on conditions that affect you personally.
Always Put Yourself Forward
In 2019, Stacey Abrams was looked at to be a running mate with our new President-elect Joe Biden. Stacey was outspoken about her desire to be Vice President of the United States, and some people thought her forwardness was too exposed for such a high-profile position.
Stacey defended her vocalizations of wanting to be VP by saying, “I personally inhabit a race and a gender that will not receive due consideration if we do not put ourselves forward.” And she is right, as a Black women or women of color, we are often looked at as being the underdog and left out of conversations discussing advancement opportunities. We must always put ourselves forward for the positions and opportunities and be vocal about what we we want.
You Can Get It Done
Change doesn’t happen overnight. Although it may seem like Georgia flipped blue in a day, it took years of get-out-the-vote initiatives and hard work by Stacey Abrams and her team of activists.
Do not allow a defeat, working longer hours, financial challenges, or other obstacles to deter you from achieving your goals. Do not give up – be patient. You can (and will) get it done.
This article first appeared on BringYourOwnPower.com.