Dr Omowale Elson is vice-president of Elson Consulting Group LLC.
Are you where you’ve always wanted to be?
If wanting to discover more of my potential, to do more and see more, so that I could contribute more than what’s familiar and known, then this is where I persevered to be and I am happy to be where I am.
What is your biggest professional challenge?
That would be having enough time to focus more critically and consistently on my writing projects that highlight my learning about transforming social systems, over the last 15 years of teaching and consulting.
What is your biggest life challenge?
Perhaps, it’s trying to create a balance of building a career in teaching and consulting, guiding our two young children, and giving the family the quality time we deserve.
When you look to the future, what do you see?
My kids and their friends present for me a wonderful expectation of the future. I’m excited about their thinking, their expressions, and boldness to be different. They are transforming traditional stereotypes of their presence in this world and creating a new set of optics that are more diverse, integrative and empowering than my childhood.
What is your favourite pastime?
I can lose myself in gardening for a whole day, in much the same way as reading the book for new perspectives on communication, organisational behaviour and change processes. Gardening is my sacred engagement from which the universe delivers some of my most creative thinking and peaceful moments.
What is your favourite meal?
That shifts from location to location, but mostly wholesome cultural/ethnic dishes that are delicately flavoured with herbs and spices, and a good measure of seafood.
On Saturday nights where are you likely to be?
I look forward to serving dinner to the needy at my church’s monthly feeding, and otherwise catching a festival, or drinking a glass of wine with my wife and talking about ways to improve our kids and students’ lives.
But Saturday nights are not typical, and are more like returning from events with my family. I would love to transport Oistins up here in Washington DC. That would be a great Saturday night to look forward to.
What upsets you the most?
I get upset when I have to work with people who, by their virtual power position, do not care to respect other people’s time nor appreciate time as a business asset. Secondly, people who are not curious that there might be other reasons to explain why something had happened. Lastly, when managers use their insecurities to rationalise outdated and inefficient ways of doing business and frustrate their direct reports’ initiative and passion for change.
What is your guiding philosophy?
You are framed by your thoughts, emotions and deeds; when you are dissatisfied with the results they are producing, it’s time to think, feel and do something new. The sooner the better!
If you had the chance to manage Barbados for a day, what would you do?
Barbados has a great deal of business opportunities sitting around and the creativity seems to be among the youth. However, it seems that generational tensions are blocking what is possible.
Given that scenario, I would invite young and emerging professionals to select the most common problems that are circulating in the society and have them form dialogue groups around the country.
Their mission would be to create a shared understanding of their contribution to the prolems and link these problems to how people are dealing with them in the global sphere.
Then we would encourage a process of de-linking fact from fiction so that bold and clear thinking would guide them toward a re-imaging process of what could be great about them when they decompose the problems into further actions.
Dr Omowale Else is also Adjunct Associate Professor of Leadership and Communication at the University of Maryland University College.