From South Side to Six Figures

 

Chapter 8

From South Side to Six Figures

The Felicia Yoakum Story

Felicia with her daughter and son.
Circa 2015

Felicia Cockrell Yoakum is an African American female in her mid-40s. She lives in a major American city where she has worked as a staff technical program manager for Netflix since 2023. Before that, she was employed as a project manager for Google—fulfilling a lifelong career dream she had held since the year 2000. 

Prior to working for Google, Yoakum was employed as an operations engineer for the power grid of a major urban area in the United States. Before that, she worked for the oil and gas giant, ExxonMobil, served her country in the United States Navy, and graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering technology. 

These impressive life and career successes were by-products of Felicia's ongoing commitment to Self-Action Leadership. Even more impressively, Felicia has demonstrated that SAL is possible even in the midst of challenging environmental, familial, and social circumstances. 

Before she became a successful college student, Naval Officer, and rising star for multiple Fortune 500 companies, Felicia was born "poor and Black" on the infamously poverty-stricken and often violent South Side of Chicago.

Felicia's life is dramatically different now than when she was growing up, and not because she won the lottery or otherwise lucked her way into prosperity. Her life is different, and better, today because of her effective and consistent practice of SAL over long periods of time, which has, in-turn invited a great deal of Serendipity into her life and career as well.  

Felicia as a baby growing up
on the South Side of Chicago.

If she had wanted to, she could have found plenty of disadvantages to complain about and excuses to make for why she could not rise above the circumstances into which she was born. Instead, she chose to be proactive, focus on what she could control and accomplish, and always take advantage of positive opportunities that came her way. 

As a result, her life and career have consistently taken very inspiring turns, to say the very least. 

Growing up on Chicago's South Side, Felicia spent the first 18 years of her life in a small house with her parents and two siblings (an older sister and a younger brother). The neighborhood in which her home was located was one of the most dangerous in all of Chicago, and her first elementary school was situated right in between two government project buildings. 

Despite these and other infelicitous realities of her upbringing, Felicia began exercising SAL principles and practices from a young age. These early seeds of SAL would eventually grow and mature into a rich education and career harvest down the road.  

Felicia and her mom at their home on the 
South Side of Chicago.

Felicia's exercise of SAL was focused first and foremost on her education. Simply stated, she paid attention, worked hard, and got good grades in school. Her efforts paid off and in eighth (8th) grade she became valedictorian of her middle school's graduating class. 

Building on these successes of her early adolescence, Felicia began applying to choice program magnet and charter schools in order to avoid having to attend the much rougher public high schools near her home, which, in her words, "were usually really bad high schools."  

Her outstanding grades and high test scores earned her admittance to the prestigious Whitney M. Young High School, which consistently ranks among the top-rated Magnet high schools in the United States. 

In addition to her academic ambitions, Felicia also found time to excel at athletics, competing in cross-country and track & field all four of her high school years. 

At age 15, she also began working at a variety of jobs, including at her dad's restaurant, so she could earn her own money.   

During her senior year of high school, she became interested in computer programming. She also wrote a report on a piece of equipment used in World War II that piqued her interest in the military. This led her to apply for a full tuition scholarship to Purdue University through its ROTC program. She was unsuccessful in this attempt; however, her diligent efforts enabled her to procure some smaller scholarships—ensuring her entrance to Purdue. 

Before being accepted into Purdue, Felicia had set her sights sky high and seriously considered applying to the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the California Institute of Technology (Cal-Tech), and the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech).

Her top two priorities in picking a college were, first: a "Quality Engineering Program"; and second: "Football."

The latter criterion eliminated MIT and Cal-Tech, so she applied to Georgia Tech and Purdue—both of which boast top-tier engineering programs and Division 1 football teams from major athletic conferences (ACC and BIG-10).

At Purdue, Felicia studied electronic engineering technology—not an easy major! With the exception of the few smaller scholarships she received, she paid for the rest of her schooling herself through student loans and by working a part-time job throughout college.

Felicia as a Commissioned Officer
aboard a naval vessel.

Felicia played sports (rugby) herself at Purdue, where, after four years of hard work, she graduated with her bachelor's degree in engineering. She then worked toward, and earned, an Officer's Commission in the U.S. Navy, where she was posted to various bases around the world, including Australia, Canada, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). She also spent time on naval ships in the Pacific and Indian Oceans as well as the Mediterranean Sea. 

After serving her country for a few years and fulfilling her commitment to the Navy, Felicia was hired to work for ExxonMobil, an energy giant and Fortune 100 Company headquartered in Texas. Her work with ExxonMobil also took her to Japan for a two-year assignment. 

It was through Felicia's association with my wife, Lina, at ExxonMobil that we first became acquainted in the Houston, Texas area, where a significant chunk of ExxonMobil's workforce resides.  

Felicia served as one of Lina's earliest mentors at ExxonMobil immediately after she began her post-collegiate career with the energy giant. Lina was fortunate to be mentored by someone as accomplished, capable, intelligent, and kind as Felicia, and we fast became fans of and friends with her.  

On the job with energy giant, ExxonMobil.
Houston, Texas
Circa 2010

After spending several years with ExxonMobil, Felicia got a new job with the tech giant, Google, in Austin, Texas. It was a dream come true for Yoakum, who had wanted to work in Big Tech since she had been a teenager.

Felicia attributes her life and career success to working hard and staying focused as a student. Her academic performance empowered her to receive educational opportunities beyond what was available at the public schools in her poor and sometimes violent Chicago neighborhood. According to Felicia, "anyone can go to the [academically superior] magnet schools if you have good enough grades."

Felicia was determined to get the grades she needed to expand her future educational and career opportunities. 

Thus, SAL empowered her to earn the grades required to attend these better, safer school. And Serendipity further favored her with wonderful opportunities that had been opened up by virtue of her outstanding personal efforts.  

Growing up on Chicago's South Side gave Felicia opportunities to witness the structural inequities that existed between different schools and communities in the greater Chicago area. 

In her own words: 

"Chicago is very segregated. The South Side of Chicago is about 95% African American. When I was in middle school, I competed in a math competition that gave me an opportunity to see other schools. That is where I started seeing white students and students of other races. In that interaction, I discovered that other kids often had access to more and better resources than I did. For example, the white teams would have matching jerseys and clothes, and food that was provided by their school. You could also tell that they were more groomed than we were. We had practice, but that was all we had; there was no extra stuff. 

"We had much better facilities at the magnet school (Whitney M. Young High School), and parents were much more involved in their kids' education. The main difference, however, between magnet school students and regular public school students was not race or a lack of intelligence; it was a lack of focus and parental involvement. Other than that, there wasn't a big different in the demographics of the students at the magnet schools versus the regular public schools. There were a few students who you could tell weren't from around the neighborhood, but most of us were locals, and most of us were Black—just like at the regular public high schools."  

In addition to building healthy relationships
with others, self-action leaders are careful
about cultivating a rich inner life and
positive relationship with oneself.

Felicia did not have many friends as a teenager, and attributes her ability to stay grounded to consciously cultivating a rich inner-life as a self-action leader. 

"I pretty much kept to myself, and my family always made fun of me because I would talk to myself. Don't get me wrong; I was a friendly person, got along with people, and was never an outcast; but, I was not into the typical teenage socializing scene—it just wasn't for me. I'd talk to people and occasionally hang out, but I rarely went to parties. In fact, I can probably count on one hand how many parties I went to my entire life growing up."

Felicia attributes her unorthodox, intrapersonal social approach to helping her resist many temptations common to adolescents and the tremendous peer pressure faced by inner city youth in the Black community. 

"Peer Pressure is a big problem with inner city youth. Of course, it is likely a problem with all youth, but I think it's more intense in the inner city because there is a lot of pressure to be "Black." The Black stereotype is: you don't care about work or anything else except clothes and the opposite sex. 

"These attitudes are perpetuated throughout the community, so if those things aren't a high priority, people think there is something wrong with you. Worse still, if you aren't focused on those things you get talked about; and when I say talked about—I mean YOU got TALKED about—you got reamed. Another part of being "Black" is that you can't talk about college and you're not supposed to like school. My peers would make fun of me for being smart, and they would call me "White Girl" because I talked proper and I liked the television show, Seinfeld." 

Felicia utilized SAL principles and practices on many occasions to avoid growing angry or bitter at peers who would verbally jab at her. Fascinatingly, the more her peers sensed her inner security, self-confidence, and self-worth, the more they left her alone. 

"I did not get made fun of a lot because they could tell I wasn't ashamed of who I was. My idea of what to do and what was right was mostly developed internally. I also wasn't really involved with other people who were concerned with making sure I looked cute for the boys. I didn't really hang out with people like that, which helped me avoid the peer pressure that so strongly pushed other people in my community to focus so much on clothing and image and prioritize it above education and inner security." 

Felicia also discovered that negative reinforcement doesn't always come from peer pressure only. Sadly, parents and other family members can sometimes be a big part of the problem as well. 

"One of the things I've seen hurt many people in the inner city is the pressure to not be successful. You would be surprised at how many parents will jab at their kids and say things like: "you're never going to be anything, so why do you even try?" Tragically, that kind of stuff is said in a lot of households; and there is a lot of negative reinforcement to not achieve goals. The aim is to maintain the status quo, which isn't anything to brag about. My advice to everyone who faces that kind of pressure and negative reinforcement is to not let other people bring you down. And believe me, they will try! Some people will even make it their goal in life to bring you down. Do not let them do it!"

Developing inner security and esteem is an important element in SAL development. But where does it come from and how is it developed? 

Felicia's actions and habits give us an important clue. 

To compensate for the lack of meaningful relationships with her peers, Felicia developed a friendship with herself that emboldened her sense of internally-located self-worth. 

Stephen R. Covey effectively corroborated the importance of self-worth when he wrote: 

"Intrinsic security ... doesn't come from what other people think of us or how they treat us. It doesn't come from the scripts they've handed us. It doesn't come from our circumstances or our position. It comes from within. It comes from accurate paradigms and correct principles deep in our own mind and heart. It comes from inside-out congruence, from living a life of integrity in which our daily habits reflect our deepest values." (1)

In Felicia's own words, this is precisely how she developed the kind of internal security spoken of above by Covey, which helped her to repel negative influences in her social life.  

"When you're a kid, you want to play, so you seek other people to play with, and that's how you develop friends, but when I wanted to play, I would just play with myself. I didn't look to other people as much because I had myself. I realized over time that I didn't really care much if other people thought I was cool or not. I discovered that I was perfectly okay with being alone, and that I am capable of being happy without doing things that other people think or say I should do."  

Felicia also discovered she could use HUMOR as a defense mechanism for bearing up under the scathing verbal salvos of her more sophomoric peers.  

"Rather than get angry or upset, I would just laugh at their mocking comments. It never really upset me because the things they would make fun of me for (e.g. being smart) didn't bother me. I liked the fact that I was smart, so when people would call me names, I would just smile and carry about my business."   

Though she may not have been fully conscious of it at the time, humor can definitely be a valuable asset in SAL development, as well as an effective communication technique in your toolbox as both a self-action leader and leader.

For example, a twice-elected President of the United States—George W. Bush—has written, "I often use humor to defuse tension." (2) Viktor Frankl put it another way when he wrote: "The attempt to develop a sense of humor and to see things in a humorous light is some kind of a trick learned while mastering the art of living." (3)

Felicia does not consider herself to be "religious," but spirituality does play an important role in her life. Moreover, as a self-action leader, she strives for self-awareness and seeks to be in tune with her conscience.  

"I am not religious, but I am spiritual. You might say that my God is the same things as my conscience. I can feel in my heart the difference between right and wrong, and I try to follow that inner compass. I also feel that I have a high level of self-awareness, so I know when I do the wrong things, but I also know when I do the right things. I also know when I'm achieving things that make me happy. I know when I'm being myself, so that self-awareness keeps me from being influenced by negative peer pressure because I know I don't want to do things just to please other people or look good in their eyes. If I don't want someone in my life, I really don't care what that person thinks about me. I also question things before I act. I conduct an immediate subconscious evaluation of what I am planning on doing before I do it."

Growing up on Chicago's South Side gave Felicia opportunities to understand the realities of structural inequality that marked her community when compared to the more affluent Northern Suburbs. As she got older, she became increasingly aware of the unofficial cultural and racial segregation that exists in the Chicago metropolitan area.  

"The first time I remember really noticing it was on the trains. The Red Line and the Green Line runs to the South Side of Chicago, but the Brown Line doesn't even come near the South Side; it runs pretty much from downtown to the northern suburbs. So, I always rode the Red and Green Line trains. One day, by mistake, I ended up on one of the Brown Line trains. It felt like I was in another world because it was brand new and impeccably clean. The Red and Green Line trains are filthy. They smell like pee, the seats are torn up, and graffiti is everywhere. But the Brown Line train looked and felt like the First Class train.

"As I looked around, the metal was shiny—like chrome—and I just figured it must be a new train. Later on, I found out that this was how all the Brown Line trains were because the Brown Line went to the North Side, where the white people lived, and where the money is. It was definitely the "White Train." Chicago is unofficially segregated. I can tell you what area you are in based on who gets off at which train stop."  

The North Side of Chicago, including Wrigley Field
in the forefront, downtown in the top right, and
Lake Michigan in the top left and center.

Felicia's positive SAL worldview empowered her to invest energy on things she could control, rather than focus on things she could not. Instead of feeling victimized for whatever structural inequities temporarily impeded her world, she confidently and courageously exercised her freedom to choose her own thoughts, speech, actions, attitudes, and beliefs in ways that led her to a better, brighter, and more prosperous future where her personal freedoms were massively expanded. As a result, she was able to rise above the circumstances and structures into which she was born to eventually become very successful, even when compared to many others who had started out in life with far greater privileges and opportunities than she did. 

A natural self-action leader, Felicia is always seeking out insights about the way things really are in the world in an effort to reject victimization and become all she is capable of becoming as an ambitious, creative, intelligent, and savvy human being and self-action leader. Her desire to access and apply nuggets of insight and wisdom in her life is illustrated in a conversation she once had with a friend. 

In her own words: 

"My friend and I were talking the other day and he made an interesting observation. He said that unsuccessful people tend to see freedom as being from something. For example, some Black people view freedom as being primarily from slavery, an attitude that adversely affects them 160 years after slavery was abolished. Successful people, however, tend to view freedom as being for something, or freedom to do something.

"People often refer to freedom as being all about having less restrictions, so that a given person or thing is no longer holding them down. But that really isn't what freedom is about. Freedom isn't about having less restrictions, it is about focusing my energy on what I can do, what I can accomplish, and what I can become.

"We are talking about two totally different outlooks on life, and there is a big difference between the two in terms of the personal results you are likely to get."

Felicia's conversation with her friend is more than just a token exchange of passing thoughts. It is the reaffirmation of powerful concepts iterated and affirmed by some highly intelligent and sophisticated authors and scholars. For example, consider the words of Haddon Klingberg, Jr., and Dr. Stephen R. Covey, respectively.

"Spirituality is in its essence self-transcendence [and] it brings with it human freedom. But it is not freedom from as much as [it is] freedom to. We are not free from our biological nature, whether instinctual drives, genetic legacies, or the functions and malfunctions of our brains and bodies. Nor are we free from the grasp of social, developmental, and environmental influences. But we are free to take a stand towards these, even against them. We are free to do what we will with the cards we are dealt, to choose what response we will make to fateful events, to decide what cause or persons will receive our devotion. And this freedom to carries an obligation to." (4)

"Even if you live in horrible circumstances, it is in those circumstances that you will find your call to choose your own response. It is then that "life calls out to us" to serve those around us whose needs we become aware of; it is in so doing that we find our true "voice" in life." (5)

Passionate about her freedom to grow and succeed, Felicia has achieved much in her life, and one of the secrets of her success involves mentally turning negative experiences into positive learning opportunities. 

"I have been able to view almost all of the negative things I've experienced as an opportunity to grow. For instance, when I've met someone that I didn't really like, someone who was a total asshole, I think, "well, you know, he's not a great guy, but now I've learned about him, and I've gained experience how to deal with that kind of person. So, the next time I meet someone like that, I'll be prepared."

"Experiences make up life, and you can either make them ruin your life or help your life, so I just allow them to help me in some way."  

Although she is a big fan of "just walking away" from peer pressure, Felicia also understands and acknowledges that in places like Chicago's South Side, it isn't always that simple for everyone.

"In some cases, if you just walk away like I did, they'll hurt you. Take gangs for instance. If someone proposes an opportunity for you to join a gang and you say "NO," you could be badly beaten or even killed. It can be difficult to walk away. 

"But, the good news is that you can claim a lot of personal power if you demonstrate belief and confidence in yourself. I credit my personal belief and self-confidence with repelling those who might have otherwise pushed too hard. If those people had at least tried to get me caught up in the wrong things—especially when I was younger—I probably would have said "YES" to doing whatever, but as I grew older and more confident, the way I felt about myself seemed to turn them off, and they ended up just leaving me alone. 

"It sent the message to them that I wasn't weak enough to infiltrate or trick."

Her comment about gangs roused my curiosity, so I queried further if she had ever been approached to join a gang herself.

She replied:

"The gangs weren't that big with girls, but for me, they knew I was different, so gang members' interest in having me around wasn't that high. 

"I really can't describe it, because it's not like I was an outcast. I still hung out with some people who were either affiliated with gangs or in gangs themselves, but I just wasn't that close to them. We'd hang out at the park and we'd talk. 

"For example, when I was 14, I technically had an 18-year-old boyfriend, yet this boy never tried to do anything [sexually] with me—never. And it wasn't because I was literally saying "NO." He was definitely not a virgin, but he just seemed to sense something about me that communicated to him that I'm not that kind of person." 

To better confront the many challenges faced by inner city residents, Felicia believes leaders should focus on education initiatives, including after-school activities that provide young people with something to focus on and do in between the end of school and bedtime, which is the time of day when many youth-aged persons are most likely to get into trouble. 

"In the schools, we need an increase in the availability and advertisement of after-school activities. Being on the track team is probably something that kept me out of a lot of trouble. I think they should start such opportunities in elementary school. That way, your children are in school, they attend after-school activities, they come home, they eat dinner and do their homework, and then they go to bed. They have no time to get into trouble. They have no time to be negatively influenced."

Felicia with her husband, Gregory Yoakum,
 and her two children.

Felicia Cockrell Yoakum is a tremendous inspiration to me, everyone at Freedom Focused, and many others who know her or have worked with her. She is one of the most pleasant and cheerful persons I have ever met. Her personality and disposition radiate hope and possibility—not a contrived charisma or affected enthusiasm—but an authentic effervescence born of a genuine positivity and optimism that is both attractive and infectious. For all of these admirable and likeable qualities, she is one of my favorite people.

Her force of character and sense of self are inspiring and contagious.

She is a remarkable self-action leader and a beautiful human being both inside and out. 

And her intellect speaks for itself. In fact, later in life as an adult, she earned a MENSA membership by scoring an impressively high IQ of 130. 

Her capacity for, and dedication to, SAL has empowered her to to achieve many impressive accomplishments in both her personal and professional life. At Freedom Focused, we greatly admire who she has become as a by-product of embracing SAL principles and practices over long periods of time—and thereby opening her life up to Serendipity all along the way.   

It is our sincere hope that many people throughout the United States and World will likewise be inspired by Felicia's tremendous personal example and journey of professional success. I further hope that her story will influence many others to give it their all to rise above the pressures, temptations, and circumstances of their lives to make the most out of themselves and take full advantage of every opportunity with which life has blessed them—regardless of where they were born or what obstacles may currently stand in their way.    

In Your Journal

• Why do you think Felicia was able to rise above the challenges in her neighborhood, community, and schools when many others around her did not?

• What background or circumstantial challenges do YOU face that were not of your own making?

• What is something you could do beginning TODAY to begin to transcend a background or circumstantial difficulty that you presently face?

• What have you learned from Felicia's story that could help in battling structural inequalities in your nation, community, organization, or school?  

 

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, October 29, 2025

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 486th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 276th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

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Chapter 9 Notes 

1.  Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change. New York, NY: Fireside. Page 298.

2.  Bush, G.W. (2010). Decision Points. Crown: New York, NY. Page 35.

3.  Frankl, V. E. (2006). Man's Search for Meaning. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. Page 44.

4.  From Haddon Klingberg Jr.’s biography of Viktor and Elly Frankl: When Life Calls Out to Us, quoted in Covey, S. R. (2004). The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. New York, NY: Free Press. Page 315.

5.  Covey, S. R. (2004). The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. New York, NY: Free Press. Page 315.

Creating Your Own Career

 

Chapter 7

Creating Your Own Career

The Jared Meeks Story

"Do your homework. It's a simple message, but it is what has gotten me where I am today. I don't just go to a job and leave it there. If you want to be really good at what you do, you have to give up some hobbies and/or free time and you've got to really study, because there is only so much you can learn when you are "on the clock." Whether it is pursuing continuing education, taking online courses, subscribing to a blog of someone really smart in your industry, or reading books, the way to become an expert at something is to put in the time to learn. Find some extra time every day to just learn something. You are going to get ahead if you do a little extra homework or read a book."  

—Jared Meeks

Author's Note: The names of persons and companies in this biography have been temporarily anonymized. The original names will return for the hard copy version of the SAL Textbook, 7th edition.

Jared and Katie Meeks and their Family.
Circa 2015

This chapter highlights the story of a young father who used SAL-oriented personal initiative to advance his career and become very successful—not rich or famous; but happy, content, financially comfortable and secure, and surrounded by loving family, which is actually the kind of success that a lot of folks—if not most of us—are actually aiming for in life, and especially so in the long-run. 

With a keen eye for opportunity and the attitude and work ethic to back it up, Meeks was able to gradually and steadily write his own ticket to success in his workplace and industry. 

When this story was first published in the mid-2010s, Jared lived with his wife and four children in the Houston, Texas area. They have since moved to northern Utah, near the small community where Meeks was born and raised in a middle class home. 

In high school, Jared developed a love for woodworking, and learned he could be more productive if he woke up early and went to the shop before school started. He would typically arrive at school by 5:45 a.m. each morning throughout the school year. His efforts earned him awards and an impressive collection of professional-grade furniture that adorns his home to this day. 

Jared graduated from high school in 1996 and earned a vocational scholarship to a local state college, which he attended for two semesters before serving a 2-year full-time mission for his church in Maracaibo, Venezuela, where he further developed self-discipline, focus, and a work ethic that would come to mark his future career successes. He also gained valuable experiences as a communicator and leader during his missionary service, which would also come in handy on a regular basis in the future.  

After completing his mission, Jared returned to northern Utah where he continued his studies at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. His personal mantra as a college student was: "work hard in my classes and just get smarter."  

To pay for his university studies, Jared got a job and worked part-time throughout his college years. After proactively seeking out employment opportunities, he landed a job at Cooper Health. He had no experience in healthcare, but Cooper liked the fact that he could speak Spanish (another benefit of his missionary service) and they were willing to train him on the health-specific aspects of the job. 

Cooper specialized in providing financial counseling services to uninsured hospital patients. As a representative of Cooper, Jared would interview people who had recently been in the emergency room, talk to them about their financial options, and then provide follow-up consultation calls over the phone. He worked part-time for Cooper for 25-30 hours a week while he attended his university classes. 

In time, Jared completed a bachelor's degree in political science with a minor in Spanish. 

Over time, Cooper began to significantly expand their clientele. Throughout his college years, Jared worked hard, demonstrated dependability and integrity, and eventually expressed interest in working for them full-time after graduation. 

Knowing how valuable Jared had become, Cooper jumped at the opportunity to hire him full time. In fact, they gave him an opportunity to represent their interests at a regional hospital where things were not going well. Jared mission's was to identify and troubleshoot existing issues, and he recalls being "really excited" about the chance he had to "right the ship."  

Working full-time in the hospital was challenging, but satisfying. He was on a first name basis with many doctors and other important hospital employees. Since patients had no way of getting treatments they needed without Cooper's help, Meeks found his work to be very meaningful on a personal, human level. 

During his time there, he helped people get heart and liver transplants, and walk again after serious accidents. There were even times when he felt instrumental in saving people's lives. 

He ended up supervising Cooper's work at the hospital for about three (3) years. In the process, he succeeded in his mission to turn things around, much to the gratitude and satisfaction of his employer.

"I like getting stuff done."

—Jared Meeks

By working hard and diligently applying himself, Jared became an industry expert. His expertise and track record of success opened up another, even better opportunity—this time in a management role. 

His new position involved the supervision of 10-20 other Cooper employees. His new job also afforded him the opportunity to travel. In addition, he was responsible for hiring and firing employees. He continued to excel by applying the same proactive initiative he had demonstrated in his previous position and thereby continued to attract positive attention from his supervisors. 

They also gave him a pay raise.  

A few years later, he was promoted again, providing him with another leadership opportunity and another salary increase. He was now running an entire office and managing 30-40 people in the process. He was also responsible for the training and tasking of an entire team of supervisors. 

For many years, Meek's ultimate educational goal was to attend Law School. However, as his diligence, focus, and hard work continued to reap rich dividends at Cooper, this once luminous ambition began to lose its luster—and this is where the story takes an especially interesting and inspiring turn.

Jared had always been a computer hobbyist. He was a self-taught techie and had even built his own computer from scratch. His knowledge of computers and ability to identify and solve problems led him to become increasingly involved with IT issues at Cooper. If his office got a new shipment of computers, Jared was the one to set them up. If something broke, he fixed it. When network and Wi-Fi issues cropped up, he was the guy they called for help.

He ended up doing so much IT work outside of normal business hours that he started receiving quite a bit of extra pay. The more word spread of Jared's knowledge and capabilities, the more members of his team started coming to him with their computer issues.

Things got even more interesting when Jared started programming. He had already studied a book on Microsoft Office's programming language (VBA). Fascinated by VBA, macros, and scripting, he then got an even bigger book on the subject and read it. 

In the course of his studies, he figured out a lot of viable shortcuts that made his job easier. Eventually, it dawned on him that he could write an entirely new program that could complete Cooper's entire pay review for him. 

The pay review was important, but tedious and time-consuming work that was below his pay grade. It also required that he work many hours on the weekends outside of regularly scheduled hours. 

Thinking innovatively, he set out to write a program that could complete the pay review electronically. If he succeeded, he would get his weekends back. 

After many long hours of coding, Jared succeeded in shrinking 8-12 hours of work down to a mere 30 minutes—25 of which could be spent doing other things while the computer completed the pay review automatically. 

The difference in efficiency was staggering!

When people around the office learned what he had accomplished, the demand for his skills and time went through the roof. After all, others had similar problems they were dealing with, and were excited to learn that Jared had created a solution. As a result, he ended up spending all his extra time writing code for other people.

In the process, his office became far more efficient and productive.

About this same time, Cooper needed to replace their outdated computer systems. When Jared caught wind of this need, he voiced a desire to participate in the overhaul. At every opportunity, he put forth helpful and timely suggestions and provided much needed input based on his hands-on experience with improving IT systems throughout the office. 

It was challenging to get his voice heard at first because he wasn't officially part of the IT Department.

However, Jared was pleasantly persistent and eventually succeeded in getting the IT Director to discover what Jared had already accomplished on the company's front lines. From there, word of his skills, talents, and qualifications made it all the way up to Cooper's top brass. Soon thereafter, the CEO personally informed the IT Director that he wanted Jared to be included in the discussions surrounding the office computer upgrade.  

From there, IT Headquarters in Texas created a new position and told Jared that if he was willing to relocate to the Lone Star State, Cooper would make him the project manager of the entire system conversion, where he would work with computer programmers and developers to make sure the system was correctly built and properly tested. 

Jared accepted this new position, which translated into another promotion and pay raise. 

About this same time, he was offered another management promotion in Utah, which likely would have paid him even more money than he was being offered in Texas, but he chose to purse the IT route in the Lone Star State because his heart was in computer technology, not management.  

In 2007, Jared and his family moved to Texas where Jared began to prepare his new team for the system-wide conversion, set to take place in August of that year. After relocating to the Lone Star State, he realized there were still gaps in his overall IT knowledge; so, he went to work, studying to fill those gaps. He got a bunch of books and began reading in his spare time.

In addition to increasing his knowledge, he also set out to improve his skills. He even set up a test server in his house so he could practice coding. 

"At night, after the kids were in bed, 

my wife would read novels, and I 

would read books on how to program."

—Jared Meeks

The system conversion was successful and firmly established Jared as a competent IT project manager. After the conversion was complete, he and his colleagues began tackling a long list of enhancements scheduled for the new system—with Jared in charge of the system patches and upgrades. As he continued his work, his bonuses kept getting bigger each year. 

"This is like my dream job."

—Jared Meeks

A year or so after the conversion, a falling out occurred between the two founders of the company. The Director of IT ended up going with one founder, while Jared went with the other. The company split created the need for a new IT Director. 

You can probably guess who was promoted to be the new Director of IT for the entire new company.

That right: Jared Meeks!

This promotion came with another pay raise—and he's had several more in intervening years. 

Thus, over the course of not many years, Meeks went from managing 5-6 people and outsourcing their tech support to managing a team of 40 with in-house programming capability. As the Director of IT, Jared has hired almost everyone that eventually worked in his department. He has also overseen the acquisition of three smaller companies and retained several employees from those company's IT departments. 

Later, he was promoted again—this time to Chief Information Officer (CIO)!

He was now a C-level executive leader himself.

The goal of Cooper's owners was to continue growing until it could be purchased by a larger organization at a profit. In 2016, that goal was met when Medmax acquired Cooper for $400 million dollars. Meeks worked for Medmax for about a year following the acquisition to help lead the transition period, at which point he decided to move on and seek out a new opportunity with a different company. 

Jared Meeks and his wife, Katie.

The phenomenal reputation and resume he had built at Cooper and Medmax placed him in high demand, which empowered him to quickly find another job with a different organization. 

Jared now serves as Chief Information Officer (CIO) at Axolotl Medical, where he has embraced another opportunity to help a smaller company realize its potential for growth over time. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Axolotl discovered it was perfectly positioned to service not only work injuries, but COVID diagnoses as well. As a result, the company grew dramatically, increasing its employee count by over 300% by 2021. After the pandemic had passed, it returned to the approximate size it had been before the Pandemic. Meeks played an integral role in helping Axolotl navigate the challenges inherent in both sides of this expansion and contraction period. 

By the time Meeks became CIO at Axolotl in 2017, he was well set-up for long-term career success. In fact, at the time of this updated publication in 2025, Meeks is still serving in this capacity.

For the time being—and the foreseeable future—he is happy right where he is. But should anything change, he and his family enjoy peace of mind knowing Jared's knowledge and skills place him in high demand in a competitive global IT marketplace.   

Jared Meeks is an outstanding example of what it means to utilize Self-Action Leadership principles and practices to achieve impressive and fulfilling career successes and prosperity. From a middle class kid from a small community in Utah to a C-Level Executive at a growing company in a major metropolitan area, Jared has exemplified the great truth that in the long-run, self-action leaders each write their own story based on how hard you are willing to work, and how diligent, disciplined, and determined you are willing to be all along the way. 

In Your Journal

• What would you have to learn, accomplish, or sacrifice over time to achieve your dream job or ideal career?

• What is currently holding you back from pursuing this dream or ideal?

• What would it take for you to stop holding back and begin the pursuit of your dream job or ideal career?

• What is something you could do today to begin enhancing your knowledge and skills in your current professional position and function?

 

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, October 22, 2025

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 485th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 275th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 484 FF Blog Articles 

Click HERE for a complete listing of Freedom Focused SAL QUOTES  

Click HERE for a complete listing of Freedom Focused SAL POEMS   

Click HERE to access the FULL TEXT of Dr. JJ's Psalms of Life: A Poetry Collection

Click HERE for a complete listing of Self-Action Leadership Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Fitness, Heath, & Wellness Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Biographical & Historical Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Current Events, Cultural, Philosophical, & Miscellaneous Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Dr. JJ's Autobiographical Articles

.........................

Tune in NEXT Wednesday for another article on a Self-Action Leadership related topic.  

If you liked this blog post, please share it with your family, friends, colleagues, and students—and encourage them to bookmark this blog to access a new FREE article every Wednesday.

Click HERE to buy the SAL Textbooks

Chapter 7 Notes 

From Orphan to Executive

 

Chapter 6

From Orphan to Executive

The Dr. Nathaniel J. Williams Story

Dr. Nathaniel J. Williams, LSW, DSW, Ed.D., MBA, MPA, and MHS has earned a staggering SIX (6) advanced degrees or certifications over the course of his life and career.

He is one of only two people on Planet Earth that I know personally who has as many (or more) letters after his name as he has letters in his full NAME!

This impressive collection of diplomas includes TWO Doctorates—in Social Work and Education—THREE (4) Master's degrees—in Business Administration, Public Administration, Health Sciences, and a licensed certification in Social Work (LSW).

Just as he possesses many different knowledge sets and degrees, he likewise wears a lot of different hats in his eclectic life and successful career. 

These hats include: husband, father of eight (8) children, adjunct professor, published author, sought-after speaker, community advocate, television show host, and business executive.

For the past three decades, Nat has served as the Founder, CEO, and President of HumanWorks Affiliates, Inc., a cluster of eight (8) organizations that provide direct social services and management support to human service agencies.

HumanWorks and its affiliates operate on an annual budget of $30 million and employs over 250 people who, in-turn, care for hundreds of special needs individuals, including foster care children, just like Nat himself once was. One of its affiliates—ChildFirst Services, Inc.—has been recognized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for its work with children involved in child trafficking.  

Aside from leading a multi-million-dollar non-profit organization, he has been featured in books and magazines in conjunction with consulting and speaking to a variety of groups and organizations throughout the world. Nat is also the author of 10 books. He most recent is titled: The 4Ms of Safety, Service, and Success: Mapping, Mental Health/Wellness, Mediation, and Mentorship. 

Dr. Williams accomplished much of this before age 50—a truly remarkable feat.

And he has not slowed down much in intervening years.   

Back in 1970, who would have guessed what little 5-year-old Nat Williams—recently orphaned after the sudden and unexpected death of his mother—would someday become? At that time, Nat—the second youngest of 12 children—was attending the funeral of his mother and only parent. To this day, his father's identity and location remain unknown.

Immediately following his mother's funeral, five taxis waited outside to take Nat and his nine brothers and sisters (all minors) to five separate homes in New York City's foster care system in the Bronx. 

Reflecting back on these challenging circumstances, Nat has said: 

I felt sorry that my mother died. But rather than feeling sorry for myself, I recognized it wasn't the end of the line for me. In time, I learned to try to find the message, or the memo, in difficult experiences I faced to see what I could learn and then internalize from those experiences.

One day, while living in one of the many foster homes in which he resided as a kid, Nat sat on the curb brooding in the disappointment he felt when his siblings were unable to visit him as originally scheduled. As he sadly sat there alone by himself, the Executive Director of the home—Sister Mary Patrick—came along and asked Nat what was wrong. After voicing his plight and disappointment, Sister Mary disappeared and then returned almost magically with a bicycle for Nat to cheer him up. 

Thrilled and grateful for this unexpected gift, Nat rode off to show his cottage mates his new treasure. Then he let his friends take turns riding the bike. As he observed one of his friends pedaling down the pathway, however, a life changing impression—or message—swept over him. 

The epiphany that filled his mind and heart at that particular moment was the realization that if he wasn't careful, this situation—telling a sad story and then waiting for a handout—had the potential to set a negative precedent for the rest of his life. 

Sister Mary Patrick's kindness and compassion aside, it wasn't the story Nat wanted to replicate in his future. 

From that moment onward, Nat began to look at his life differently. He began to aspire to achieve great things in his life. He decided that someday he would be like Sister Mary Patrick herself, a caring leader of great capacity and compassion.

More specifically, he determined that one day he would be an Executive Director of an organization. 

So determined was Nat to eventually accomplish this dream and life design that he even started signing his name: Nathaniel J. Williams, Executive Director. 

Nat Williams as a young man.

This self-affirming habit spawned confusion and derision among some of his peers. 

Dr. Williams explains: 

People were always making fun of me, and would ask, "Why the hell are you saying you're an Executive Director, and why are you signing your name that way?" But I persisted because it gave me a pathway. As a leadership coach, I often tell people: "If it's not written down, it's not going to happen." Writing it down made it very clear to me and others what I wanted to do and be, so when drugs or alcohol or other temptations and distractions arose, I knew what my choices would be. I was able to plan my work and then work my plan. I was able to say yes or no to things based on my direction and goals in life instead of being socially pressured into doing the wrong things.

While drugs, alcohol, and other vices ended up plaguing many of his peers, Nat was able to make decisions based on pre-determined values and priorities to chart his own intelligent and proactive direction in life.

In other words, though he was unfamiliar with the vernacular of SAL at the time, Nat had made a conscious choice to become a SELF-ACTION LEADER by virtue of his decisions and direction moving forward in his life.  

He came to realize that the true gift he had received from Sister Mary Patrick that day in the foster care system was not the bicycle, but the lesson he learned from the experience—a lesson that would continue to influence and inform the rest of his life and career.    

Later, as a leadership coach, he would teach this same principle to others. 

I encourage people to find the message behind the moment rather than being overwhelmed by the moment itself. I try to help them understand that there is always something to take away from every experience. The question is: what is it? If I can learn something positive from every experience, then I can turn it into a gift for myself and others.

From a young age, Nat had a deep desire to be a leader. As he saw the needs around him, he began to take initiative to fill those needs. His teen years became a harbinger of the hard work, focus, and proactivity that would mark his life and career for the next several decades.

Like most teenagers, he came across opportunities to get involved in drugs, alcohol, and other temptations and distractions common to adolescents. The negative consequences of getting involved with such activities, as well as their incompatibility with his personal and professional goals became powerful deterrents for Nat. The more he eschewed such activities, the less people tried to coax him off the SAL pathway he had chosen. He attributes this to his leadership-oriented personality and initiative, which had the benefit of tacitly, but clearly broadcasting the message: I'm not interested in that kind of stuff.  

He specifically remembers one of his foster care cottage mates who got hold of some marijuana laced with PCP. The boy then stripped naked and climbed the stairs to the third floor of the foster home where he opened up a window in preparation to "fly." Fortunately, he was found before he jumped, but the young man was never the same after this incident, and spent the rest of his life in a psychiatric ward.  

Such experiences served to powerfully reinforce Nat's ever-growing resolve to stay focused and avoid dangerous and risky behaviors.  

After high school, Nat attended a community college in New York City for three semesters. He also worked in a home for mentally disabled adults. Through these work experiences, he became enthralled by the realization that he could make money while contributing meaningfully to the lives of others who needed his help. Seizing upon his newfound employment opportunities with characteristic vigor and vim, it was not uncommon for Nat to put in 18-20 hour workdays. Thus began his lifelong commitment to hard work and his personal quest to improve the lives of the disabled.  

Nat was only 28 years old when he founded HumanWorks Affiliates, Inc, which eventually grew into a conglomerate of eight (8) additional companies focused on human care services that make up HumanWorks today.

These companies include: 

HumanWorks Affiliates, Inc. 

ChildFirst Services, Inc.

ChildPromise, Inc.

FunWorks

LifeKnow

Phoenix Services, Inc.

Spectrum Community Services

Spectrum Social Services

In addition to this massive career project, Dr. Williams has served on the Board of Directors for several other organizations and hosted a weekly television talk show in Pennsylvania.

In addition to his heavy work schedule, Nat made time in his life for an even higher priority: his family. He got married and had two children. Then, following a divorce from his first wife, he remarried and has since had five more children, including one with autism, in conjunction with adopting a sixth (his niece from Liberia), making him and his wife, Tade (pronounced Tah-day), the parents of eight (8) and the grandparents of two (2).

Between 2006 and 2009, Nat shifted his focus to increasing his formal education. In an extraordinary burst of energy and focus, he completed four (4) graduate degrees, including a: Master's of Business Administration (MBA), Master's of Public Administration (MPA), Master's of Human Services (MHS), and a Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) in a period of only four (4) years' time.

Nat earned two of his five degrees from Lincoln University of Pennsylvania and Cheney University of Pennsylvania—two of the oldest African American universities in the United States. In 2007, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania made Dr. Williams their first ever year-long Frederick Douglass Institute's Scholar-in-Residence. In addition to these responsibilities, Nat has also served as an adjunct professor at two different universities.  

Another of Dr. Williams degrees, his Doctorate in Education, was earned at Fielding Graduate University—the same place Dr. JJ received his Ed.D. It was through a mutual friend and professor at Fielding that Dr. Williams and Dr. JJ became acquainted.  

Nat earned his MBA—Master's of Business Administration—from Strayer University. 

He has since added a Doctor of Social Work (DSW) degree from the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles in 2020 and was certified as a Licensed Social Worker (LSW) in 2021. 

To top off his storied academic journey, Nat has further been recognized with TWO (2) Honorary Doctorates of Humane Letters. The first to so honor him was Lackawanna College in 2018. The second was Kutztown University in 2021. He also possesses a Letter of Qualification as a Superintendent of Schools (PK-12) from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

During his journey to the top of his field, Nat faced challenges rooted in his race and background. For example, he started out in life being "poor and black" in New York City with virtually nothing materially or financially. But instead of focusing on what he did not have as a young Black orphan in a challenging urban environment, Nat chose to focus on what he did have, what he could do and become, and what he might learn from each one of his many life and career experiences. 

Truly, he was a classic example of an authentic Self-Action Leader who was naturally attracted to helpful coaches and mentors and encouraging teachers and took advantage of every opportunity he was blessed with along the way. Just as importantly, he has dedicated the rest of his life to helping others become successful by following the same SAL principles and practices that guided him—and continue to guide him.  

According to Dr. Williams, if you are going to succeed in transcending less than ideal external circumstances, it is crucial to work with what you have and believe that what you have isn't all bad. 

"You've got to work with what you have, 

and you've gotta believe that what you have isn't all bad."

—Dr. Nathaniel J. Williams

In hindsight, Nat doesn't feel sorry for himself for being orphaned at five, or that he had to struggle uphill against a variety of external forces to realize his present success. Rather, he recognizes that each life experience played a distinct role in helping to guide, mold, and shape his character, work ethic, and personality. This productive paradigm and positive perspective led to incredible inner growth, strength, and resilience that has, over time, led to a powerful transformation and recasting of his outer reality.  

Thus, Nat has truly come to realize the great SAL truth uttered by Plutarch of antiquity and Otto Rank in more recent times: what you achieve inwardly changes your outer reality.  

"What you achieve inwardly changes your outer reality." 

—Plutarch & Otto Rank

Dr. Williams is a quintessentially self-made man, yet he is also quick to concede the importance and value of enlisting the help of others and involving them along the way. He further emphasizes that developing sincere relationships of complete transparency with friends, teachers, and mentors is essential to your long-term success.  

Nat's powerful personal and professional story underscores and highlights the power of Self-Action Leadership in helping oneself to realize one's full potential for growth, success, happiness, and inner peace. 

Dr. Williams has positively influenced and helped many people along the way and will no doubt continue to leave a positive and lasting legacy for his children, grandchildren, colleagues, clients, and patients.  

The Quotable Nat Williams

• "My mission is to bring some transparency to the things we do in our lives that tend to mystify us and seem complicated—and then be a conduit for that information. Things often look larger than life, and can be very difficult to deal with, but I think there are some commonalities that flow through our individual experiences that we can come to identify and then effectively manage." 

• "You have got to recognize that you've gotta work with what you've got, and you've gotta believe that what ya got ain't bad."

• "You've got to recognize and accept what you've been given, and then figure out a way to work with it—and work with others."

• "Everything isn't a burden. Everything isn't a challenge. Difficulties can be seen as a blessing. They can be seen as a conduit for major change. It is your perspective that matters most." 

• "If you study a lot of successful people, you'll find a commonality among them all in that they've each taken what was given to them and rather than look at it as a burden, they've found a way to work with it."  

• "So often people live their lives based on how they've been hurt, and that's why I think the hurt keeps compounding itself—they just keep looking for the same thing to keep happening, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy." 

• "The most powerful words in the English language are: "Cut it out!"

• "I am my own worst enemy, and if I don't have people around me that can tell me to cut it out, I'm going to do some things that will really hurt the legacy I'm trying to build." 

• "I remember somebody sharing with me years ago that you are not going to do better than your five closest friends."

• "I try to make sure I surround myself with people who can afford to tell me the truth."

• "You need other people to help you stay on the straight and narrow and you've got to be transparent yourself."

• "There were things I needed to go through to get to where I am today."

• "There's a "Take Away" in every experience. The question is: what? If I can identify that take away, I can possibly turn it into a gift for somebody else, too." 

• "How can I make the most of what life has given me?"

Click HERE to learn more about Dr. Nathaniel J. Williams, DSW, Ed.D., MBA, MPA, MHS, LSW

Click HERE to visit HumanWorks Affiliates, Inc.

Click HERE to visit ChildFirst Services, Inc.

Click HERE to visit Dr. Williams' LinkedIn Page

In Your Journal

• Dr. Williams faced and surmounted many difficulties on his journey to personal, familial, and professional success. What challenges do you face along the road to your own personal, professional, and relational potential? 

• What can you learn from Dr. Williams' example that will help you transcend your own life's adversity?

• Dr. Williams' is an unusually ambitious example of pursuing higher education. Where are you at in your formal educational journey? Do you have any goals or ambitions to further your own formal education? If so, what are they and what do you need to do to take the next step forward in your journey to realize your personal educational vision?  

 

—Dr. JJ

Friday, October 17, 2025

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 484th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 274th consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.   

Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 483 FF Blog Articles 

Click HERE for a complete listing of Freedom Focused SAL QUOTES  

Click HERE for a complete listing of Freedom Focused SAL POEMS   

Click HERE to access the FULL TEXT of Dr. JJ's Psalms of Life: A Poetry Collection

Click HERE for a complete listing of Self-Action Leadership Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Fitness, Heath, & Wellness Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Biographical & Historical Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Current Events, Cultural, Philosophical, & Miscellaneous Articles

Click HERE for a complete listing of Dr. JJ's Autobiographical Articles

.........................

Tune in NEXT Wednesday for another article on a Self-Action Leadership related topic.  

If you liked this blog post, please share it with your family, friends, colleagues, and students—and encourage them to bookmark this blog to access a new FREE article every Wednesday.

Click HERE to buy the SAL Textbooks

Chapter 6 Notes