April 22

Finding Resources for a Vision

The following is a synopsis of the Imagining in Action Open House Discussion hosted on April 29th, 2022 with guest speaker Dr. Felecia Froe. Felecia explored with us how we have access to ALL the resources we need to bring BIG ideas to life … turns out, it all begins with our resourcefulness! 

About Felecia Froe

Felecia Froe, MD is the founder of an investment company focused on empowering professional women to build wealth and achieve financial freedom through social impact investing. As a real estate syndicator, Felecia has partnered with like-minded investors and has raised money for several social impact projects.

Additionally, she has written many Best Selling books including How to Create Wealth that Outlives You as well as being an advocate for the great work others are doing in their communities through her regular Podcast Money With Mission.

Finding Resources for a Vision

One of the obstacles we face when bringing our bold vision to life, can be our relationship with the resources required to do so. We may feel that we don’t have the resources for such an undertaking, or we may not be confident in our ability to access those resources.  The vision gets stuck on the vision board. 

However, resources are an important aspect of making our Yonder Star vision into reality. In a recent open house discussion, Dr. Felicia Froe unpacked for us how we can approach our current relationship to resources and resourcefulness.

First of all, what do we mean by resources?

Resources include all of the assets needed by a person or an organization to make their vision a reality.  Resources such as money, materials and people as well as strategies or expertise to name a few. 

Resourcefulness is the ability to solve problems, overcome obstacles, and devise ways to accomplish something. When considering our bold vision, resourcefulness can be the ability to figure out where and who the resources are to achieve the vision. For example fundraising, arranging for services in kind, mobilizing support, and engaging those who have the skills we do not have. BOLD visions and BIG ideas don’t become a reality when we try to do it alone.

Do you consider yourself to be resourceful? Are you someone who is “scrappy”, or a problem solver? Or do you balk at big visions because you worry that you don’t have the resources to make them happen?

One of the questions we delved into at the open house discussion was whether resourcefulness is innate or was something that could be learned. One school of thought is that it’s a personality trait that’s inherent, and some folks are just born with it. 

Others believe it can be developed - a skill that can be learned, and that at the core of learning or developing resourcefulness is the mindset and the belief that there IS a solution, and that we can figure it out. 

One such person is author and speaker Marie Forleo whose recent book is called Everything is Figureoutable. She writes that having this belief at your core changes how you approach a problem, goal or vision and approach the resources that are required to solve the problem or achieve the goal. Deciding that everything is figureoutable or that you are resourceful enough is the first step in learning the required skills, finding a person with the relevant skill set, raising the funds and collaborating with people who can work with you on your vision.

What stands in the way of the belief that anything is figureoutable?

One of the things that can stand in the way of this belief is what is known as imposter syndrome, the belief that you don’t know what you are doing and the fear that others will discover you’re a fraud. Imposter syndrome can paralyze you and prevent you from taking action. This might happen when you are facing a new situation where you truly don’t know what you are doing, but it can also happen when you are an experienced professional. 

For some people, imposter syndrome can be fleeting, and for others, it can be ongoing, showing up every time we want to take actions outside of our everyday know-how. The problem is, our BOLD visions are born out of something our community or the world needs, but doesn’t have.  To achieve these visions, it’s inevitable that we will bump up against our own imposter syndrome. 

One of the open house attendees spoke about overcoming his imposter syndrome by realizing that while he didn’t know what he was doing, neither did anyone else! This may not strictly be true, but one of the most freeing things he shared learning in his life, in so many situations, we are ALL making it up as we go along - especially when doing something new and different.

Simply overcoming our personal imposter syndrome may not be enough to chase away the fear, and drive us to take action. A BOLD vision such as ending world hunger, or equity and liberation for all people can seem like an impossible task. Facing the enormity of all we imagine it will take to accomplish the vision has us turn away and stay with what we know or have already. 

It may be counterintuitive, but in the moment we want to turn away, the truth is, turning towards our vision, we find the next action to take and the inspiration to take it.

Besides, problems and obstacles can get a bad rap. Sometimes it is those problems that can bring out the resourcefulness in us, and the resources show up precisely when the need arises.

Even fear gets a bad rap, when often, the size of our fear can be an indication of how invested we are in the vision. And one of the biggest antidotes to fear is taking small action. 

PRO TIP: When you feel so worried about what could go wrong that you are unable to take action, sit down and write out the worst that could happen. Articulating the worst can be just the thing to show you that you are indeed resourceful enough to deal with even the worst case scenario.

What if there is no path?

One of my favorite stories about forging a path is that of Roger Bannister, and his achievement of the 4 minute mile in 1954. Prior to his achievement, it was thought to be a physiologically impossible feat. However, once he achieved it, others began to do it as well. This shows that the belief that you can figure something out or achieve something can come a lot easier if others have done it. 

A personal example for me was writing a book. For years, I wanted to write a book, but I genuinely thought that book-writing wasn’t for people like me - a Black girl from a small Caribbean island who was more interested in math and chemistry than literature and writing. Then one year, at a conference I went to, there were a number of women there who had written and published their books on a variety of topics. That got me thinking - why not me? A few years later, I wrote that book.

While it can be hard to hold onto the belief that we can find solutions and resources for things that have never been done before, some do.  For some people, the motivation is a desire to prove others wrong. For others, it is a calling that they cannot ignore.  A purpose and a vision that is bigger than any fears or doubts can move mountains.


Activating our greatest resource.

When you think about a bold vision, what do you hear? Do you hear a challenge? Do you hear a calling? How is what you hear calling forth resourcefulness?

While we may not feel as though we have the resources to bring our big visions to life right now, tapping into our resourcefulness is the first thing to do to start the journey. 

Stay committed to your vision, tell everyone and see what resources appear. 

Synopsis written by iLumn8 contributing author Safiya Robinson, in-house copy editor Susan Bouet and founder Anne Peterson.
Check out Safiya’s book! -  Everything is a thing - my journey to living a truly authentic life

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