A fun and high energy course was experienced by us at Activ8 with the ladies of the Sto:lo Nation in Chilliwack! Sto:lo Business Association and Sto:lo Community Futures leaders came together to learn and share information on how to best reach out to encourage the vitality and growth of more Indigenous businesses in the Sto:lo Nation's 24 communities.

The 6 hour workshop consisted of knowledge exchange around identifying the goals and values of an organizations in order to align them with the "customers" (members) interests and how to plan a strategy that gets results. The group gained a deeper understanding of how people are wired and what motivates us as humans to act, in addition to learning sales and marketing outreach efforts that are essential in a complex business environment.

Considering our attention spans are less than that of a fruit fly today, it requires serious creativity, engagement, persistence and ongoing communication in order to keep a target audiences' interest and encourage them to acquire a higher level of skills, in the case of nation sponsored education programs.

The Sto:lo women were active and lively participants (loads of laughter and shared experiences) in gaining valuable communications expertise and coaching know-how to better assist others on their career path, and to more quickly reach their own work and life goals.

First Nation Program Managers and Education Administrators have a challenging role in motivating and inspiring others to participate in their community offered programs, as there are a million other things taking up space in each member's mind!

Understanding how humans are wired and gaining more tools in the leadership toolbox, such as the ability to walk people through goal setting steps, persevering, overcoming obstacles and obtaining success, gives nation managers the resources that make their role easier, way more fun and increasingly rewarding.

Just ask the ladies of Sto:lo!