Empowerment Journey with Sonia Jackson Myles: Spreading Love, Eradicating Hate, and Driving Social Justice | The Sister Accord®️ CEO’s Insights (2020 Re-release)

Deneen L. Garrett:00:05 00:55 Welcome to an intimate conversation with women of color. This podcast provides women of color, LGBTQ+, and allies a platform to use their voices. Join us as we share our personal journeys. I am your host, Deneen L. Garrett. Hey, an intimate conversation with women of color listeners. Thank you so much for coming back every week to hear what my guests have to say. Everybody is sharing their personal journey, so it means a lot that you take time to listen to us. So please continue to listen, subscribe, and share, and let's elevate voices of women of color together. Now to today's episode. Thank you so much for joining.
Sonia Jackson Myles:00:55 00:59 You're welcome. Thank you for the invitation. I'm so honored.

Deneen L. Garrett:00:59 01:19 It's my absolute pleasure. And so I want to introduce you to our listeners today. We're speaking with Sonia Jackson-Miles. Sonia is the founder, president, and CEO at the Sister Accord LLC, doing business as the Accord Group. Sonia, tell us a little bit more about yourself.

Sonia Jackson Myles:01:19 01:21 Oh boy. How long do you have? I know.

Deneen L. Garrett:01:25 01:28 I know.

Sonia Jackson Myles:01:28 03:50 Well, let's see here. I, so I am a, um, I'm originally from Saginaw, Michigan, and currently reside in Cincinnati, Ohio. I went to Florida A&M university, yay, Rattlers, uh, where I pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority incorporated. And, um, then I started my corporate career. in the purchasing world. And I started at Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan. Then I went to the Gillette Company in Boston, Massachusetts. And then Procter & Gamble acquired Gillette. And I led part of the integration of Gillette into Procter & Gamble. And they created a role for me, Global Media Sourcing Director. And so I designed, I led the design of that organization, which was responsible for $7 billion, buying all media for Procter & Gamble, the largest advertiser in the world at the time. And then left P&G in 2013 to start my own business. I oftentimes will say I had to bet on me. Um, and so I left corporate America and started the sister accord, which is my mission to have a billion girls and women learn how to love themselves and each other. And now my curriculum is in school systems across the country. Uh, the sister accord leadership development program, and then my sisterhood and brotherhood in the workplace platform is where I spend a lot of time now, uh, with the accord group. and with the Sister Accord, helping organizations and companies and leaders understand what it means to really have a culture where everyone has a seat at the table, a culture that roots out toxic behavior so that the entity can drive productivity and profitability. I have two sons and one husband and a dog, and that's all I can handle. And I'm just so honored to be able to spend time serving. And that's really what I view my mission and my company is all about service to others.

Deneen L. Garrett:03:50 04:54 That's amazing. You know, like how much time do we have? I know, right? And we haven't even gotten into the questions. Yeah. So you know what? So one thing that you didn't mention is actually what connected us together. And that's the Disney Dreamer Academy. So my son, um, was a dreamer a couple of years ago. Yes. And got, you know, I was able to tag along and I thought I, you know, I was just going to hang out, you know, at the pool or whatnot with the parents. No, Disney, you know, right. Everybody had a whole different, you know, idea. And so we had an opportunity to meet and it's been a blessing ever since. So, so I'm like, I'm so thankful for our friendship and our relationship. And you are definitely a person who I can say, Hey, Sonya. And yeah, you know, that's right. So thank you. I greatly appreciate that. Yeah. Yeah. And it, you know, and it goes to exactly what you said, that your mission is to serve. And so that's part of server to servitude. So again, I do thank you for that.

Sonia Jackson Myles:04:54 05:51 And I just want to take a moment, and you know I've said this before publicly, and I'll say it privately, you know, I'm consistent. I'm not going to tell you something privately that can't be shared publicly. And, you know, when you meet someone, And they honor and keep their word. It's a beautiful thing. And I will never forget what you said, because you put it into the universe. Hey, I'm going to bring you to AT&T. I'm going to connect you to folks in AT&T, because we need to hear this message. And you did just that. You didn't stop. You introduced, and then you introduced some more. And then I had the opportunity to keynote. And that event, I still have people talking about that event. with the women of AT&T. So again, I just want to thank you again for just honoring your word and bringing me in to speak to your amazing organization.

Deneen L. Garrett:05:51 06:47 Oh, my pleasure. My pleasure. Anything I can do to help. So Sonia, you talk a lot about what you've done and you had, you've had an illustrious career, right? When people say, Oh, this person has had an illustrious career. I think that, you know, in the dictionary would see your picture. Thank you. I've been blessed. Yes. Yes. And then for a job to be made for you. Yeah, I know. Oh, that blew my mind. Wow. Right. I mean, so many of us are like, yeah, you know, I'm a person who believes in creating opportunities and So having an opportunity created for you, that's a testament to you, right? That that is, you know, that's just giving back to you, paying it forward back to you for everything that you do for others. And so why is it important for women of color to have a platform to use their voices?

Sonia Jackson Myles:06:47 09:02 Wow. You know, what a powerful question. And it's so critically important for us to find, do the work, okay? Because there's a lot of work involved in it. Do the work to find your voice so that you can effectively use your voice. And so that's what I spend a lot of time with young women on, to help them understand what it looks like to figure that out early in life, versus waiting until you're 40 and 50 years old, and then you have the awakening. And so in order to be in the boardroom, in order to be in the C-suite, in order to do whatever it is you desire to do, it's going to be important for women of color to really truly tap into the essence of their awesomeness. And in order to do that, then you have to go deep. You have to go inside and really understand, what do I stand for? And I used to say this all the time to my mentees, do you know what you stand for so that when something comes your way and it's not right, you will be able to use your voice to say that it's not right. And if you haven't done that hard work, I have seen people do and say things that were totally out of character. Because they did not draw that line and say, you know what, this is out of bounds for me. If this is what's happening, then the answer is no. And so I often will say to my mentees, I want you to learn how to say no to what you need to say no to. so that you can say yes to what you really need to be saying yes to. And so for us to tap into our voices and really get clear about our purpose and what we desire for our lives, we have to be able to then use that voice. And so it's critically important. It's the essence of everything.

Deneen L. Garrett:09:02 09:34 I like that essence of their awesomeness. You know, right there, diamonds, right? Jewels, jewels. I absolutely love that. And right now I'm thinking that's the title of this episode. Yes, I like that. Essence of their awesome, good stuff. And you're right about that. You need to know what you stand for so that you can stand up when the time comes. That's right. And again, say yes to something or saying no to something so you can say yes to other things and yes to yourself.

Sonia Jackson Myles:09:35 09:37 Absolutely, absolutely.

Deneen L. Garrett:09:37 09:50 Everything you've shared so far already speaks to, you know, why it's important and how you're using your voice for women of color. But tell us a little bit more, like what haven't you shared with how you're using your voice?

Sonia Jackson Myles:09:51 12:33 Well, it was, it was so funny when I started, when I started in corporate America, now I'm only 25. Anybody trying to do any math out there. So don't trip. I'm only 25, but when I started in corporate America and I started in the automotive industry, cause I love cars. I'm a car fanatic. And it was male dominated. So oftentimes, I was the only person of color, I was the only woman in many meetings. And so I was different. But guess what, I decided that I would embrace that difference, right, and help shine a light on that difference so that I was not the only one by the time I left there. So it was about having this pipeline of talent. So what did I do? I essentially became like a chief diversity officer, creating programs. I started the very first employee resource group. It was called Sisters Who Are Buying, SWAB. I said, I know it's an ugly name, but we need to come together. So here I was in a hundred year old company where people told me that I could not impact and make change. And what did I do? I made change because I decided it's a choice. I decided to use my voice to make a difference for others. It wasn't about me because I knew what God had for me had for me. All right, so I didn't have to worry about having a scarcity mindset. I could have an abundance mindset to make sure that other people could be blessed, could come into the organization, could do well. I could support them, give them with the resources that they needed to be successful. And that's exactly what I did. And I did not only do that internally. I also took up the banner for supplier diversity. so that I could drive giving companies their first POs in some instances, where they could then hire people in their communities. So many of the minority and women-owned businesses that you all see today, if they started in automotive, if they were at Ford Motor Company, in many instances, I was giving those people their first purchase orders. And I'm not talking about a million here and a million there. because we're always fighting over crumbs. I'm talking about big money, right? You know, come on, let's be real here. Let's let's get serious about this thing. If we're really going to change the trajectory of what's happening in our communities, we have to have these resources and jobs and economic stability and education, strong education systems. And so that's what I spent my time on while I was starting my career for a motor company.

Deneen L. Garrett:12:34 13:41 And so what you just said, like much of what you just described was what you were doing for other people. Your intentions were for other people. You were being used a vessel to impact other people. That's why they created that job for you. That's why you were able to leave, you know, P&G and start your company and then to flourish. And I mean, every time I look on Facebook and stuff, I know that you're doing, you know what I'm saying? And so it's, so I'm, You know, I'm truly honored that you took the time to speak with me because you have a lot going on, but you know, you honor our relationship and I appreciate that. And again, the reasons why you're blessed. So you said, thank you. You're welcome. So. You said earlier that it's critically important for women of color to have a platform to use their voices and that they have to do the work to find their voice. So to those that haven't found their voices yet, what else can you say to them? What suggestions and recommendations and pearls of wisdom do you have to share with them?

Sonia Jackson Myles:13:42 16:41 You know, I often ask when I am working with, whether it's clients or when I'm working in a mentoring session, what's that thing that burns inside of you? Like, what's that thing that you go to sleep thinking about? You wake up thinking about it. You can't shake it. It's who you are, but you might be afraid of moving forward. Listen, I ran for years away from the sister accord. Okay, because I had this job, I had all this money, I had the car, I had the house, I had the family, I had all the trappings of success, right? What God kept saying though to me was, but you do know that I have something else that I planted inside of you as I formed you in your mother's womb. And I kept saying, but I'm scared because we get comfortable. And so I would just say, That thing that's burning inside of you is your spirit and soul talking. The spirit and soul longs to do what they were created to do, right? So what happens is we think because we have money or because we have the title, oh, I've made it. No, no. What is important is are you feeding your soul? Are you nurturing your spirit? Because that will give you everlasting joy. See, happiness is fleeting. I know Mary J. Blige said, I just want to be happy. Well, okay, Mary, we get that. But happiness is circumstantial. Okay? It's temporary. depending on what's going on. Joy can exist in the midst of chaos. So what I was searching for was joy. How can I wake up with a level of joy that is like unparalleled? What do I need to do? And what I found was when I was operating in purpose, serving girls and women, helping them understand their power, that's when I really felt the magic, right? And so I just asked people to take Time not to be afraid to sit in silence Because when I sat in silence, I could really hear that's when I was really like, okay now I know what I need to do And then I would use my journal to write down what I was hearing. And once I started looking at the patterns of what I was feeling and hearing, I then decided that I was going to use my mouth to actually put it into the universe to say what it was that I wanted. How do I want to live my life? How do I want to serve? What's my legacy and once I started to ask these questions? And I and I paused long enough to answer them That's when the real joy and magic appeared in my life.

Deneen L. Garrett:16:41 17:15 I Love that I love that. And you know, so what you just talked about is that pause that you talked about at the event, taking a pause, focusing on your purpose. You remember. I remember that. I absolutely remember that. And so what resonates with me as well is that you said you were running away. And I've had a few experiences the last couple of weeks, the last week, over the last week, and what it said to me is, it's time to catch up to the vision.

Sonia Jackson Myles:17:16 17:18 Mm hmm. Yes.

Deneen L. Garrett:17:18 17:49 You know, having conversations with people and, hey, had you considered doing this? Oh, wow. You know, I would love to see this and so on and so forth. There's people who see things in you or see what's ahead that you don't see what's around the corner. You don't see it yet. So for me, it's about catching up to the vision. So the vision has laid for me. It's time for me to catch up to that. So I love what you're saying. And it all fits together. And you know, in the spirit and a soul talking, that's some deep stuff, sis.

Sonia Jackson Myles:17:49 17:54 Oh, it's real deep. It can be scary deep sometimes.

Deneen L. Garrett:17:54 18:05 Right? Oh, my God. So I so thank you for your time. But before we wrap, what would you like to leave our listeners with?

Sonia Jackson Myles:18:05 19:53 What I would say is this. It's time to design your destiny. And you've heard me talk about this at Disney and other places. where I've spoken is we all have an assignment. And if you think about what's happening in the world today, It's no coincidence, sister, that you and I and the people listening, that we all have breath in our bodies. Because guess what? We have an assignment. Every single person take away. So it's 7.8 billion people on the planet. Let's take away the toddlers and the babies who they're bringing joy to in their own way. But let's think about the people who are old enough to recognize what their assignment is. how they can spread love, how they can eradicate hate, how we can really drive for social justice in all aspects of our lives is really what we all must be focused on. So often we will think, oh, well, that's that leader's responsibility or that's their responsibility over there. I want everyone who is hearing this to think about what is your part in this? What is your part in using your voice to solve the world's most egregious issues that we are facing? And then have a sense of urgency around doing your part, because every single person alive has a role to play. And so that's my message and I'm repeating it and I'm sharing it. You'll see it on all my posts. I'm being consistent with it because I want people to wake up and recognize the power that truly lies within.

Deneen L. Garrett:19:53 20:07 Sonya Jackson-Miles, I so appreciate you. I appreciate your time. I appreciate you. Thank you. You're welcome. And thank you for coming and talking with us on an intimate conversation with women of color. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Sonia Jackson Myles:20:07 20:07 Thank you. You too.