Episode 65: Pride, Passion & the Courage to Start Again with Donald Van Dyke

Coffee & Change

Have you ever met someone that could bring a whiteboard to life? You know the type of person who lights up when they grab that marker and start creating, and connecting new ways of living and working the world? All in that limited canvas with an unlimited imagination for improving and doing better. Our story today comes from one of those unique beings on the planet. Donald Van Dyke is a Change and Transformation Leader who I had the pleasure of meeting in an interview almost six years ago. And while the interview began in a traditional way, I knew there was more story ready to burst out of this exceptional candidate I was meeting for the first time. And so with that, I handed him a marker and let him take the whiteboard. In that moment began a great friendship, when the student became the teacher and the opportunities to influence change using one’s story just unfolded before us. And while we have replaced the whiteboard for long walks in this pandemic, his passion for learning and leading is still as fervent as it was the day I first met him. In today’s episode Donald shares his own story in change and talks about the power of Authentic Grit, a term he coined while searching to understand what has made his journey so successful, with so much more still ahead. Enjoy the conversation. You can find more about Donald and his take on Authentic Grit on his LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donaldvandyke/