Want advocates to speak for you? Build your own Tribe of Cheerleaders

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the all-time points leader in the NBA. He won six NBA titles and countless other awards during his college and professional career. But very few people know that he is a published author and historian. I do because I actually used his book Black Profiles in Courage for my college thesis on modern insurrections.

I remember watching the incredible NBA Finals battles between The Los Angeles Lakers and The Boston Celtics in the 80s. It was hard to find two more evenly matched teams in terms of talent and hustle. Kareem was already recognized as the best center in the game. His sky hook was the unstoppable shot. He was also great at the foul line, so you had to respect his game. And he played phenomenal defense. He was an all around dominant player and incredibly well respected.

In 2012, I had the chance to meet this NBA legend and shake his hand at a school fundraiser I attended. When I shared with him my story and that I used his book for my thesis, his demeanor changed completely and he was entranced. Suddenly, no one else in the room existed and he wanted to know more about me. At the end of the short conversation he asked if I could share my thesis with him. I told him I had no idea where it was, but if I could find it I would. However, I was now working on changing the world through microgrid development and I thought this was a valuable opportunity communities of color to explore. He was immediately interested to learn more and we exchanged information.

Being your own biggest cheerleader is most important. But you will need to build a team and a Tribe as you grow and achieve.

People love to experience who you are and the more you share yourself, and your efforts, the more people want to get involved with you.

Becoming a super-achiever is about getting others to speak about you and your message or business because it’s something they want to do, not because you pay them to do it. The more you engage people in a way that makes them feel you have an interest in their success or what is important to them, the more you will have allies and cheerleaders that will tell other people about about you and testify to your leadership.