Focus Louisville Offers One Entrepreneur an Avenue to Reconnect with Her Hometown Business Community

Connection, community and belonging.

Those three words embody what I gained from participating in the June session of Focus Louisville at the Leadership Louisville Center. The funny thing is, I didn’t realize those fundamental elements were missing from my professional life until I got to experience them again through this outstanding leadership development program.

Here’s a little backstory.

I am a lifelong Louisvillian. My very first career job many years ago (I won’t say how many) was with our local business newspaper. I loved that job for a lot of reasons. I grew up there, cut my teeth there, and made some lifelong friends amidst the cubes in the bustling newsroom.

One of the things I did not appreciate at the time was that, as journalists, we had our fingers on the pulse of the business community. Even if all the details didn’t end up in print, we had the inside scoop on all the major players and companies, including mergers, downsizing, real estate deals and more. During my nearly 10 years at the paper, I personally got to know hundreds of small businesses and nonprofits, witnessing firsthand how they were making a real difference.

I truly felt connected to my community, and I took it for granted that would always be the case.

After I left the paper, I went on to work in a few nonprofit and corporate communications roles. Ultimately, I decided to combine all my skills and experience and go out on my own. I’ve been working for myself from home since 2012. I’ve been extremely fortunate to collaborate with amazing clients and do what I love every day, all while making a nice living.

That said, I don’t get out much — because I don’t have to.

Add to that — I know I’m not alone when I share this — the pandemic brought with it a sense of isolation and disconnection. (Hey, it’s a lot different when working from home behind my Zoom camera is a choice and not a mandate.) Of course, I have ventured back into the real world many times since then. My social circle is strong and wide, but I have never quite found the same sense of belonging in the business community that I enjoyed as a young professional.

Until now.

I have been aware of Leadership Louisville Center’s robust programming and profound impact my entire career. I always meant to apply to one of their programs, but it was never the right time, for whatever reason.

Because I’m changing gears and pursuing business acquisition opportunities this year, I knew exactly what I needed to do to re-enter (and re-introduce myself to) my local business community — sign up for Focus Louisville. This two-and-a-half-day intensive workshop was both empowering and overwhelming, in the best possible way.

I also want to emphasize that while FL is a great introduction to our city for professionals who are transplants to Louisville, it’s also inclusive to natives like me. It wasn’t just a refresher, either. I had so many “a ha” “oh, wow” and “you’re kidding me” moments over the course of three days, I started to question whether I really know my hometown at all!

Through engaging speakers, field trips, tours and hands-on activities, our FL class was immersed in community building. We connected with each other, business and nonprofit leaders, the city’s history, education, arts and culture. Our exposure to a diverse array of people and organizations showed us how we could think differently, instead of what we should think.

The agenda was packed and the days were long, but the time flew by. I was surprised by how energized I felt simply by participating, being present and actively listening. Speaking of listening, I picked up so many wise nuggets from our discussions. Like, raise your hand. Do the thing. Reach back to help. Small steps lead to big steps. All simple ideas, I know, but great reminders. And exactly what I needed to hear.

My biggest takeaway was, now that I am plugged back in to the business community, how am I going to leverage that? And I don’t just mean for myself.

On the last day of class, I made a formal commitment to myself and my entire FL class that I’m going to get out from behind my computer on a monthly basis, whether that’s at community events or business networking opportunities. I’m at an age and stage of my career where it’s time to give back what has been so freely given to me, so I’m going to be intentional about my service work and mentorship. Because I’m passionate about addiction recovery, I’m also exploring new ways to help out in that arena.

That’s just for starters.

Everyone I know who has participated in a LL program is still in contact with many of their cohort members, no matter how years have passed. Now I understand why. It’s so clear to me now that the Focus Louisville curriculum was carefully designed to not only help me and my classmates find our purpose through connection, but to amplify it.

I encourage you to amplify YOUR purpose by connecting with a Leadership Louisville Center program. You won’t be sorry. And you might see me there, too. Now that I’ve had a taste of LL’s incredible impact, I want to do all the things!

Amy Higgs is president of Write Is Might Louisville LLC, a marketing and public relations consulting firm based in Louisville.