Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Sophia Khousadian.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Dr. Khousadian. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Well, I believe we all have our own journey and along the way we meet people and go through situations that shape us into the person we are. A brief background on me: I have a Bachelors in Liberal Studies with the focus on Special Education; My Masters is in Educational Psychology and my Doctorate is in Education and Psychology in Organizational Leadership. I am a Professor at 2 different private Universities for Undergraduate, Masters and Doctoral programs. I am the Co-founder of G.L.O.W. Conferences, which is an annual leadership conference. The importance of education was instilled in myself, my sister and my brother from a very young age. We were expected to do well in school, but my mother, being an educator, never seized to emphasize the importance of shaping us as a whole. Our educational standards were high, but there was just as much of an expectation to be kind, respectful, honest, humble and just overall a good person. I believe this helped us achieve success, not only academically and professionally, but also in life as well. We were brought up to be adaptable, as well as resourceful, and that in itself is a great leadership characteristic. During my doctoral program, I met my fellow co-founder of G.L.O.W. Conferences, Stephen Adamu, as well as other members of the organization (Nicole Salazar). We shared similar morals, values and visions. We were both educators looking to take a leap of faith and help future leaders have their voices heard. I am a firm believer in surrounding yourself around people who share similar visions as you in order to take action and make a difference in the world. This is what initiated the start of G.L.O.W. Conferences….
Has it been a smooth road?
Someone once said, “There is no smooth road into the future: but we go round, or scramble over the obstacles.” Our challenges make us better and give us room to grow. Being able to get out of our comfort zone helps us grow and gives us perspective. I was born and raised in California. My family moved from Armenia to Los Angeles in 1988. Like any other move, it comes with trials and tribulations; whether it be finding a new job, learning a new language, making new friends and creating a home in this new location. Growing up, we had many financial hardships. We worked through it all and our parents worked day and night in order to provide us with a private school education. No one in my family spoke the language and both my sister and I started Kindergarten in ESL classes, without speaking a word of English. However, we managed and probably even exceeded our own expectations.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Global Leaders for Organizational Welfare story. Tell us more about the business.
First and foremost, G.L.O.W. stands for Global Leaders for Organizational Welfare. G.L.O.W. Conferences was founded by Doctors of Education and Organizational Leadership. It is an Organization that promotes Conferences for Global Leaders once a year and the vision of G.L.O.W. is to foster and empower innovative individuals that are invested in success strategies, teamwork, talent management, and leadership skills. The mission of G.L.O.W. is to not only develop leaders, but also to improve the welfare of the community. G.L.O.W. also donates a % of its profits to City of Hope Cancer Treatment Foundation, as it is a nonprofit dear to our hearts. G.L.O.W. is an Annual Conference that promotes discussion of current topics and concepts and allows Worldwide Leaders to collaborate and exchange ideas. Our Journal submissions are open to various topics, yet centered on Leadership in those disciplines. We strive for Excellence in Conference Participants and we are hopeful that our 2021 conference will take place in Palm Springs, CA. The Global Leaders for Organizational Welfare is an organization based in Los Angeles, CA, but we pick a different location each year to hold our conference. The primary purpose of G.L.O.W is to motivate worldwide leaders to promote organizations in their own countries. The Conferences are open to both presenters and non-presenters, which means Conference submissions will be given the opportunity to have their Paper submitted for Publication, whether they present or not. You may find more information at: https://glowconferences.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I am in the Educational and Entrepreneur industry. I think this major shift is actually happening now. With CoVid-19, we are seeing an adjustment take place. Many educational organizations are shifting towards a hybrid or all online based community. This is for the entrepreneurial world as well. We see so many individuals using Instagram and YouTube as a form of advertising and spreading awareness. It is pretty amazing what the power of social media can do. We see a diverse group of people having a voice and shining light on topics that we didn’t necessarily think about before. This is the new era and the future generation is changing the way we see things. They are providing perspective that wasn’t there before. I believe both of these platforms will become more technology based and we will be seeing more people working on their own schedules in the comfort of their own homes. Is this to say this is easier? No. Being able to manage and distinguish between your personal and professional life when there isn’t a clear separation can be difficult. However, we will see people’s leadership characteristics stand out and see who is actually making a difference in the workplace and who the leaders in the workplace are. As for the educational community, unfortunately, I keep reading about many parents complaining about having their children home due to the pandemic, and although I understand the importance of emotional and social growth, school is a place focused primarily on academics. Educators seem to have this informal responsibility to educate, discipline, nurture, provide emotional and social growth and so much more. Children spend more time in school than at home and the teacher really shapes the child’s perspective and understanding. I also see so many parents taking initiative and making this experience a positive one by creating learning centers for children in their homes and those are the parents that are modeling and providing this positive reinforcement for their child. During this time of uncertainty, I believe we must all try our best, but most of all remember to be kind, considerate and adaptable.
Pricing:
- $185.00 USD Registration fee via PayPal to: Global Leaders for Organizational Welfare.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://glowconferences.org/
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/g.l.o.w.conferences/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/g.l.o.w.conferences
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/glowconferences
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/authwall?trk=gf&trkInfo=AQFkSZKmhACyZgAAAXO6zy8YyZFv5cnl2uoNJtY3ppNQZgknNWchfjBM8L8gI26dUDMaj0haymjoj7KCpDH8bCNhgXTzH5eUywlXbMIb37XSEjU5t4vYEu0k4y11dh5aGLMsq4c=&originalReferer=https://glowconferences.org/registration&sessionRedirect=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fglowconferences%2F
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