Today we’d like to introduce you to Amelia Williamson.
Hi Amelia, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I am born and raised in Los Angeles. I have always been extremely curious about people and systems. How they work, relate to one another, prevent/stop/stall and impact everything around us. To this end, I began my career in the nonprofit world. I have worked for a mix of small and national CBO’s and in 2007, I joined the world of philanthropy and began my Board Service journey. Through my practice, AWA Consults I have been able to optimize my skill set with my passion for people and systems all in the direction of moving communities forward and pushing my clients to lead with empathy, equity and focus.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When I reflect on what has brought me here, I have to thank my mom and Dad and their hippie approach to parenting. We did not have all we needed from a financial standpoint and in some cases basic needs went unmet. My mother — an aspiring comic and teenage mom from Colorado met my Dad (also from Colorado) here in Los Angeles and life began. My father was a musician and artisan. He was the breadwinner and my mom kept the home. We quickly grew from a 2-7 child household and lots of trials and tribulations along the way spanning from moving often, missing lots of school, and so on. What I remember most was the love, the laughter. All of the activities my mom figured out how to get us involved in and how on the hardest days, I held on to the fact that I had six siblings who had my back, parents who loved me unconditionally and with such intensity. It built an interesting foundation and perspective and love for what should matter in life. I also had the good fortune of having an incredible tribe around me, a community who was always rooting for me, pushing me, keeping my energy focused on the life I wanted to build and teaching me how to USE my life experience to guide me. As soon as I could take life into my own hands I did. I started working at 14, became the adult in the house and got myself in college 🙂
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
AWA Consults is a boutique social impact agency dedicated to helping organizations and philanthropists maximize their impact in the communities they serve. We specialize in philanthropic, nonprofit, and corporate social-responsibility advisement. We believe in leveraging our broad network to connect change-makers with one another. From community engagement and organizational design to board development and leadership coaching, AWA Consults serves as a trusted partner and guide through every phase of bringing your mission to life. We recognize that purpose has to harmonize with function and that an organization needs to be built on a solid platform in order to accomplish its goals. We develop and implement strategies and tactical solutions tailored to meet our client’s unique needs and believe in co-designing solutions. In short, we help you build a platform for success.
What does success mean to you?
AWA both recognizes and appreciates that our clients come to us at different points in their organizational and philanthropic journey. Success is meeting clients where they are and co-designing solutions and strategies to guide clients to their next phase of evolution.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.awaconsults.com
