Finding Your Way Through Uncertainty with Coach, Author, Trainer, and Consultant, Dr. Dorothy Bonvillain EP 37
\u201cOnce you\u2019ve tasted significance, success will never be enough." ~ John C. Maxwell \xa0 That statement, made by leadership expert, John C. Maxwell, near the end of a transformational leadership mission trip to Guatemala, really had an impact on Dr. Dorothy Bonvillain. She\u2019s been contemplating it ever since and is using it as the foundation for the work she does today.\xa0 \xa0 Dorothy has lived one of the most interesting lives I\u2019ve heard stories from. She\u2019s been a military wife for 50 years, having traveled the world, raised her children, earned her PhD in Leadership & Educational Administration, and built a career that allows her to use her considerable gifts and strengths in a way that\u2019s making a difference in the world.\xa0 \xa0 Today\u2019s conversation begins by touching on an article Dorothy wrote recently describing a particular challenge in today\u2019s world, and especially for military spouses. What do you do when you are alone, because your spouse is on some extended deployment, you feel lonely and abandoned, and in the course of your work a member of the opposite sex finds you attractive and propositions you?\xa0 \xa0 In her case, she was working in a shop as a salesperson and men were coming in to purchase gifts for their sweethearts (Valentine\u2019s Day, perhaps?). As Dorothy was helping them make appropriate selections for wives and girlfriends, some of the men took an interest in Dorothy and attempted to seduce her.\xa0 \xa0 Knowing what mattered most to her, Dorothy remained strong and resisted the temptation, but she understood that for many others, the temptation may be too strong, and some would fall. Today, she\u2019s focused on helping military spouses define their core values, which is how one discerns what\u2019s ok and not ok when faced with a choice. She works to help them discover their gifts and interests so they can find fulfilling work or build a business that allows them some sense of consistency and value when their lives are frequently unsettled through relocations and new assignments.\xa0 \xa0 She\u2019s asked herself: \u201cWhat would I have wanted a Sr. Military person or wife to have told me when I was young and just starting this life?\u201d And as she comes up with the answers to that question, she fills in the blanks and shares the wisdom with those who are now in the shoes she once wore.\xa0 \xa0 Dorothy\u2019s Bio Dr. Dorothy is a Certified Coach and Founder of Warrior Family Legacy Foundation (WFLF). The mission of WFLF is to Build Families and Create Legacy for military families through Personal Growth & Development, and to connect the philanthropic community to veteran and active-duty families for additional support. \xa0 Dr. Bonvillain earned her PhD in Leadership & Educational Administration at American University, Washington, DC. and has continued to invest in herself as a Coach, Author, Speaker, and Entrepreneur. With fifty years of service as the wife of an Army Ranger, Dr. Dorothy has a passion to serve as a \u2018Voice of Wisdom\u2019\xa0for our global military community and people who love them. \xa0 Her mission is building stronger families and inspire them to go from \u2018surviving to thriving.\u2019 In her book,\xa0Loving Your Life: 7 Steps for Military Wives, Dorothy offers practical steps in seven key areas of life. Her children\u2019s book,\xa0Wally Goes to School,\xa0introduces children (age 7-11) to leadership principles and the value of mentorship by parents, grandparents, and teachers. \xa0 Dorothy\u2019s experience crosses a broad, global spectrum, in part:
- Television Producer/Host: Access Tucson TV: "Military Wives: Serving Those Who Serve" (2015), \u201cLearning to Live on Purpose\u201d (2013-2014).
- Presenter/Keynote Speaker: Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program, Intercultural Management Institute, American University, \u2018Women in Business\u2019 Cochise College, \u2018Sisters & Brothers in Arms\u2019, Ft. Huachuca, AZ
- Special Consultant to Minister of Education, Sultanate of Oman: Team Lead and sole American, International Research Team.
- Program Manager:\xa0 Embassy of Saudi Arabia & National Council on US- Arab Relations, Washington, DC.
- Trainer/Curriculum Developer: General Dynamics Information Technology, Cultural Awareness/Cultural Competence.
- Chief of Partnership: TRADOC Culture Center, ISC Consulting Group.
- High School Principal, Sierra Vista, Arizona. \xa0