“You’ve crossed the chasm, deep and wide, why build this bridge at evening tide?”
An excerpt from The Bridge Builder by Will Allen Dromgoole
There were times in my life when I was not quite sure where I was going or what I was going to do next. Now, let’s be clear. My parents had a plan for my life: Get a good education, get a good job, get married, have a family, and live a good life; a life that higher education and hard work could afford me. I also had dreams to be the Michael Jordan stopper and when my basketball career concluded, I would become a teacher and coach.
What is that saying, “Man plans and God laughs”? While my parents’ plan gave me direction and my dream gave me drive, life came at me with twists, turns, traumas, tragedies, opportunities, and hope. There was one constant through it all: There was always someone willing to share their story and/or provide guidance based on their experience. A willingness to share their roadmap.
Like many, I choose the celebration of another year around the sun to reflect on my life. The wins, the losses, and the what-ifs. As I reflected on my life and did some introspection, I wondered what I had accomplished and what I could offer others in return.
When my K(No)w Roadmaps podcast co-creator, Shantel Sullivan, overheard my conversation with a colleague and friend, she remarked that there was “something special” about our exchange. There was laughter, seriousness, and an intellectual exchange of thoughts and ideas.
More importantly, she gleaned some knowledge from the little that she was able to hear. What I realized from that conversation was that I had amassed a phenomenal group of diverse, highly accomplished, and superbly intelligent industry and thought leaders. It has been these individuals who helped me adjust my compass along the journey of my life.
K(No)w Roadmaps was born! An idea, an opportunity, a vehicle to share with the world the wealth of knowledge that has been freely and openly shared with me. Mentors, coaches, colleagues, peers, and ordinary people have shared with me so the chasms in life I would face would not be so detrimental, or at a minimum, there would be an obstacle I recognized and knew I was “facing just what other men have met” (from “See It Through,” Edgar Guest).
I did not and do not want to preach or even teach. I want my guests to share their stories, what they experienced, and the compass they used to navigate their life’s roadmap.
Real conversations. No blueprint. Real life. Real solutions. If you “Know” where you are going or if you have “No” idea what to do next, K(No)w Roadmaps is for you! Join my friends and me as we lift as we climb.
K(No)w Roadmaps can be viewed on YouTube or heard on Spotify and all popular podcast channels.
Walter L. Douglas Jr. is a proud member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
