Vicky Colbert is the Founder and Director of Fundación Escuela Nueva, and co-creator of the Escuela Nueva pedagogical model, known for its effectiveness in improving the quality and relevance of basic education in underprivileged schools across Colombia and beyond. She is the 2013 WISE Prize for Education Laureate.
Vicky Colbert of Success | For me success means empowering others. And empowering others means empowering not only students, but adults and communities through education, in order to unfold the best of their talents. Furthermore, success means creating those tools so others can take advantage of them and empower themselves, and in hopes to promote important leaders in society. As more and more people are empowered, both through the education system and through personal relationships, that for me is the greatest definition of success. This meaning to have the greatest satisfaction of unleashing the talents of each individual, their human development.
My Highlights | I have received a lot of pride when I have witnessed results, in empirical dimensions and in qualitative relationships; by this I mean having the opportunity to see people grow in their human development. Also, another highlight is seeing the big impact that we have had over millions of children, adults and communities in the world. To have this evidence and to see these proven results I think is one of the most important aspects of my career and life. In addition of having big impact, is seeing that we have promoted individuals’ personal talents, and I think this is the most important part of life; through the right type of education, an education that is transformative and that really promotes human beings.
A Key Talent | It hasn’t been so much of a talent, as it has been of a strength, which is persistence. I am a very persistent person and until I don’t see that things are happening I don’t stop. But at the same time, I think I have the ability to understand people’s feelings and emotions; therefore I consider myself having some level of empathy, which is important when you are a leader. I am not giving a step-by-step piece; it is simply a result of many years of experience. I think that persistence and empathy are two crucial dimensions of leadership.
The Characteristics of Success | Precisely the strengths I mentioned earlier, persistence and empathy. Also, trying to empower others and always being intentional of having positive behaviours and feedback, instead of negativity. I think this has been extremely helpful in reaching my achievements. Furthermore, sizing up people and situations, is a fundamental ability, which has to deal with what we now call transformative leadership. It is a type of leadership where you empower your followers to get the best out of them.
Lessons I Have Learnt | The biggest lesson I have learned so far in my career and life journey is that the more you empower your followers the better results you have. This means trust, sharing with others, having a lot of patience, and taking initiative; but at the same time, the most important aspect is having respect for the dignity of others and those you work with.
Dealing with Doubt | Every time I have faced any level of self-doubt, fear or negativity, I take that difficulty as a challenge; a challenge that I must face and move forward with.
The Meaning of Life | I think the meaning of life is really giving yourself to others, and in our circumstance in a developing country, it is to drive social change and reduce inequity. The meaning of life is really unleashing the human potential of every person.
On Inspiring Others | To find, motivate and keep great people working with me, it is important to give them the space to grow. If you look at the team here at Fundación Escuela Nueva we have been together since the beginning of it all, we have the most senior persons here. And this is because we have unleashed their potential, empowered them, and most important given them the space to grow.
The Legacy I Would Like To Leave | I would like to leave a new approach to learning (which is not new) in the hands of millions of children, especially in the developing world, where they can learn in a different way so they can become leaders themselves. This is what the Escuela Nueva model promotes, and I feel that quality education is the most important variable for any kind of change, whether it is economical, political, cultural or social. Moreover, a good approach to learning is through our strategies, which precisely fosters working with other human beings and reaching one’s full potential.
Oscar Monama is a director of Strategy and Marketing for I Am Emerge Pty Ltd which he co-owns. It is a creative agency that creates value for money through creative concepts, derived from observing trends in consumer living and society, while immersing clients brands within consumer’s daily life activities in order to effectively fulfill business […]
Chris Bertish Legacy Project has a string of notable world firsts under his belt. He won the Mavericks Big Wave International surfing event in the biggest and heaviest waves ever recorded in the history of the sport. He also recently became the first person ever to cross any ocean on a SUP board, paddling 7500km’s […]
Anthony Christov is an art director currently designing the look for films at award-winning Pixar Animation Studios. He most recently art directored WALL•E. He worked in a similar capacity for the successful Finding Nemo animated feature and was the set designer for Cars and The Incredibles. My Definition Of Success | I think success is having […]
Asha De Vos | The Legacy Project has published several key research publications on Sri Lankan blue whales, which have led to this population being designated as a species in urgent need of conservation research by the International Whaling Commission (IWC). The IWC has since invited key Sri Lankan government personnel to participate in whale […]
Mark is a South African writer and director. He graduated with Honours in Dramatic Art from the University of the Witwatersrand. After completing his studies, he taught himself screenwriting and film appreciation before traveling to Los Angeles, where he worked as a script reader for several production companies.Since then, Mark has worked as a freelance […]
Lenora Billings-Harris TLP, CSP is an internationally recognized speaker, multicultural diversity expert, and author with more than twenty-five years experience in the public and private sectors. She served as an adjunct professor for Arizona State University, and is currently on the adjunct faculty of University of North Carolina-Greensboro. Lenora Billings-Harris TLP (The Legacy Project) Lenora received her […]
Penny Heyns TLP is, without doubt, the world’s greatest female breaststroke swimmer of the 20th Century. She is the only woman in Olympic history to win both the 100 and 200 meter breaststroke events in Atlanta 1996 and broke 14 individual world records during her career. Her achievements brought her personal audiences with Nelson Mandela […]
Maria Popova is a reader, writer, interestingness hunter-gatherer, and curious mind at large. She has previously written for WiredUK, The Atlantic, The New York Times, and Harvard’s Nieman Journalism Lab, among others, and is an MIT Futures of Entertainment Fellow. I Am Driven By | The yearning to learn how to live, how to lead […]
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