Connect with Torie:

• Twitter:      @TWeiston
• LinkedIn:    Torie Weiston-Serdan
• Website:     www.torieweston.com
• Instagram:  @TWeiston

Tweetables:

Key take aways from Torie:

• I’m grateful for the beautiful weather.  We really only have summer in California.
• I had ideas.  I had visions.  But I didn’t think my life would be like this.  I didn’t see my life surpassing my mother and my grandmother.
• I founded The Youth Mentoring Action Network in 2007.  I had no idea what I was doing.  I just started this thing.
• The difference in access in a school just 15 minutes from where I live is what prompted me to start the Youth Mentoring Action Network.  I remember thinking, “How come these young people don’t have all the same opportunities that I had? And how can they be this close to where I was and not have a third of that access?”
• Our mission is to leverage the power of mentoring for equity and justice; so we do everything that’s culturally sustaining.
• We’re collaborating with young people to build critical spaces that serve them.
• The big vision is to have global impact.  I want people that are working with youth all over the world to do critical youth work in a culturally sustaining way.
• One of the biggest challenge for every non-profit is, “Do I have enough money to do the work that I’m setting out to do?”
• Our big challenge right now is handling our growth.  We’ve grown from no-one getting to everyone wanting to have their hands in it in some way.
• I’m still scared.  The world is a fickle place.
• What concerns me the most is that I’ll disappoint the young people that I’m trying to serve.
• I don’t think anyone that is successful could be without that small group of advisors who cheer you on; who tell you to slow down; who tell you to sit down when it’s time.
• Word for the Day:  Sit tight and stay focused!  It’s time for the next level.
• The process is just as important as the end results.  There are so many things I went through that I had to go through in order to become the effective CEO that I am today.