Hi, I AM
Solomon Wilkins!
I'm a former corporate Vice President turned individual and organizational success coach. My experience in corporate America, along with my personal journey from poverty to corporate VP has equipped me with a unique understanding of resilience, strategic leadership, and the essential factors that drive personal and organizational success.
What Does Success Mean to You?
Many people I meet want to be successful, but they haven't defined what success means to them. Is that you?
Success to me means doing what I want to do, when I want to do it, with the people I want to do it with. It has nothing to do with money and everything to do with freedom.
So, I ask you again, what does success mean to you?
- Solomon Wilkins
HOW IT STARTED
I grew up in a very abusive home in Oakland, California, and every week, my mom and I were both physically and mentally abused by my dad. Some mornings, I would wake up and my mom would have black eyes, and I would cry because I was too young to protect her! And then, when I was nine years old, my dad was killed in Oakland in a drive-by shooting. On one hand, I was relieved that my dad would never abuse my mom again, and on the other hand, I was sad because I would never see my dad again. As a nine-year-old kid, I was confused about how I should feel! The presence, then absence of my dad disrupted my childhood but taught me at a very young age how I wanted to show up as a husband and father if I was ever fortunate enough to get married and have children.
THE FIRST IN MY FAMILY
After HS, I spent three years at Merritt Community College in the Oakland, Hills, and four years at Humboldt State University (HSU). Yep, your math is correct, it took me seven years to graduate and receive my undergraduate degree. During my time at HSU, I found myself on academic probation, which caused me to lose my basketball scholarship. When this happened, I was frustrated and embarrassed, but when I reflect on why it took me so long to graduate, it was a combination of a lack of preparation, and my consistent ability to procrastinate. Eventually, I figured it out and became the first person in my immediate and extended family to graduate college and I took it a step further and obtained my master's degree.
MY PURPOSE SHIFTED
Shortly after college, my son (Jesus) was born, and based on the experiences I had with my dad, my sole purpose was to provide a safe and loving environment for Jesus. Becoming a father helped me become more disciplined and focused and it shifted my purpose. When my son was four years old, my mom passed away in her sleep. I tried to wake her up, but it was too late. The memory of me shaking her to try and wake her up is etched in my mind forever.
Personally, this was a tough time for me, but professionally, my life was excelling. I was an in-demand speaker with multiple speaking contracts, and I was recruited by Target to join one of their store leadership teams as an Executive Team Leader (ETL). Once I landed in corporate America, my obsession with success led to rapid career advancement and numerous leadership opportunities.
THE CORPORATE CLIMB
After my mom died, I was left to pick up the pieces, and the one thing I’ve always taken pride is in my work ethic. I started my corporate career at Target and was promoted twice in 4 years. Because of my success, I was handpicked by our group vice president to travel to Hawaii and train our new logistics and operations managers in Kailua and Maui.
After Target, I spent 5 years at Amazon in Operations, Learning & Development and on their first-ever Worldwide Operations (WWOPS) Inclusion & Diversity team. Our team designed Amazon's first-ever diversity strategy across their WWOPS organization, and we sure did learn a lot. My experience includes designing, developing, and facilitating diversity-related workshops and training that increase employee engagement, cultural competence, and retention. During my time at Amazon, between being an orientation facilitator and traveling the company delivering Inclusive Leadership training, I trained over 14k Amazonians. And that’s just at Amazon.
After Amazon, I had stints at Western Digital, Synopsys, and Amyris, culminating in my becoming a Vice President of Global Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging.
THE ULTIMATE LIFE UPGRADE
Not only had my professional career exploded, but my personal life wasn’t too shabby either.
I became a husband and a father four times over. I bought my family our first home, invested in programs to continue my personal growth, and delivered three TEDx Talks in three years, culminating with a talk in Zimbabwe, Africa. One of the things I’m truly obsessed with is spending time with my family! Every year, we travel the world together, which has been one of the most amazing benefits of living life on purpose.
OBSESSED WITH SUCCESS
"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit." - Conrad Hilton
When I reflect on my life, the primary reason I’ve been able to find success in so many areas is that I’ve become obsessed with success. It's not just some fancy quote, it's how I live my life. Now, I'm on a mission to help people just like you acquire new skills, build confidence, create a life of freedom and autonomy, and establish a lasting legacy for the people who mean the most to you!
TRUSTED BY
