Daniel Ivy’s Post

About 6 years ago I received what I now consider to be terrible advice from a respected leader in the credit union space. They said that although they thought that I was director/executive material, I would have an extremely hard road ahead if I physically presented with more than one “visual eccentricity”. This person was referring specifically to me casually expressing that I was thinking of growing my hair out, but I already had *GASP* stretched ears. I’m a bit embaressed that it took me 5 more years and a lot of other problematic statements to realize the toll it was taking on my mental health to be anything other than my truest self in the workplace. Since starting Ivy Tower, I have learned that the way I talk and present myself is valued by people in the community in a way that I never felt in 17 years working for credit unions. Don’t get me wrong, I think credit unions are, for the most part, incredible institutions who seek to leverage their money and power for good (as much as they can without the CFO getting too grumpy anyway). However for me, I am discovering that running things the way I think they should be run is going to do a whole lot more good for both me and the people I serve. I hope to see you all at our public events and private team-building seminars soon! ivytowerllc.com #storytelling #gamification #teambuilding #leadership