What is your defining moment? Share your story with us.
“When I returned to Argentina, my main mission was to lose myself in its culture. I got used to wearing the national shoe: the alpargata, a soft, casual canvas shoe worn by almost everyone in the country.
Toward the end of my trip, I met an American woman in a café who was volunteering with a small group of people on a shoe drive – a new concept to me. She explained that many kids lacked shoes, even in relatively well-developed countries like Argentina, an absence that didn’t just complicate every aspect of their lives but also exposed them to a wide range of diseases. Yes, I knew in the back of my mind that poor children around the world often went barefoot, but now, for the first time, I saw the real effects of being shoeless: the blisters, the sores, the infections – all the result of the children not being able to protect their young feet from the ground.
I wanted to do something, but what?”
This is one of Blake Mycoskie’s most defining moments as a leader, as told in Start Something That Matters, the story behind the popular, socially-conscious company, TOMS Shoes. Mycoskie founded the for-profit company with an innovative twist: for every pair of shoes that TOMS sells, a pair of shoes is given to a child in need.
Leader to Leader Institute would like to invite you to submit a reflection on your own defining moment – the moment that you started on the path to becoming the leader you are today. Your defining moment can be anything; every leader’s journey is unique. With your submission, you will be entered to win a copy of TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie’s book Start Something That Matters. Both written and video responses are encouraged, so feel free to be creative in sharing!
To enter the giveaway, post your defining moment on our blog or facebook by December 2, 2011.