Hidden Gems: Meet Kristine Sloan of Leadership Triangle

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristine Sloan.

Hi Kristine, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started my career in international development, co-founding and leading various companies and organizations in South India, West Africa and East Africa. In 2015, after several impactful projects were shut down because of external systems failures, I spent several months reflecting on how I could make the most long term, systemic impact. Somewhat paradoxically, this led me away from direct service, issues-based work, and into leadership development. With leadership development, I feel like I get to support the work behind the work – helping people build companies that shake up tired practices, improve engagement with their teams, and advance social progress. Over the last 10 years of leadership development work, I’ve supported thousands of incredible entrepreneurs, organizational leaders, and grassroots activists.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Ha! If you can call no paved roads and more potholes than flat surface area “smooth” then yeah, sure, it’s been smooth. I’ve had so many struggles in my career, from big things like “How do I get piped water into this rural community” to other big things like “How can I balance leading a company while being a new mom”. I’ve come to expect struggle in my life and career, and I don’t see it as a negative. Rather, I see struggle as an indicator that I’m doing something interesting. If it were easy, it would have already been done.

As you know, we’re big fans of Leadership Triangle. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
One of my favorite games is to ask groups of people I’m with to shout out their favorite local community organizations, businesses and leaders. 80% of the time, the people they name are people who have completed one of Leadership Triangle’s cohort-based programs, graduating into our Goodmon Fellowship. Goodmon Fellows are everywhere leading our community – from the Mayor of Raleigh and Founder of TheGifted Arts to the Manager of Community Engagement at Coastal Credit Union. Leadership Triangle has been around for 30+ years, quietly doing the work of community building, context setting, and leadership formation. We are one of the community’s best kept secrets, with programs that are consistently rated highly for their content and impact on participants’ careers and professional network.

Who else deserves credit in your story?
I have so many people who have poured into me over my career. My parents, who as entrepreneurs themselves instilled in me a belief that there is no one who should shape my career other than myself. My mentors, who helped tame the wilder impulses of me as a young entrepreneur and made sure I was accountable and responsible. The women of color who have invested time and love and energy into my leadership, calling out where I was living blindly in my privilege and helping me understand my role in movements for justice. I regularly see a therapist and have had a leadership coach since 2015. I am only able to do this work because I am so deeply rooted in the brilliance of my community. At Leadership Triangle, it is much the same story – we are a high feedback organization that pays attention to the advice, insight, and constructive criticism of our program participants. We shift something for every single cohort. We are always learning, and I think that’s why we’ve been able to grow and remain relevant, even after 30+ years of service and impact.

Pricing:

• Program Tuition: $2,950

Contact Info:

• Website: https://leadershiptriangle.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadershiptriangle/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leadershiptri
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/leadershiptri/