Our Association leadership team was in a mall, racing against a clock. Our goal, to accomplish as many random acts of kindness within an hour. As we poured through the list of kindness activities provided through an interactive app, we assessed the most efficient way to be kind to as […]
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As the holiday season comes to an end I can’t help but reflect on what that time of year means. In a word…giving. Giving of gifts, time, love and donations to people and initiatives we care about.
But sometimes, we are just giving for the sake of giving. Often […]
more...Every morning when I walk into my office, the first thing I see is a painting done by my father. Growing up it was hung outside my bedroom door and in my father’s memory it has moved with me from home, to home, to home. It is always in a […]
more...Do you volunteer for your professional association or do you professionally contribute?
I’m often vetted by an Association Board of Directors to speak at conferences and I serve on the National Board of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers (CAPS).
I can tell you, there is a big difference between […]
more...What a ride the last few years have been. Ignite Excellence Inc. is now in its 12th year of business; we have spoken on five continents to 100’s of clients and audiences ranging from entrepreneurs to fortune 500 companies in over a dozen industries. It’s been exciting and evolutionary. Whether we […]
more...For Immediate Release Contact:
July 30, 2014 Suzanne F. Stevens +1 416 570-6557
From Leadership and Sales to Conscious Contributions™… Values and Communications are at the core.
Suzanne F. Stevens Earns the Certified Speaking Professional® Designation
July 30, 2014—Suzanne F. […]
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We all know women lead differently than men, but do we know the real implications of its effectiveness? Below is a good article on how to lead and some lessons we can learn from both genders. I thought I would share insights from Roz Usheroff, good information worth reading […]
more...Suzanne F. Stevens is off to Washington to interview four African women pioneers, all who are be acknowledged at the TIAW Forum as World of Difference award recipients.
Suzanne is proud to be amongst these women to be receiving this acknowledgement.
Each year, the TIAW World of Difference 100 Award […]
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Every organization can benefit from bringing an outsider into their corporation to speak to their team. The problem is most organizations that engage speakers only experience a temporary benefit. What can you do to ensure that an external speaker has a lasting impact?
Here are three ideas:
Higher […]
Stephanie Staples interviews Suzanne F. Stevens about Conscious Contributions™ – check it out!
Your Life, Unlmiited with Stephanie Staples & Suzanne F. Stevens
Todays conversation just made me want to contribute more to my global community. Suzanne F. Stevens spends 50% of her time making money to
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As I started my Christmas shopping on the weekend, it continues to amaze me the diverse customer experience you can have from one store to the next. The first store I was completely ignored by two staff. The second, treated rudely. The third, engaged in friendly conversation.
The friendly […]
more...It was my 42nd Birthday, and by all accounts I had everything. A wonderful home, a great career, good health, good friends and family and a loving husband. Somehow it was not enough.
I turned to my husband and I just starting to cry my eyes out.
Men may […]
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When we were travelling Africa last year we were often in the position of question if we were helping or hurting?
We had just come back from hiked in Volcanoes National Park down the Virunga mountains after seeing a family of gorillas; a highly anticipated experience. My […]
more...May 28, 2013 a wonderful event was hosted by Canadian Council on Africa / Conseil Canadien pour l’Afrique – African Women Diplomatic Forum promoting trade between Canada and African women. Suzanne F Stevens spoke to approximately 120 women, more than half of which where from 15 African countries. The event […]
more...Thank you to our clients for your continued support and sharing our 10 years success with us!
On May 5, 2003, Suzanne F Stevens set out to start her own training business with partnering company Environics Communications. Suzanne is the Chief Edge Optimizer & Founder of Ignite Excellence Inc. […]
more...Suzanne F Stevens and her husband, Michael K. Gingerich founded Wisdom Exchange TV in 2011 and traveled through Africa uninterrupted for twenty months. They have recently returned back to Toronto Canada from backpacking through Africa interviewing women leaders for Wisdom Exchange TV (www.wisdomexchangetv.com). This initiative is self-funded and […]
more...Spending a lot of time amongst professionals, not to mention listening to interview grooming conversations with my nephews, I can’t help but share this blog from Leslie Everett a fellow professional speaker and a brand expert. If you are about to go on interview some things to consider…
Walking […]
more...Volunteerism: the principle of relying on voluntary action (according to Oxford).
Volunteerism according to Suzanne F. Stevens:
- Giving your intelligence, insight, and time to a cause.
- A social phenomenon that provides opportunities to rub shoulders with diverse individuals with similar interests.
- Exposing yourself to learning new skills, industries, or
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On August 23, 2012 Wisdom Exchange TV celebrates our Fiftieth interview with African Leading Ladies and Leading Ladies who love Africa – it has been a true honour to interview 41 women from Eastern Africa (Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda) Several from Swaziland and now South Africa. There have been […]
more...Many of us entrepreneurs have the skill, the spirit, determination and as I said in my previous entry, the helping hand, to grow our businesses to be a profitable thriving enterprise…. Or not.
One of the challenges women have internationally, and has been emphasized in many African countries, is […]
more...We are now in Southern Africa interviewing Leading Ladies is Politics, Philanthropy, Business and Education. We want to thank the wonderful Leading Ladies in East Africa who shared their insight, knowledge, determination and spirit with us – and in many cased your hospitality.
We had many highlights including interviewing Bience […]
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When I started my business, Ignite Excellence Inc., nine years ago I was a woman with a vision, passion, determination and a helping hand. Without all four of these foundations of influence I know I would not have had the confidence or […]
more...Time is running out! Thought I would share this for women who want to enter the business challenge.
Group: Sustainable Development Africa
Subject: 3 Reasons why you should apply to the African Women in Business Challenge
With the mission of increasing the number of female entrepreneurs in emerging markets, the […]
When we look back on our life and we ask the philosophic question: “Why did I turn out the way I did?” Inevitably the answer almost always lies with how we were brought up. More specifically, what our mother did or did not do. Or what they said or did […]
more...Your voice matters. Do you have an opinion, question or want to share insights on women in emerging countries. How they conduct business, what are their obstacles and opportunities. And possibly most importantly how can we make those opportunities a reality. Join the conversation via linked in
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Golf is a sport I have always found expensive, unphysical, a waste of time, and something you can never perfect. If I was not going to make money at it, win at it, or perfect it, why bother? Ernie Els may not agree with my evaluation […]
more...Imagine: you are a very accomplished woman who has built a very well respected organization. Your efforts produce a marketable business that is eventually bought out by a larger institution. After preparing for the next phase of the company’s development, you step down from your role, and the office moves […]
more...A great reference for Women to know how much they are needed economically in Africa!
Africa needs to harness the power of its women to drive full economic growth and development, says Ernst & Young http://bit.ly/ukaQg0 […]
For the last eleven years I taught the most powerful word a salesperson could ask a prospect or client. ‘Why?.’ ‘Why is that?’ ‘Tell me why that is?’ These questions had two purposes:
- To gain a complete understanding of how a prospect/ client makes decisions. By asking why you gain
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During my interview with Dr. Jennifer Riria, Group CEO, Kenya Women Holding, on Wisdom Exchange tv, she spoke of a mentorship program she implemented in Kenya that was unsuccessful. The concept was for a well-established African business to mentor women in […]
more...After interviewing 26 women for Wisdom Exchange TV, a web-enabled platform, I am compelled to delve into the fire in their belly that motivates these women to be a trailblazer in their field of expertise. In my pursuit of sharing the […]
more...I am very proud to announce that Wisdom Exchange TV (www.WisdomExchangeTv.com) is now being viewed in 49 countries and on 6 continents! This site was designed for African women to learn, lead and succeed. Wisdom Exchange TV has just been viewed in 19 African countries! This demonstrates the power […]
more...Through the generousity of donors, the Ignite Excellence Foundation is proud to inform you we provided four scholarships to wonderfully diverse and committed women. Three of the four recipients will start their under or postgraduate education starting September 2011, the other is in her second year. All the women […]
more...Looking out on Kenya’s famous game reserve, the Masai Mara, at the millions of wildebeest, I could not help but be intrigued by their behaviour . To watch the wildebeest roam the vast open space with no semblance of order, to all of a sudden fall in line behind this […]
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Recently I interviewed Katherine Ichoya, the Executive Director of FEMCOM (French for Federation of National Associations of Women in Business in Eastern and Southern Africa), for Wisdom Exchange TV. I couldn’t help but be affected by her enthusiasm […]
more...I am very proud to announce that Wisdom Exchange TV (www.wisdomExchangeTv.com) is now is being viewed in 30 countries and on 6 continents. This demonstrates the power and influence of the African Women leaders and their ability to effectively communicate Leadership Lessons, Words of Wisdom, Leadership Legacies and […]
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