Profile: Rene Carayol

 
Rene Carayol is one of the leading speakers in the UK. A recognised authority on leadership. An accomplished author, TV presenter and conference facilitator.René has provided leadership support to the likes of the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, the Home Office and McKinsey and Co, and is now an accomplished Visiting Professor at Cass business school. In fact for many African and Caribbean professional speakers in the UK he is the pinnacle of what we would like to be back. And yes I have at least four other professional speakers who I could quote on that.

I had the privilege a little while back to be able to have a phone interview with Carayol to tap into the keys to his success. So here goes.

What is your name?
Rene Carayol

What is your background or lineage?
I was born in Gambia but grew up in Harlesden. My father was a diplomat. I went to school in Harlesden then on to university after which I held successful jobs in Marks Spencer, Pepsi and IPC Media before it was sold to AOL Time Warner.

What do you do for a living/What is your vocation?
I am a writer and speaker on leadership. My mission is to create more leaders.

When did you know what you wanted to be?
As a kid all I wanted to be was successful. Mum had 3 jobs. Dad had 2 so I was always driven never to have to do that. This drove me to be successful.

Who or what would you say was the biggest influence in your life?
Without a doubt the quote from Muhammad Ali ” I don’t have to be what you want me to be”

Who is your biggest hero and why?
I have two. Muhammad Ali and Nelson Mandela.

What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome in order to get where you are today?
Most definitely a lack of self belief. I had to get over those people who surrounded me who had a victim mentality.

What, if any, is your experience of racism?
Nothing  that was insurmoutable. Isms are something we can always overcome.

What would be your top tips for success for our young people growing up in today’s society?
Know what you are great for and stand for it. Have a strong look. Dont blame anyone else for your success or your failure.

If you had one wish that could be granted to positively affect the UK black community what would that one wish be?
To have more leaders affecting positive change.

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A special thank you to Rene for sharing his wisdom here.
You can find out more about him at http://www.carayol.com

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Tags: Champions, Rene Caryol, Speaker, carayol.com

Ray Lewis in the Guardian

Ray Lewis the founder and CEO of Eastside Young Leader’s academy, an organisation I think get’s the whole idea of turnaround through leadership,  get’s a great write up in the Guardian.Photo source: The Guardian

The Power List

New Nation, the Ethnic Media Group newspaper, has compiled a list of the most powerful and influential blacks in the UK. The Powerlist identifies and records a number of influential blacks in the UK.

I am delighted at this project as it highlights a number of blacks in the UK who have succeeded against the odds. It may seem trivial to some but for many black youth seeing that there are attainable characters and personalities who are doing well outside of just entertainment and sport is refreshing.

Eastside Young Leaders Academy

Last week I had the privilege of attending the EastSide Young Leaders Academy (EYLA) in Newham. Run by ex prison governer Ray Lewis, the leadership academy was formed by a desire of Ray to stem the tide of young, undisciplined men being detained by Her Majesty’s service.

I had the privilege of meeting Ray at a conference last year at Queen Mary’S University London, anad was struck by his humour and straight forward approach in dealing with the issue of black male underachievement.

Walk Like A Champion

Many years ago I started out with the idea of a project. The project was called Walk Like A Champion and its main premise was to be the creation of a book that would be used to empower young black men to achieve both academically and in enterprise.

As a speaker, youth worker and mentor I was constantly frustrated with the constant emphasis being placed on sports, entertainment and crime being the holy trinity of career options for inner city students, and felt that there was so much more out there that could be offered to such students. Yes of course there are inequalities of access, poverty, racism but there are so many who achieved against the odds that to offer a glimmer of hope surely had to be the way forward. Such stories could provide inspiration and empowerment to a new generation.

Walk Like A Champion has since evolved into somewhat of a wider dream. Not just for young black men, but young black women as well to see what they can achieve and those that have gone before them. The purpose of this weblog is to capture those experiences both in word and visually of the people and programmes that help to empower students and make them see that there are role models out there, that there is a network of succesful black professionals in business, academia, the creative arts, government and the community. Not to have to wait on some charity handout or government policy to do so, but to act from within. So this weblog is the seedling, where we can start to encourage that champion walk and who knows raise to the parapet existing but low profile projects which seek to do the same.

It is still my lofty ambition to not only complete such a book, whether self published or in partnership with a recognised publishing house, but to be able to have a TV programme as well, and a readily available resource in the hands of those who need it.

Whilst I may seem biased towards sports and entertainment, there is enough acreage of media dedicated to achievements here, its time to broaden the scope. I give no apologies for ignoring the negative to accentuate the positive. I want to highlight the stories and achievements of successful black professionals to empower a new generation. To empower them to walk and talk and behave like champions. Plain and simple.
magnificently yours
David McQueen