by Debbie Bolton – NORWEX Co-Founder
When I was growing up in a small town in southern Saskatchewan, I always believed my life was going to make a big impact and God was going to work through me to make a difference. While in high school, I worked hard and saved my money to someday travel to India and help the poor. When the time came after High School, I traveled to India and worked in a leper colony, an orphanage and hospital, helping women to deliver their babies. I loved my time in India but had to return home to Canada. It was a difficult time, and I knew the best thing I could do to help the poor was first to not be one of them. Secondly, I would work hard, make money, and help impact the lives of the people God placed around me.
I soon met my husband Michael, and we began our journey together raising three children and serving in ministry for over 25 years. It was during this time I started Norwex in Dauphin, Manitoba, and began to develop my passion for developing people and growing leaders. Over the last 25 years the company has grown to include hundreds of thousands of sales consultants in over 20 countries around the world.
Here are some leadership insights I have discovered along the way.
1. Leaders see more than others, see before others, and see farther than others. When we started Norwex, I was 20 years ahead of my time. I knew there was an environmental awareness trend coming and we needed to build a business that would meet that growing opportunity, and we did! The company continues to grow, and I have opportunities every day to impact the lives of people and change their financial future.
2. In Genesis 41, God gave Joseph the understanding of dreams and the strategy to implement it. I believe as we seek God and listen to the Holy Spirit, we can discover future trends and opportunities and then prepare to meet them successfully. My theme scripture continues to be Ephesians 3:20 – God will do immeasurably abundantly above all we can ask or imagine. We serve a big God who has many opportunities for us to impact the lives of others.
Let’s move forward with boldness and confidence to make a difference in the areas God has called us to impact for the King and His Kingdom.