Victoria Coit on leadership: Don’t ask for permission, ‘just do it’:
https://www.syracuse.com/business/20...ust-do-it.html
https://www.syracuse.com/resizer/9rc...CFSYAY4E5A.JPG
"Victoria Coit calls herself a “social architect” — someone who builds connections between people who often are trapped in their own silos.
That knack manifested first in a magazine, then in a networking and events company, Cuse Culture. Her goal is to give people “the power to see themselves inside of the city in a powerful way, not just as somebody who is just stuck here.”
Coit, 41, of Syracuse, grew up in the city, went to Nottingham High School and then Sage College of Albany and Hudson Valley Community College. She spent some time in Washington, D.C., and came back to Syracuse in her 20s.
“When I came back, that’s when I had my existential moment: What am I supposed to be doing in life?” she recalls. She moved in a lot of different circles and loved to highlight Syracuse’s “hidden gems,” the people not getting much exposure but doing good things. That became a magazine called SOTE, an acronym for salt of the earth. Its goal: highlighting women of color. Its tagline: “the wisdom of the unheard woman.”
Coit started doing networking events so people could meet the women featured in the magazine. After giving birth to her daughter, now 9, Coit expanded her field of vision to the whole city. Cuse Culture grew out of that. Her full-time job is as a senior organizer for the New York Civil Liberties Union.
“People don’t see themselves inside of our society, and inside of Syracuse,” she says. “It’s like, why doesn’t somebody do something about that? And it’s never, why don’t I do something about it?”
Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Did you have any early leadership influences or roles growing up?
I’m a twin. I think that just makes you a natural leader. [With no other siblings,] we were always leading ourselves. …
Outside of that, I with my grandmother [Loretta Moore] a lot. She was always a “give back” type of person, whether running the food pantry at church, or being strong around single mothers. She wasn’t single mother, but I think she just had a heart for helping women — pushing a $20 bill in their hand so that they can make it through, supporting them, listening to them.
I come from a single mother so I was always trying to find opportunity: work, any type of leadership program, something I can do to earn a stipend. I’ve been in them all. I don’t think I necessarily saw myself as a leader. I don’t think a lot of leaders see themselves. Somebody slaps that label on you, and you’re still like, what does that mean?
What does it mean?
To me, it means that I act and I don’t ask for permission. … The only difference between you and [a doer] is … that’s a person who just acts. I figured that out in my 20s. Do you want to have analysis paralysis, or do you just want to do it? You’re going to make mistakes -- so just do it. If I can conceive it, I just do what I want to do and don’t ask for permission.
How does your day-to-day work at the NYCLU fit in?
NYCLU is what they call a “grass top organization” -- very resource heavy, basically a law firm, and able to get a lot done. That was important to me when it comes to things in Syracuse. The fact that I get to work with such smart, intelligent, strategic people makes me sharper. Since I’m close to the issues around [here], it makes it more impactful for me to get things done in Syracuse.
What does it mean to be a community organizer? Sounds kind of broad.
It’s super broad. How do you organize a community? First, you have to understand that the community exists, and the communities inside the community. It’s so many different layers.
It’s my job to know a lot about a lot, all the moving pieces to something, who’s involved, all the players. It’s like a chess board.
NYCLU is known for doing a lot of the heavy lifting when it came to Interstate 81. But it’s so many more statewide priorities that I work on. A lot of it is just civil rights. Policy impacts our communities. … Sometimes it’s just a one tweak of something of a bill or legislation that could change the trajectory of a lot of people’s lives.
Sometimes folks get tired and weary; they think that things are happening to them, and that they have no control. So my favorite part of community organizing, is seeing that light bulb go off in people’s eyes, whether it’s through lobbying, or empowering them to speak up for themselves.
What did you wish you knew about starting a business before you started?
I don’t know if there’s anything that I wish I knew because I feel like that’s part of the discovery process. [It’s] how you build that muscle to say, this is some stuff that I want to do as a businessperson, and this is some stuff that I don’t want to do. You don’t learn that until you do it.
If you could go back and give your younger self some advice, what would it be?
Like Maya Angelou said, “When people show you who they are, believe them the first time.”
Do you have any tips for a young person aspiring to be a leader in their work or in their community?
Like Nike says: Just do it. You know, something’s going to lead you to the next step. But analysis paralysis will keep you right where you are.
One time, I watched a documentary about Syracuse. They asked a panhandler under the Interstate 81 bridge, “What advice do you want to give to other people?” And he just said: “Deal with your problem.” It’s so simple, but it’s life-changing, because we put things on the shelf. Even something as small as, open your mail and see what’s in it. Engage in your own life and deal with your issues because they’re not going anywhere. Matter of fact, they will fester and turn into something else.
Love action. It’s not always going to feel good, but it’s going to move you forward to places you didn’t even know existed.
What is Central New York’s greatest unmet challenge, from where you sit?
Systematic racism. Acknowledge that it’s there. That it’s a very strong caste system. It just permeates throughout every issue that I work on as a as a senior organizer. Why do people not have? It’s racism. Somebody doesn’t feel like they deserve it in an equal way to other communities. … My partner is from Long Island, and when he comes here, we drive through Sedgwick(which is a North Side neighborhood, btw) and then the North Side, and he’ll say, “Same city?”
What is our greatest asset?
Its people. Such survivors. Whether it’s a side hustle, whether it’s a business out of our house, working. We’re very resilient people. … But because of that, we were also people that get jerked around a lot. We’re going to build the Emerald City. And we’re like, OK, and not ask too many questions, unfortunately.
Any place that has four strong seasons gives us that intuition. The birds are chirping, this is going to happen next. We’re into nature and we don’t even know it."
Also, a Buffalo area Life/Leadership Coach that interviews movers and shakers in the local community:
https://www.youtube.com/@RLExperience/videos
https://www.youtube.com/@RLExperience/featured
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