From Adversity to Accomplishment with Eric Cox

In this episode of Career Thrivers, we speak with Eric Cox, Director of Training Operations at American Addiction Centers. He is also the Founder and Executive Director of the nonprofit Community Soup Nashville. In January 2020, Eric published Sign Up!: 10 Interactive Lessons To Take Your Goals From The Starting Line To Across The Finish Line.

A native Nashvillian, Eric grew up in a predominately Black community in the North Nashville area. His drive to succeed led him to start his own business after graduating from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2009. Unfortunately, all he built up to that point was taken away, practically overnight, when the 1,000-year floods struck Tennessee in May 2010.

Losing everything and being in “the pits of pain” was a defining moment that only served to strengthen Eric’s resolve, and ten years later, he had completely reinvented himself after “siphoning the pain” into an empowering drive to succeed. 

Listen in as Eric shares how he developed a response to life’s challenges that motivates him to keep moving forward, practical steps to creating a vision for your life, why it pays to WAIT (Work Actively In Transition) amid adversity, how to be a more emotionally mature leader in the workplace, and the four pillars to signing up for your life.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

●      Eric’s inspiring journey from living in poverty to becoming an empowerment coach

●      How to keep moving forward when it all seems hopeless

●      Creating a vision for your life

●      The seven main areas to give intention and energy toward for a balanced life

●      Staying motivated to work toward your vision for your life in spite of setbacks and losses

●      Managing emotions, particularly in a professional setting

●      How leaders can be more inclusive in the workplace

●      What it means to sign up for your life

●      What being a thriver means to Eric

Memorable Quotes:

“One of the things about a seed is, prior to ever-growing, it has to be buried and it has to experience a very intentional season of loneliness. It’s a space and a place where it’s just you and God, and that’s it. It’s dark and it’s cold and you can’t see your way out and you’re just trusting some other source to take care of you.”

“It really was from the pits of pain that I was able to siphon the pain into something that was powerful and empowering.”

“Every person is met with challenges every day. The variables are your understanding of those challenges and your response to that outward stimuli.”

“Scarcity breeds competition.”

“Whatever I chase today, my question is not about, ‘How can I serve Eric?’ but, ‘How can Eric serve the world?’”

“If your outcomes are not favorable, then we term them as ‘problems’ and that impacts your thinking.”

Connect with Eric on LinkedIn and find his book Sign Up! On EricLCox.com.