TEAMWORK: Elizabeth Clare Brewington
Partnership and Prioritizing the Positive

We’ve met with some amazing women this month, heard some incredible stories, and learned some powerful lessons. We have just one more to go! This week, we’re talking TEAMWORK and how diversity and positivity are critical to your team.

 I founded my coaching practice on the idea that if you want to go farther, you have to go with other people and do it together. At Ascentim, we believe in the power of connections and teamwork. It’s embedded into how we can support one another and still hold each other accountable.

 Meet Elizabeth Clare Brewington

THEREFORE TEAMWORK

Elizabeth Clare Brewington is the producer of the Brightside Global Trade TV multichannel magazine streaming broadcast. Together with her husband, Elton, she has created a vibrant community where business leaders, authors, artists, and more from around the globe can connect. She has built an entire collaborative based on bringing people together, and that’s why I was so excited to talk to her about the power of teamwork. 

In Elizabeth’s case, teamwork starts at home. For entrepreneurs, work is 24 hours a day. And when your business partner is also your life partner, boundaries can get a little blurred. As the co-founders of Brightside, Elton, and Elizabeth found themselves talking shop all the time, over breakfast and during household chores. They recently enacted a change by creating an office space in their home and scheduling actual meetings to go through their work together. Now “business time is business time and home time is home time.” There’s teamwork right there, making it work for them in the right way.

The Bright Side

Brightside came about during the pandemic. Elizabeth says that she discovered a long time ago that it takes many people working together to come up with really good ideas. When the world shut down and they couldn’t network, meet people for lunch, or attend in-person events, so much was missing. They built Brightside to offer people a new way to connect, do business, and maintain the team spirit needed to make good things happen.

In fact, Brightside has been kind enough to bring me onto the team. It’s been an Ascentim highlight to present during several women’s conferences, most recently on financial literacy education. Elton and Elizabeth actually took the time to go through my 4-part G.R.O.W. Finances course to experience it for themselves. I was so pleased to hear that they took those lessons to heart – and to the bank!

The Teamwork of Diversity

Elizabeth believes in the importance of showing the world what diverse communities can do together. Her only rule, therefore, is that the company does not tolerate racism or negativity. So she makes those boundaries clear to anyone that might be showcased in one of their programs. It can be challenging, she admits, to find the right mix of people. But, through a thorough interview process and careful vetting, Brightside’s team has been nothing short of positive and inclusive.

It’s not that she hasn’t learned to adapt to negative attitudes in the workplace. With a career in the pharmaceutical industry that spanned three decades and multiple continents, Elizabeth has significant experience leading multicultural teams. As a woman of color, she has had to engage professionally with people who didn’t necessarily want to engage with her. 

“You have to understand that someone might not love you, trust you, or want you to be their boss. You’re going to have to live with that reality,” she shares. “But when they get to know you, it changes. And you have to be part of that change process. You might have to go out of your way or jump through hoops, but when it finally happens, it’s magic.” 

And for Elizabeth, the magic of embracing diversity begins at home. She is Indian American and her husband is African American.  Through their partnership, they exemplify the power of an inclusive team.

Now, listen as Elizabeth describes the need for diverse role models to educate and encourage others.

Moreover, Diversity

Elizabeth is generous enough to extend grace and give people a chance to come around. And she is willing to act as a catalyst for them to change because she has already done the work to change herself. I see it as a partnership of like-minded people who share common values. Everything else might be different – culture, ethnicity, gender – but what must be shared is the value of teamwork and the desire to achieve something together that is greater than what we can achieve on our own. 

It’s all about the teamwork. 

Elizabeth’s Advice

Elizabeth had some parting advice for women who want to build a better, stronger, and more diverse team like the one at Brightside. It requires balance. She suggests that you look at the people on your team now, look at who your friends are, and look at who you’re going out to brunch with. If they all look like you, there’s a problem – and you might need to step outside your comfort zone to solve it. Try to make a new friend with someone of a different cultural background by inviting them out for coffee. Or start even smaller by trying out new and different restaurants that feature a cuisine you’ve never experienced before. By getting a little flexible, you can make your world bigger and brighter. 

You can watch my full interview with Elizabeth here. And if you want to team up with Elizabeth and be part of the bright side of life, reach out to her today. You can also get to know Brightside better by attending their upcoming monthly virtual conference. April’s theme will be centered around Earth Day, attendance is FREE, and you can become part of a really fantastic team!

Connect with Elizabeth

editor4bgtj@gmail.com
Instagram
Facebook