J.L. Combellick

Hello! My contributions to Medium are an attempt to take what is inside of me, my thoughts, ideas, and passions, and put them on the outside of me. It is an act of expression, sharing, and growth through dialogue, dialogue I hope to establish with everyone in this community. While I love to learn and research, I don't really care if what I say has been said before. I strive to add new ideas and thoughts to the conversation, but primarily, I am listening to the voice inside of me and reacting to it.

I spent the last 15 years in experience design, design thinking coaching and consultation, and learning and development. As a result, many of my creations are focused around these areas of expertise.

Between the ages of 11 and 19, many important people separated themselves from me. During this time, I sought shelter in relationships and social circles that offered comfort and safety. They didn't always let me thrive though, and I was scared to do it on my own.

My entry into the business world was the direct result of this experience. The frontline corporate environment provided high pay (relatively), great benefits, and reliability. This was safe for me, and I grew into it. I moved through frontline work, resource planning, testing and QA, user and system experience, design thinking, and learning and development, moving in and out of a couple leadership positions along the way. On top of that, I earned my Bachelor's in Business Economics, Master's in Management & Leadership, and an Advanced Design Thinking Certification from IDEO.

Ultimately, I am driven by people and their experience. I want to lead others to personal success, not just career success, and I believe that the corporate construct of America has an obligation to care and invest in the personal success of individuals, even, to an extent, when does not monetarily benefit the company. I believe capitalism and corporations can be a powerful tool that improves lives and fulfills traditional roles a government might play, and it can be done with empathy, compassion, and people first (not wealth first). While we are currently quite far from that path, I aspire, through leadership, creativity, and empathy to contribute to that outcome, in collaboration with everyone that is interested in being involved.

I am motivated by my family, my dog, my creative voice, and a belief in humanity. I also like espresso quite a bit, try to cook good food, and noodle around on guitar. Yoga, walking, and the occasional run are how I move my body.