Thousands of FFA members gathered in Lucas Oil Stadium for the first session of the 95th National FFA Convention and Expo on Wednesday, October 26. Headlining that session was former WNBA player and four-time Olympian, Tamika Catchings, with her message to be “B.O.L.D.”
The acronym stands for “believe in your dreams, be open to change, lead with love and dare to be remarkable.”
“If you don’t believe in yourself and you don’t believe in what you can do and what you can accomplish, how do you expect anyone else to?” Catchings asked. However, even if you believe in yourself, sometimes you’ll face obstacles and you may need to shift your mindset. “Be open to change for your life and your vision,” she added.
Obstacles and change are a little easier to navigate if you love what you do and who you serve. It changes your attitude. So lead with love, Catchings said. “When you love who you’re serving and what you’re serving, it doesn’t feel like you’re having to take time away from your day.”
How do you respond when things don’t go the way you want them to? Well, that’s in FFA members’ hands, Catchings said. “You are the future leaders of our world, [so] you become remarkable.”
The final line of the FFA motto is “Living to Serve,” something Catchings strives to do through her foundation, Catch the Stars. It is also something many members hope to live out in FFA and beyond. Being able to do so requires finding a passion and building a support group.
“First, find your passion, find what it is that interests you,” Catchings said. “[Then] you need people in your circles and organizations that show you and tell you that you can do it, you can be it.”
No matter where your career path takes you, or if you want to give back to your community, you will experience people from all different backgrounds that may challenge you to be open to change. They might also challenge you to believe in your dreams, love first, then lead and be remarkable.
“We all have different outlooks, we all have different backgrounds,” Catchings said. “There’s a lot of different experiences that you don’t think about until you get into a room and talk about it. That’s how you make real change, because it’s not just affecting your individual community, you’re affecting multiple communities. That’s what FFA is really about.”
James Taurman-Aldrich is a second-year student studying agricultural science, communications and leadership at the University of Idaho. He can be reached on Twitter @jamesaldrich25.
