S2E1: Unleashing Passion: Veronica Rozier on Helping People Discover Their Purpose

Seth Waters: Well, welcome to the Purposeful Prosperity Podcast. I'm Seth Waters, and I'm here with Jack Smith. And you know Jack, Jack is a founder, entrepreneur, investor, and world-changer. Jack, excited to be with you today.

Jack Smith: Excited too, Seth.

Seth Waters: We have a very good interview coming up with Veronica Rozier, and she talked about some great things with us. And one of the things that she discussed, Jack, was the importance of helping people discover their passion. Jack, how important is it for purposeful leaders to help connect their people with their passion?

Jack Smith: Well, that's- connecting people with passion is all about reaching the person's heart. and nobody embodies heart better than Veronica does. You'll see that throughout the interview. She starts with that human-centered approach of what are your dreams, what are your passions, and how can I facilitate you, reaching and achieving those and making sure that those are acceptable or attainable, not just acceptable, but conquerable. And she's very inspirational.

Seth Waters: I love that. One of the things that Veronica said during the conversation was, if you do the things you love, you'll never work a day in your life. And I hear you say that a lot, Jack. How important is it for purposeful leaders to really focus on helping people do the things they love? And what is the impact on that in making a “glocal” impact in our communities?

Jack Smith: Well, that's how you build a team, right? People won't buy what you do, they buy why you do it. And that “why,” the giving back, the connecting to the community, when you weave that into who you are as a team, you all win together. The community wins when you win. And that's the beauty of purposeful prosperity is that it's not I win and you lose or you win and I lose. We all win. You're going to hear it later on a future episode that there's a win-win-win, right? That's what we're looking for, is those win-win-win opportunities where the candidate wins, the customer wins and the facilitator does. And that's the people we celebrate and excited to talk to Veronica and the NCWorks team.

Seth Waters: Yeah, well, I'm excited for it as well. Let's get right to the conversation with Veronica Rozier.

Advertisement: This episode was brought to you by Fortuna Business Management Consulting. As a global IT consulting and staffing company, Fortuna BMC is your go-to partner for a wide range of solutions. From comprehensive contact center solutions to efficient staff augmentation, information security, advanced business analysis, and IT consulting, Fortuna BMC has got you covered. When it comes to achieving your goals, Fortuna BMC will help you get the job done. For more information, visit fortunabmc.com.

Jack Smith: Welcome to the Purposeful Prosperity Podcast. I'm your host, Jack Smith, and I'm excited to be here with my friend and colleague, Veronica Rozier of the NCWorks Career Center. Welcome, Veronica.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Thank you.

Jack Smith: So excited to have you here. So you're a career consultant and a business solutions representative for NCWorks as well as a fellow Air Force veteran - 26 years, I only did four, I'm sorry I couldn't last that long - I appreciate you though. Tell me a little bit about NCWorks and what it is that you do as a career consultant. And in particular, the business solutions representative, because we're talking to entrepreneurs here.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Yes, yes, I am a career advisor first and foremost. So I do assist people in finding employment, landing careers. I do assist businesses as well, as far as providing solutions to any of the things that they may have or need. We're able to assist them with a lot of the programs that we do have available.

Jack Smith: Well, how do you help a new business owner navigate business with purpose?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Basically, we find out what their passion is. We find out what their target is and what they're trying to do, the services that they're going to provide. So that way we can assist them with the services that we have available if they need assistance. A lot of times they already know their mission and they already know their goals. And with that in place, we kind of move from there.

Jack Smith: Awesome. And then you help them create a purpose-centered business relationship, right?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Yes, yes.

Jack Smith: Can you tell me a little bit more about what that means for you and NCWorks?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: We basically try to assist them in kind of focusing on their passion so that way that they can bring purpose whenever they are providing their services. As long as it's coming from the heart, we know for a fact that it stays around. It becomes longevity.

Jack Smith: Absolutely. The heart is definitely sticky. I love that. We talk about heart all the time. That's what purposeful prosperity is all about. It's about putting the human and the kindness and the caring, that heart into everything that we do. So I love that. That's why you and I get along so well, my friend. Appreciate you for that. What would be critical points to achieve when doing business with a company? for you guys at NCWorks. So what kind of milestones are you trying to accomplish when you onboard a new business?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: We're basically trying to assist in gaining stability. I know a lot of times with the economy, it can be up and down. So wherever their weaknesses are, we try to fill in those gaps.

Jack Smith: Wonderful. We appreciate it. Those of us who need your services, we're always grateful for that. And what are some of the things you look for during the initial phases of developing those relationships?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: We look for, actually, we try to see how small or large the business is. And that's one of the things that we go for. We do that label market information so that way we can assess the situation, what they have going on. Normally, most of the time, whenever businesses come to us, they're needing new employees. So we know that is a turnover problem. So we try to assess the problem and then provide solution.

Jack Smith: Awesome. So you actually start to recognize whether or not maybe it's an environmental thing with the business before you start to send your NCWorks candidates out there.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Exactly.

Jack Smith: I love that. Right. That's kindness, right? That making sure that it beats for all parties involved, not just a job that it's a paycheck.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: That's right.

Jack Smith:  Absolutely. What is it that leads you to do what you do?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: I think it’s life experiences has been a major, major thing for me. Going through some of the things that the client or the applicant is going through, trying to relate and meeting them where they are. That's the critical thing for me as well. So then that way I'll know how to guide them and advise them.

Jack Smith: I love that. Meet them where they are. We talk about that a lot here at Fortuna and the Purposeful Prosperity Podcast, that, you know, we want to make a “glocal” impact, that we want to impact the globe at a local level. And that's really what that's all about is meeting people where they are. We take the jobs where the people are that we want to support. And that's how we wound up in Fayetteville with you guys in the first place.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Yes, yes, yes.

Jack Smith: Very cool. Well, how are you using your prosperity to change the world? Cause I think you change a lot of people's lives every day.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: I think it's the knowledge that I've gained. The experience that I've gone through allowed me to assist a broader group of people from all areas. So I think with that, I'm able to contribute in a meaningful way. And that way it can assist them and provide that longevity that they're looking for.

Jack Smith: I love that. Can you tell me a little bit more about your process there and how you help serve those folks that you help get jobs, get those longevity jobs, right? The jobs that stick. I think that's what's really interesting to me about your process.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Sometimes it's not just a job, especially, a scenario: a single mother. And they're starting over. We want to find out exactly what it is that she would like to do. So the first thing that we ask is, let us know what your passion is. Let us know what you've always wanted to do. Give me your dream list. Whenever they provide that information, then we start putting things in action. That way, you know, I've always told them, if you do your passion, if you do the things that you love, then you'll never work a day in your life. So I try to stick by that. That's the thing that causes career, career gain.

Jack Smith: Absolutely. We talk about that all the time. Seth has heard me say that more than once. If you talk about, if you love what you do, it's not work. And you know, that's what we're creating and that's what you're connecting people to. And that looks different for everybody. That's the beauty of all of it. So that's very, very cool. If you inspired our audience today to try to help people find their passion, what is something that they can do to help support you or your NCWorks mission?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Businesses, I would want to assist and find out some of the things that they're needing. We do run in contact and, and applicants come through constantly. Not all of them are, they're well-educated. They are well-educated. So we try to get them in the right direction, even people that are transitioning out of the military. We try to assist them in gaining or continuing that longevity in their career.

Jack Smith: I love it. And how can our listeners find you if they want to reach out to NCWorks and start to put some of your folks to work?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Actually, they can give us a call, or they can come visit the center, or they can email us as well. If they can call us at 910-912-2400, or they can come to the center at 490 North McPherson Church Road here in Fayetteville, North Carolina, or they can always email us as well. Everybody has their own individual email address, but they can contact me at veronica.rozier@commerce.nc.gov.

Jack Smith: Perfect. We'll put all those in the comments below as well. So fantastic. Thank you so much, Veronica. Is there anything else you'd like to share with our listeners before we wrap things up?

Veronica E.M. Rozier: No, we are here to assist. We are here to help. Whatever we can do, that's what we're here for. We are here to provide solutions. Whatever they need, we're able to assist.

Jack Smith: I love it. And I appreciate your big heart and your kindness and your connection. So thank you so much, Veronica. We appreciate your time.

Veronica E.M. Rozier: Thank you so much. You have a great day.

Jack Smith: Thank you.

Thank you for joining the Purposeful Prosperity podcast. Please tune in next week where I bring you another world-changing entrepreneur. Until then, please like, follow, and share, and keep doing good in the world. Thank you for listening.