Engaging Energy: The Equation for Exceptional Enterprises
Contributed by Jovan Archuleta
As we Enter the month of December, I want to extend a warm wish that Everyone Enjoyed an Excellent Thanksgiving. It is a season for Eating, Entertaining, and being Encouraged by our loved ones. I hope you had your fill and took a moment to feel grateful for having Enough.
That feeling of being nourished is what allows us to be present, to connect, and to truly show up. And that connection is the heart of my company’s acronym, TEAMS, where the letter “E” stands for Engaging.
To Engage means to participate, to involve, and to commit. But as we just experienced with our holiday feasts, true Engagement requires fuel. We cannot expect high-level output from low-level input. It is a simple biological Equation: Empty stomachs lead to Empty stares.
We acknowledge this biological reality in other parts of our society. For Example, in our justice system, we Ensure individuals Eat before court because we know a focused state of mind is Essential for a fair process. Yet, logically, we should apply that same standard to our schools. We cannot expect students to Engage in the hard work of learning if they are running on Empty.
This is why I am advocating for our schools to adopt a universal meal program where Every student Eats. We must stop viewing food as an Expense and start viewing it as the Engine of our future Economy. I Encourage you to be Engaged and Expect the same.
When we fully Equip our children with the nutrition they need, we see Evidence of what they can achieve. We see students who are ready to build, create, and lead. We see the kind of brilliance that was on display at the End of November at Everett’s (Mat-Su Resort).
The Youth Entrepreneur Expo, hosted by the Exceptional team at Youth 360, was the perfect Example of this potential. It was an Explosion of creativity and Electric to see so many local students Exercising their business muscles.
These Emerging Executives didn't just show up; they Excelled. They Eloquently pitched products, balanced budgets, and gained Experience no textbook can provide. The stakes were Exciting; with those Evaluated as Elite earning prizes that will help them Expand their Enterprises—including brand new laptops and $300 in cash.
But the Evolution of the families was just as impressive as the businesses.
Years ago, when the Youth 360 Parent Coalition was launched, the program felt different. The sentiment from the students was clear: "If my parents show up, I’m not coming."
But that Environment has shifted. Last year, students advocated to Execute a scheduling change to align their "Friendsgiving" with a parent meeting, so no one was Excluded. And this year, at the Expo, that Engagement reached a new level. We saw full Family Enterprises, where everyone had a role—siblings Endorsing the strengths of each other, parents Encouraging and Elevating, Evolving the Event into an Enjoyable quality time Experience.
This is the full circle of Engagement. We advocate for the Essentials—like universal nutrition—so that Every child has the physical Energy to become an Exceptional creator. And then we celebrate their Efforts at Events like the Expo to show them their community is Entrenched in their success.
To everyone who supported these students: Excelsior! You are part of the Equation. When we Engage—from the dinner table to the Expo table—Everyone wins. Enjoy the rest of your holiday season, and as we look to the New Year, get ready to Adapt to the challenges ahead and take Action on the things we can control.