I managed to hear so many stories and bits of wisdom from my interview with Lauren Hood, I broke the summary into 2 parts. Here is Part 2 for your viewing pleasure!

We rarely paused as we spoke, but did alternate between opinions, personal stories, and anything in between. It has now been some time since I’ve seen or talked to Lauren. This is, therefore, a great reminder to reach out and make the next Live6 Event a priority!

As a refresher, we were talking about neighborhood redevelopment. Lauren made so many great points, but this was one that stuck with me. We often use the term “revitalization”, which can be fitting, but oftentimes it is better for a neighborhood to be operating “at it’s fullest capacity.” That looks like every resident maximizing their capacity, whatever that means to each individual.

Then we moved on to a recent watch of mine and a favorite of Lauren’s (both the movie and the book): The Secret. This deals with the Law of Attraction, or the idea that if you put positivity and concentration towards the things you desire in your life, they will eventually come to you. This helped Lauren change her attitude and inner dialogue. At first, she didn’t know what she wanted, so she had to visualize it!

She imagined a director, at a desk, making a certain amount of money, impacting the lives of others. She visualized a lifestyle, but not a materialistic one. “You have to be dear about what you want.” She imagined being at a table with top city leaders talking about the state of the city. That particular visualization came true halfway through her time in the University of Detroit Mercy’s Master’s in Community Development program. The hardest thing Lauren found was accepting that you deserve your desires. Vision boards can be helpful in this process.

Also during the MCD program, Dan Pitera cam to speak to her Physical Development class, and posed the questions, “What if we looked at vacant land as more space per person?” Ernie Zackery, from her Economic Development class, helped Lauren reimagine vacant buildings as potential businesses. She was reminded, from Dan, Ernie, and others that you don’t always have to make money, sometimes you just have to make an impact. Gloria Albrecht was Lauren’s Social Justice professor in the MCD program, and greatly shaped Lauren’s lense. Gloria lead her to John Locke quote, “The greatest good for the greatest people.” To put Locke’s words in perspective, when looking at resource allocation, is $1 for 100 people going to have a greater impact, or giving 5 people $20?

Lauren and I agree that as a society, we need to change, we need to be better. I also agree with her statement, “The only time I’ve seen people change is hearing stories from the people they’ve cared about.” For example, during the beginning of the fellowship, some of the discussions we had around race and class were painful to hear, but helped us better empathize and understand each other. Another quote from Lauren stuck with me, and I’ve used to frame my own lense. “I operate on the premise that people don’t act better because they don’t know any better.”

Lauren was vulnerable and shared some of her biggest challenges with me. Self-care, dating, and getting more sleep were her main responses, and admitted their importance to living a full and productive life. “You can only do your best work when you’ve had time to rest and time to process.” She also noted the importance of taking time for friends and casual activities, not just work outings and work-related activities.

I’ve admired Lauren since the day I met her, and while those sentiments have only grown, this interview exceeded every expectation. Immediately after I went to spend time with some fellows, and my excitement and energy was pouring from every fiber of my being. One of the fellows even remarked, “Ian, I think you’ve been Lauren Hooded!” Maybe so, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Thank you Lauren, for spending time to share your story with me; for your commitment to your community; for speaking truth to power; and ensuring open, honest, and above all equitable development happens in Northwest Detroit and beyond!