Clients often ask me “how did you come up with the name Rise to Excellence?” The answer is really quite simple and yet so integral to why I do what I do and why I am so enthusiastic about helping organizations strive toward organizational excellence every single day— for the rest of my life. This is my calling. It is my calling to build and nurture healthy relationships, to encourage collaboration and to motivate proactive change.

I want to help build a better world for my sons, a world filled with people who care about community. A community where entreprenuers are inspired and motivated to pursue thier dreams, a community that strives toward inclusivity and embraces diversity, a world filled with people continually striving toward the higher mark of personal, professional and organizational excellence.

Three years ago my teenage sons were conversing with me about launching my consultancy company. Samuel suggested “hey Mom why don’t you name your company rise to excellence because your middle name means rising sun.” Elijah added “yeah, that makes sense– you are always telling us how important it is to rise to excellence.” Gabriel challenged “it’s time for you to share your gifts and experience and help others do the same.”

The great football coach Vince Lombardi once articulated “The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” Whether we are raising children, running plays on the football field or managing a nonprofit organization striving toward excellence will inevitably enhance the quality of our journey and the journey of those around us.

Please understand that when I am referring to excellence, I am not suggesting perfection. Ministries, nonprofits and businesses are comprised of people and it is suffice to say there are no perfect human beings or organizations on our planet. I am one of them. Yet day in and day out there are many organizations striving to achieve excellence—why? I believe it is because these individuals, organizations and companies have a vision to be, to serve and to achieve the best possible outcomes in their chosen field of endeavor. People strive for excellence not only to achieve success or notoriety but to enhance the journey of their life’s work-to build a better world–to continually strive for meaningful relationship.

We have witnessed in our recent economy some very tough and challenging times and yet we have also witnessed people and organizations achieving extraordinary things. Persevering with wisdom and tenacity strengthens our stride toward excellence. “The secret of joy in work is contained in one word – excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it” writes Pearl Buck

Rise to excellence exists to help you, your organization, your ministry or your business explore the possibility and probability of excellence and in so doing—helping you discover the strength, capability and joy in your work and in your service to our communities, prayerfully—our nation and our world.

Elizabeth Asahi “Rising Sun” Sato, Founder & President
Rise to Excellence

Resources for Excellence:

Nonprofit Network of Southwest Washington
http://nonprofitnetworkwa.org/

The Chronicle of Philanthropy
http://philanthropy.com/section/Home/172/

Tech Soup
http://home.techsoup.org/pages/default.aspx

Idealist
http://www.idealist.org/

Maxwell Leadership Library
https://www.johnmaxwell.com/store/products.php?product=The-John-Maxwell-Leadership-Library

Business Resource Center
http://www.entrepreneur.com/smbresourcecenter