About
Hi! I’m Tracy Pakornsawat, Ph.D., founder of LOTUS Learning Collaborative, a coaching and training business focused on supporting mid-career professionals and leaders to achieve personal and professional goals by leveraging individual strengths and motivations.
I have spent my entire professional career working one-on-one with individuals in various capacities to create a life that is aligned to their overall priorities and how various life areas are interconnected.
I have also spent 25+ years working inside organizations supporting employees, teams, and leaders to identify what they excel doing, engage in what they enjoy doing, and envison the importance and interconnections of their contributions.
My Expertise
My background and expertise includes training and development, organizational change, community and economic development, labor economics, human resource management, and program management. In these areas I have provided consulting, facilitation, management, and oversight of programs in private, government, NGO’s, non-profit, and higher education environments. I am currently based in the US, but also spent 6 years working in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore).
I have a Ph.D. in Educational Research and Policy Analysis with a specialization in Workforce and Human Resource Education and a Masters in Training and Development from NC State University. I also have a Masters Degree in Labour Economics and Human Resource Management from Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok Thailand.
My Journey
My career began in business and human resources consulting, but as I gained experience and moved up on the organizational ladder, I realized I had a deep desire to live and work internationally. This led me to become a Peace Corps volunteer where I served in a rural community in Northeast Thailand.
I worked with local elected officials on community and organization development initiatives. I joined local women’s groups who were selling their handcrafted silks that represented their community, history, and wisdom. I collaborated with educators supporting youth to develop life and career skills.
These experiences completely transformed my understanding of my own skills and abilities based on my educational and professional background. More than that, these experiences broadened my horizons and instilled in me a great curiosity about other people’s history and skills.
I dedicated my career to understanding individual strengths and motivations, and the interconnections of leveraging these to achieve goals and personal satisfaction. I wanted others to understand and leverage their own gifts and skills so they could experience the joy of doing what you know you were born to do.
Origins of LOTUS Learning Collaborative
When I first went to Thailand as Peace Corps volunteer everyone I interacted with had a nickname. My name tended to be difficult to pronounce and to make me feel more connected to the community I was given a nickname.
Nicknames are not simply a shortened version of a given name, but are representative of the person in some way. My host family shared how much I was “growing” and “blossoming” with my language and understanding of Thai culture. They bestowed upon me the nickname “Bua” which means Lotus Flower in the Thai language.
I loved my nickname, and loved the meaning they ascribed to it of growth and blossoming through change. With a professional background in learning and development where I had a front-row seat in watching others blossom and grow the name took on additional significance and I wanted to integrate it into my business. Lotus created a good acronym that illustrates my beliefs and business approach:
L: Leveraging
O: Opportunities
T: Through
U: Unique
S: Solutions
Leveraging opportunities is one key aspect of my business approach, but the leveraging must be approached from unique perspectives to achieve a lasting, desired solution. In addition, I believe that learning is a collaborative process where growth is co-created.
These two elements led to the creation of LOTUS Learning Collaborative.
Beyond Coaching and Training
When I am not doing what I love professionally I continue to broaden my horizons and understanding of the world in which I live. I am an avid global traveller immersing myself in local culture and being in awe of the amazing landscapes that shape history and culture. I am also a goat farmer and love to spend time being on the farm watching and playing with the goats and other animals.
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