Tamela Odom
(CHICAGO, IL) Tamela Odom is many things, to many people. Professionally, she wears several hats, deftly navigating the arenas of media, mentorship, education, motivational speaking and publishing. Even so, Ms. Odom maintains a singular, laser-like focus on helping young people maximize their potential, achieve academically and ultimately live their best lives.
A native of Chicago who was reared the eldest of three daughters on the city’s west side, Odom had leadership thrust upon her virtually from the beginning.
Her parents instilled within her the lesson that education was the key to the world, so she focused, embraced that wisdom and hasn’t looked back since.
Today, Odom’s trajectory has catapulted her to a stellar career as a much sought-after orator, author, TV and radio air personality and mentor.
Before this rise, Odom earned her bachelors and masters degrees from Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois. She worked brief stints in print journalism and in TV news, until her love of young people and passion for empowering them beckoned. Odom next spent over a dozen years toiling in academia, and then branched out into the entrepreneurship realm by establishing her own non-profit, Odom Educational Services (OES). OES is a successful local company that works to orient high school students to the college entrance and retention process. But, she truly never left media.
Today, Odom hosts the popular weekly talk-radio show, Your Motivational Moment with TCM Internet Radio, as well as Todays Teen and Hotline 21 on the Chicago Access Network (CAN-TV). Drawing upon her myriad inspiring life experiences, Odoms first book, Run the Race: A Guide To Successful Living [$12.95, 112 pp., © 2011, Tamela Odom Publishing] is a literary testament to how young people from all walks of life can survive and excel today in spite of the obstacles that so many of them face growing up in tumultuous urban environs often devoid of parental guidance.
In this volume, Odom skillfully avoids being preachy, but makes her advice and counsel relatable and visual using anecdotes and scenarios that reference the sport of running to put readers in the mindset of working toward a goal, or finish line. A companion workbook designed for teen audiences and/or school systems is currently in development, due from her publishing company soon.
Indications are that she has hit her target. I’m not someone who just wants to hear myself talk, Odom states. My ultimate goal is that I want to be able to grasp young peoples attention, and impact them in a manner that will help transform their lives.
Note: Run the Race: A Guide To Successful Living is available at Amazon.com and in an Amazon Kindle edition. Tamela Odom is available for speaking engagements and etiquette classes, and can be reached by contacting OMEN Communications at 312.922.1959, or via e-mail at TheOMEN091959@aol.com.