In the world of consulting and entrepreneurship, we talk a lot about strategic planning, market forces, and calculated risks. But what we don’t talk about enough is something more nuanced — the intersection of our relentless grind with unexpected moments of grace. I call this tension and gift Strategic Providence — the space where your intention and life’s timing quietly shake hands.

This isn’t about luck. It’s about living and building with enough awareness to recognize the signals life gives you — even while buried in a 10-hour workday.

Roots of Strategic Providence: A Story Only God Could Script

Before the suits and strategy sessions, before the titles and vendor contracts — there was a little boy in Charleston, South Carolina, abandoned by his mother at just two years old. My earliest years were marked not by privilege, but by a providence that didn’t look like a gift at the time. Raised by my grandparents, I learned discipline, faith, and the value of hard work — foundations that would later become the bedrock of everything I built.

I started my education at Chicora Elementary. That’s me on the left at age 8 or 9. Chicora is right in the heart of North Charleston. Then our family moved to rural Berkeley County. There, I attended St. Stephen Middle and High Schools — small schools with big challenges. I wasn’t a standout student by traditional measures. In fact, I scored a 620 on the SAT. Most would see that as a failure. I see it now as a setup for something greater.

Despite that modest score, I went on to graduate from the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. It wasn’t luck — it was relentless work, resilience, and a divine orchestration that always seemed to push the right doors open at the right time. Strategic Providence is not just a theme I write about. It’s the story of my life.

Along the way, I earned an M.B.A. in Technology Management, and I’m currently all but dissertation for a Doctorate of Management focused on Organizational Leadership. These educational experiences provided me with invaluable insights into leadership, strategy, and how organizations navigate complexity — tools I now leverage every day as I build Saulsberry Group.

I’ve now navigated a 30-year career — through industry disruption, economic downturns, and corporate shakeups. I’ve worked for the best, advised the biggest, and still, every milestone reminds me of what brought me here: hard work, sacrifice, divine timing, and a vision too stubborn to die.

A Year at Full Tilt

This past year, I’ve done what most early-stage founders do: I worked. A lot. Ten hours a day, almost every day, in service to a vision called Saulsberry Group. What started as “Saulsberry Strategic Solutions Group” quickly became more than a name — it became a personal mission. I was newly separated. I had just recovered from spine surgery. I had left a prestigious Big 4 firm behind. I wasn’t just starting a business; I was rebuilding a life.

Every founder has a different crucible. Mine was physical, emotional, and financial all at once.

Some days it felt noble. Others, foolish. But all of it felt necessary.

Early on, I landed a client that would trust me through three consecutive contracts. That early affirmation lit a fire. But business development proved grueling — slow returns, countless hours networking, pitching, refining brand strategy. Building a reputation from scratch costs money and sanity.

At times, I doubted if the runway would last long enough for the plane to take off.

The Week I Finally Paused

Last week — one year to the day after I opened the doors — I took a break. I stopped grinding. No emails. No Upwork interviews. No decks. No frameworks.

Just silence.

And in that quiet, something important happened.

I started to hear again — not just the noise of opportunity or the echo of pressure — but the whisper of perspective. I remembered why I started. I saw the growth I had overlooked. I felt the cost of always pushing. I realized I had become so addicted to building forward that I never looked up.

Providence Is Pattern Recognition

When I talk about Strategic Providence, I don’t mean divine coincidence or magical thinking. I mean this: your discipline creates a field for opportunities to emerge, but only your awareness of how it took something divine to make this happen allows you to appreciate all that’s happened.

Here’s what I noticed when I slowed down:

• I had just secured a long-term vendor contract with the University of South Carolina — a major milestone.
• I had appeared on SC Public Radio, sharing my story and amplifying my mission.
• I had gained key state certifications that unlocked new doors for public sector work.
• I had successfully rebranded the company, launched a new website, and published over 50 articles.
• I had built an email list of 1,774 subscribers, with a 28% open rate and 22% click rate — better than industry averages.
• I’d developed a real-time staffing model using Upwork to scale talent without overhead.

These weren’t just accomplishments. They were signals. Providence.

Each success was rooted in work, yes — but they only mattered because I slowed down enough to recognize them as part of a larger pattern.

Personal Development Is Strategic Advantage

One of the hidden truths of this journey is that emotional intelligence is a business weapon. The ability to reflect, to feel, to process the journey with clarity — that’s not fluff. That’s leverage.

I’ve sacrificed. I’ve absorbed the hit of slow and low revenue months. I’ve gone without things that used to be a given. I’ve said “no” when I wanted to say “yes,” and said “yes” to things that terrified me.

But here’s what I’ve gained:

• Clarity of purpose.
• Stronger boundaries.
• Deeper empathy for my clients.
• A spiritual steadiness that no MBA can teach.

This business isn’t just a job. It’s a mirror. It reflects back the things I need to face — about my habits, my leadership, and my ability to adapt without losing myself.

What’s Your Strategic Providence?

You may not be a founder. But if you’re leading anything — a team, a vision, a family — you’ve likely felt the same tug between planning and surrender.

So let me ask you: Where might providence be showing up in your life right now?

What patterns keep appearing, quietly nudging you toward a decision you’ve been avoiding?

What opportunity have you dismissed because it didn’t look like what you expected?

What’s the breakthrough hiding behind your burnout?

Strategic Providence isn’t about waiting for miracles. It’s about mining your current reality for meaning, and then leveraging that insight for bold action.

Take a Step Forward

If this resonates, I invite you to do two things:

• Take our Readiness Assessment – It’s designed to help leaders get clear on where they are, where they’re going, and what’s holding them back.
• Book a Discovery Call – Whether you’re facing transformation, stagnation, or uncertainty, let’s talk. One conversation can unlock an entirely new direction.

The Founder’s Prayer

Let me close with what I call The Founder’s Prayer — something I often say quietly to myself during the harder moments:

“Let me work with excellence, remain open to grace, move forward with courage, and recognize the gifts disguised as resistance.”

Because that’s what this journey really is: Strategy in one hand, surrender in the other.

And in between?

Providence.