Building servant leaders in sport, telling stories of the ones who do it best, & teaching-to-love.
Culture Builder. Storyteller.
Human Lover.
est. 2016
The foundation upon which I work is Love.
Before I knew who God was, I knew my parents. And a Love I can only understand more fully now that I am older, is the foundation of how they raised me, supported my dreams, guided me through big decisions, and forgave me when I made mistakes. It was a Love that had enough room at our table for every kid on the block to eat over for dinner. It was a Love that taught me to be the person who approaches and includes anyone who's left out or in-need. And it was a Love that told me I was capable of having, doing, & being anything I wanted in my life.
Before I knew who God was, I knew my coaches. And a Love- I resistantly surrendered to- was the foundation of how they taught me new skills and habits, held me relentlessly accountable for my actions and thoughts, and unconditionally accepted me- despite my flaws. It was a Love that had an open door policy— no matter who you were and where you came from. And it was a Love that taught me that being anything less than the leader I was called to be- for the team I was called to serve- was a missed opportunity to honor something greater than myself, stand in the integrity (& gratitude) of who I was made to be, and own my responsibility in the mission of loving & moving the world.
When I met God, I recognized him. And a Love I now can’t even begin to comprehend is the foundation for what I study & how I seek to live my life. I am determined to honor the gifts he’s given me through exhortation, discernment, pastoring, teaching, and faith in order to build cultures & relationships, create art & communities, and teach others about the Love I’ve come to know— all in the spirit of spurring them into their own inspired, true-to-highest-self, love-driven action.
Bio
Kayla Barber, a life-long athlete and former NCAA collegiate athlete, received her Masters in Organizational Leadership from Point Loma Nazarene University, with a focus on Servant Leadership & Building Cultures of Servant Leadership. Based in San Diego, CA, she creates innovative journalism- capturing servant leadership in action- and produces creative storytelling projects with the purpose of teaching and communicating a larger message. Through her work in sport, she challenges the next generation of leaders to think in new ways about Self, Leadership, Love, and Life.
The work on this site is the result of her own life experiences & values; equipping from her coaches; journey to -and daily with- God; focused scholarly research (which she actively continues); inspiration, training, and daily molding she experiences as a result of the high-caliber community she is immersed in; and of course, the fruit of the one’s who have been following big purpose and leading-the-way all along.
Originally from a small country town, Kayla’s greatest joys lie in life’s simplicity: time with her family, exploring & playing with no agenda, reading, writing, and of course, being an athlete.
Despite her stubborn insistence to love people hand-in-hand & face-to-face through this life— this site is her way of leaving it all on the field, for the sake of the team.