Hecho With Corazón Profiles No. 7 — Yolanda Cortes, MSOL
The Hecho With Corazón™ Profiles recognizes those who inspire us and exemplify the best of Latino culture.
These are real people who put their heart into everything they do.
We celebrate them by sharing their answers to three thought-provoking questions.
Yolanda Cortes was born and raised in the Bronx, New York to Puerto Rican parents. She was brought up to embrace her Latino culture and faith. Yolanda is dedicated and passionate to help others — especially girls and individuals with special needs — to become leaders. In her professional life, she wears many hats as she is a dedicated Behavior Analyst, a Life Coach and a Professional Leadership Trainer with a compassionate approach for those struggling with life’s basic activities.
Yolanda has over twenty years of experience working with corporations, schools and health care facilities developing solutions that create opportunities and character development. Yolanda is the Co- Founder and Leadership Development Trainer for She Angels Organization, Co-Owner of In Town Care Telemedicine, LLC, owner of HOPE Family Coaching — amongst many other projects. Her exceptional skills include guiding workshops, motivational speaker, and working hard to develop curriculums and programs to better understand challenging behaviors in children. She aspires to be a true inspiration to the Latino Community. ¡Si se puede!
In the words of Yolanda, “If I am going to write my life story it would be a comedy, drama, tragedy, love story.”
The past two years have not been easy for Yolanda. During this time she went through divorce, being a single parent, finding love, losing her husband to Alzheimer’s, recovering from grief and depression, to finding love again. In her heart, her purpose in life is to help, encourage and make others find their calling and shine through mentoring, healthy life choices and love. Yolanda’s career focus has been in two areas: 1) working with families and children with special needs and 2) creating leaders and empowering girls to reach their full potential. Yolanda’s passion is evident as she and her husband recently launched a telemedicine company that serves Florida, Georgia and soon to her beautiful island of Puerto Rico. Yolanda also partnered with her best friend Pam to launch HOPE Family Coaching and SHE Angels. These programs help people establish goals and guides them to find their true purpose. Through HOPE Family Coaching, Yolanda coaches teens, parents, and executives with everyday situations. And through SHE Angels, Yolanda seeks to empower teen girls to build connections, share experiences, and learn tools to make a profound impact in their community!
WHAT DRIVES YOU TO GET OUT OF BED AND DO WHAT YOU DO EVERY MORNING?
Always placing God first and giving him thanks for another day gives me the courage to face any adversities for the day. Acknowledging the challenges I will face and knowing that by tackling those challenges I will become a better version of who I was the prior day gives me daily strength. Every day is a learning experience. I try to inspire at least one person a day whether it is with a phone call, a compliment or advice. You will be surprised how a smile, or a compliment will change that person’s outlook for the day. Starting the day with a sense of purpose is essential for me. I like to promote continuous growth in myself and others; it is rewarding. At the end of the day, I feel accomplished and look forward to tomorrow and becoming a better version of myself.
WHEN DID YOU REALIZE YOUR TRUE PASSION AND PURPOSE?
Finding my passion and purpose was hard for me. I was raised in a Hispanic household and the expectations — at the time of my childhood — were to become a good wife and a better mother. Yes, I could dream of becoming a professional, as long as I took care of my family responsibilities. It was not easy, I had to go through trials and tribulations to utterly understand my purpose. However, my passion was always clear in my mind and heart. I wanted to help those people who could not speak for themselves. Those individuals that were perceived differently and struggling through life’s basic skills. Through life experiences and education, my passions lead to my purpose. My learning journey led me to who I am today. What helped me understand my purpose was looking at my flaws and analyzing how I looked to others to validate my self-worth and success. The moment I stopped depending on others to validate my accomplishments; I discovered my true passion and purpose in my life.
WHAT IS YOUR HOPE FOR THE NEXT LATINO GENERATION?
My hope for the next Latino generation is to encourage our youth to utilize their strengths and weaknesses to evolve into inspirational leaders for our communities. I believe that by cultivating their core values and imaginations they will be able to find their purpose by tapping into their passions to produce positive impacts on others. I hope our next generation leads with compassion and accepts changes as a process for success.
Yolanda, thank you for sharing your life purpose. Your passion and dedication truly show why you are #hechowithcorazon. Felicidades, and as you say… ¡Si se Pudo. Si se Puede y Si se Podrá!
