 Hi, I'm Rusty Komori, and this is Beyond the Lines on Think Tech, Hawaii. I was the head coach of the Punahou Boys Varsity Tennis Team for 22 years, and we were fortunate to win 22 consecutive state championships. My books Beyond the Lines and Beyond the Game are about leadership, character, and creating a superior culture of excellence, which is what this show is all about. My special guest today is the founder and principal of DDC Consulting, and she was the spokesperson for U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka and former Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie. She is Donalyn Dela Cruz, and today we are going beyond strategic communications. Hey, Donalyn, welcome to the show. Thank you. Thanks for that great introduction. Now, Donalyn, you and I know each other for many years, and we were both born at Wahewa General Hospital, and our grandmothers were neighbors in Wahewa, and I want to know a bit about your background growing up, and can you share about what schools you attended as well? Of course. Yes, I am proud to say that I was born and raised in Wahewa. Not a lot of people can say that, and how fortunate am I and others to say that you're born and raised in one place. With that upbringing, I went to Wahewa Elementary School under the Principalship of George Nakasone, who was an instrumental part in, I would say, in my leadership and my brother's leadership going forward. Intermediate School, Wahewa Lancers, or Wahewa Intermediate. I think they call it now Wahewa Middle School, and then, of course, I am a proud Lillihua High School graduate. We are the mighty mules, and it's all Wahewa-based, and I'm very, very proud of that. I went on after that to stay home for a little bit at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Now, you also did some studies in college on the mainland as well, and what did you study there? I attended the University of Maryland at College Park. I was a Terrapin at the time. That's exciting if you're a sports fan, because they were the best basketball team when I went. I mean, the Terrapins just rocked under Coach Gary. What was his last name, Rusty? Or was that his last name? But the guy was just amazing, and as a student, you could watch these games. But that's not why I went. I didn't go for sports. I went for journalism. At the time, I went on exchange from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and I went to the University of Maryland, and it was an amazing experience. I also studied political science there, speech and debate, and I wrote for the school newspaper, and I also was doing broadcast news there for a program called Maryland Update. Now, Donalyn, when you reflect back on your real early years, what were some of the first jobs that you had that you got paid money for when you were super young? Okay, first job was eight years old. I worked with my aunt as a, I don't know, a model would be the right word, but I was the local girl that took pictures with all of the tourists that were on one of those dinner cruises. So, you know, they took that photo home, and I just smiled, and I was there for a while, and my mom pulled me out because I got Ugoos. She was like, you got it from the boat, so you ain't working there no more. So then it had very, very long hair, and I'd never worked there again after that. And from there, I was a SunFress carrier deliverer. And that was, that was amazing. That taught me a lot of toughness, you know, growing up in Oahu while there's different tracks. And so my brother had one track, I had the next track over, that's a big kind of nickname did. And this one had a lot of dogs and a lot of people that I had a tough time collecting my quota, let's just say that. So it taught me about all of that approaching people and asking them for, you know, for payments and then being chased by dogs at a very young age. I still, I love dogs, but you know, it's just one of those things where toughness all the time. Meanwhile, my brother, oh my gosh, she'd come home with big tips, sometimes like six pack soda and candy. So let's just say he had a very good track and I had a different one. That's funny. I can see Donovan, you know, scoring some big tips like that. And I remember the SunFress back then and Donolan, you became a TV news reporter for KHON2 for many years. What was it about TV news reporting that you enjoyed? Okay, so it dates back to when, you know, my desire to be a journalist, right, when I was in high school, I had met and interviewed Lesley Wilcox and I was 16 years old, Rusty, and I, she became my mentor for, even till today, I would call her a mentor. So that's, that's years in the making. And I ended up interning when I was at the University of Maryland at KHON under the supervision of Craig Gema, who was executive producer. So I got to be with, I think the greats back then, as you know, KHON was king. You had the greatest, not just from the anchor of Joe Moore, but, you know, you had Lesley, you had Barbara, yeah, Barbara Wallace was also there, but Barbara Marshall, you had Jim McCoy, you had Ray Lovell, I mean, just all of these names that I can go down, you know, Ron Mizutani was still in sports at the time. Howard was there, Bill Brennan, and Kirk Matthews, another mentor of mine. So I just, they, they took me in, I guess I did well. So I was still a senior when I started my career at KHON. And at that point, you know, I started from the bottom, went from intern to assignment desk producer, I didn't do executive producing, I went from producer to reporter. And I just had a blast. It was, it was amazing. And I had very, very, very good mentors. And then that went on where Mark Matsunaga was an assignment desk editor. So we were very, very, it was a strict, I was called the kid, everybody called me the kid. I'm like, Hey kid, everybody call me kid. But lessons, they were amazing journalists, great storytellers. And that's what, that's what I loved about it is telling stories, learning about our communities, the diversity in our communities, and just really talking about that and educating the public. Oh, you're so right. I mean, and Leslie Wilcox, I had her on my TV show and, and she's absolutely legendary. And I'm super impressed with her. And, and Donna Lynn, you just launched, you had a launch party of your new DDC consulting company a few weeks ago, and I was very fortunate to be invited to go there and celebrate with you guys. And, and what are, tell me about DDC consulting and, and the goals of your business. Sure. I think after my stint in government, you know, I had worked at the Department of Education that had gone on for another consulting firm, people were looking for me. And even when I was in government, people would often call me for assistance in their communication needs or if they had an issue and they just wasn't sure how to fix it, they'd call me. So eventually at double people are trying to figure out where I am. So it was, I thought, when am I going to call this? Right? How do I jump in and do this? I just called it DDC consulting. Obviously, it is my initials. And it's really me offering all of those skill sets that from, you know, we're talking way back to what you just mentioned from my journalism skill sets to strategic communications, to public affairs, to community outreach and engagement and crisis communication. So it's all of that kind of wrapped in one. In fact, I just came from a client meeting and we were talking about some options on how to just kind of create some messaging that can reach a larger audience and trying to find out what the objective is and all of that. And that's something that I always ask people, well, what do you think, you know, what's your end goal? What do you, what does success look like for you? And then we try to try to figure that out. And sometimes they're not really sure, right? They're not sure. So it's helping them navigate through all of that. So I know that it's not your, I would say your bumper sticker type of answer, because I don't do bumper sticker stuff. I do kind of a lot. Yeah, you definitely don't do bumper sticker stuff. And, and Donald, and I have no doubt that your business will be super successful. I mean, you're, you're very genuine, very smart. You have lots of positive energy and a lot of experience. I look at you as a communications expert. And what are, what are some keys you feel to really having effective communication? Listening is very important. I know when people think about communication, you know, the first thing you think about is, well, what do I have to say? Take a step back and what is it that you're listening to and what is it that you're hearing? I recently was at an art show, I think it was the Van Gogh and he said, I'd like to walk with you to see how you see things. When I read that quote, it's the same thing, right? How are, how am I perceiving what your issue is? And so it's listening to somebody and then making sure that you're, what you heard and what you think is the issue is really that, that's the first thing. And that's a big one, Rusty. A lot of people want to jump in, you know, when, when they're listening to someone. Oh, I know, I know. I would say that's, that's so key listening before you speak and giving deep thought to what they're saying. So that's part of a essential communication tool. And then of course, depending on the audience and what you're doing, right, there's public speaking type of communication. There's communication skills and relationships and business, all of that. And none of it's just, you know, the same. It really comes down to who's your audience. And then how is it that you're going to communicate? What do you want to say? And ultimately, why? Well, that's why I look at you as a master communicator. And, and I like hearing those insights from you, Donovan. And your brother, Donovan, and I have been good friends for so many years. And I want to know, Donovan, your perspective about Donovan in what, why, why is he successful? I'm going to go back to your, your book in terms of the four P's. And I, and there's many reasons, but I think you sum it up right. And no matter who it is, whether it's my brother, me, maybe even you clearly, because you wrote this, but those four P's, you know, the people, purpose, process, and that equals performance. What's key in those four P's is the purpose, right? What you do, like, what's your purpose behind all of that? The people are there. And it's never alone. It's who you bring along, it's who you're serving, why you're serving, all of those things. That's really important. And I believe that Donovan's success was because he knows the people that he wants to help. He understands with great intent, the people that helped him get there to where he is today. And again, the purpose, you know, why, why do we do what we do? What's the, what's the purpose? So I'll tell you a story I mentioned earlier about Wahiwa Elementary and George Nakasone. And why is he so important? Principal Nakasone would take my brother. He would grab a bunch of guys after school. And if you're from Wahiwa, you know, back in the day, if you left Wahiwa Elementary, everyone walked home. There's a lot of walking on Glen Avenue that turned into Kilani Avenue. And so there was always like the candy truck, the guy who was selling. So people, kids would buy, right? They'd buy candy and all of that. So Principal Nakasone would take this group of boys and they'd walk the entire way from the school and the perimeter of where other kids had been walking home. And they would pick up trash. So they'd pick up all of the trash that was left behind from, you know, kids trekking home after eating candy and all that. And the goal was he instilled in my brother that you take care of your community. You do these things because you take care. Just because you didn't drop that trash, that piece of rubbish, doesn't mean you don't pick it up. If it's there, you pick it up. I like hearing that story. And no, that really makes a lot of sense because, you know, for Donovan, I mean, he really, really cares deeply about all of the people he represents in the Wahewa, Mililani area. And I want to also ask you, Donovan, you spent, you know, a lot of time with being the spokesperson for U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka. What made him such a great leader? You know, it's been said many, many times about that Senator Akaka lives Aloha. And it's easy to say, but it is hard. It is hard to do. If you were ever in his presence, and I'm sure you were, you just felt it. You stood up a little taller in the sense of you knew you were in the presence of somebody who carried himself in a way, not because he was a U.S. Senator. It's because he had this spirit and sense of Aloha that you always treated people with respect. Everything was done with that sense of Aloha. And if you worked for him, you needed to represent the Senator with that same style of Aloha, no matter where, whether it was in Washington, D.C., or if we were home on the Big Island or anywhere else, you always carried yourself with that sense of Aloha. You were never too big for anyone or anything. And he was amazing, that sense of Aloha, but don't let that fool you. And I think a lot of people were fooled, right? His kindness was often mistaken for weakness. And he had that strength, but it was through Aloha. He never had to shout. He never had to do things like that to showcase how to get a point through. He did it through Aloha. And it's very, very rare today. And I was fortunate to be in Washington, D.C. when he could do that. And he truly represented what Hawaii was about and what it meant to be, what it means to be Hawaiian. No, we're all so proud of Senator Akaka. And you're right. He is Mr. Aloha and represented Hawaii really, really well. And Donald, I want to ask you about Governor Neal Abercrombie. You were the spokesperson for him as well. And what are some things that you admired about Governor Neal? So I laugh because you couldn't get more opposite, right? I mean, Neal was in your face, the governor, and that's what I loved about him. There was no question about what his purpose was, what he was passionate about. You knew. He let you know. And sometimes that was misunderstood because he saw, you know, like I, for example, he wanted, and he still believes in early education. And there was that time when I just remember this working for him where the headline for the newspaper that day was about how much was going to the pro bowl. At the time, we're looking for money to educate kids at the earliest age of two to three years old to start their education. You cannot find funds. So of course, the governor is upset seeing that these pro bowlers who make a good income were already getting more. And so I just knew that it was going to be on his mind. And he mentioned that during a news conference. And of course, that was the headline. But people didn't hear what he was saying. He was trying to say that as much as we make football priority, educating our kids should also be a priority. And so that passion that he has is what I just loved about him. He's also pretty brilliant. Brilliant. He has great taste of music. Whenever I'd come into his office, we'd kind of share music together. Both had a strong affinity towards earth, wind and fire. And so it was it was always fun. And he just he's just a wealth of knowledge, you know, from philosophy to because as you know, he was an educator as well. Same with Senator Akaka. I worked for both former educators than politicians. So both of them had so much knowledge to share. And I am blessed to have worked for both of them. Well, Donald and everybody loves earth, wind and fire, right? Oh, that's true. That's true. I mean, and if you don't, then you know, I remember when they were in town, Rusty, and it just so happened to be in the role where Vicki Coyotano and Ben Coyotano were. And then gov Ben looks and he was what you do over here, what you know about this music. And I said, are you kidding me? Like, this is good music, you know, come on. Like, just because it's from your time doesn't mean that I can't enjoy good music. So thank you for saying that, Rusty. That's right. Everybody loves earth, wind and fire. Well, they're timeless. And, you know, we appreciate great music. And Donald, I want to ask you about Robert Cacala. I mean, he, we had, he recently passed. And he's someone that that was in front of the camera. He was behind the camera. He did it all. What, what are some things about Robert that you liked? Because you were in front of the camera and behind the camera as well. That sense of humor, you know, he always, he, he, the guy is just super smart, right, knowledgeable about everything. So it wasn't just a flippant type of conversation that you would have with him. Clearly, he's recognized, I love going to UH games and seeing him there and seeing him in his element of being that sportscaster. I think he's, you know, one of the best. And you speak to anyone. I know Kanoa Lehi now is going to be, you know, the commentator and pays the same respect with regard to that knowledge of the game and how to relay it in a broadcast way. It's, it's, it's a skill. So that's one part, but from the television aspect, it's just all around good guy, you know, making people comfortable in the room. I didn't work with him in the, in the same station. So I couldn't tell you all of everything, but I know when I was there, there was that kick hallowed presence, you know, and Robert's there and it's always just a good feeling. And he would joke, he joke with me once because so Paula, I know Paula too. There was one when they were still anchoring together and Paula had this gorgeous blouse on. So I texted her and it's like, oh my God, Paula, I love that. It's because we're friends, right? So I just, I love that. You're looking fabulous, Paula. Love that blouse. And then Robert texted me back and said, well, what about mine? So, you know, like it's just, just good fun. Just, yeah, just when, you know, you, I'm just really fortunate to know good people like that. And he wasn't too big either to make that kind of comment and joke with me either. So, but he knew a lot of stuff about a lot of people. And when I would hear that he was the one to give the pep talk to the football players before game, I always felt pretty good because I'm thinking, man, they must have heard some knowledge today. You know, this is going to be a good game. So yeah. Oh yeah, he'll, he'll definitely be missed. And, and you know, that's why it's so important. We need to appreciate the people that are here and not really take anybody for granted. And Donald, I want to ask you about my, a little bit more about my books. You mentioned about the four P's earlier. And you know, I talk a lot about character and you're a woman of great character and, and leadership, obviously. So what, what do you, what's another thing that, that stood out to you in the books? Even though, you know, you might say I'm accomplished and all of that. The thing that sticks out to me is the discipline. We all have a hard time, right? Sometimes to be as disciplined. So anytime I can take nuggets like that, even from your book, it's a reminder. You know, I'm someone who's pretty harsh on myself, right? Because performance and doing well is extremely important to me, right? It is that it's part of my character. I want to do the very best that I can do. And that also stems back from, I'll tell you a story of when I was a news reporter and Barbara Marshall was the executive producer. And you know, there were days where, you know, you're just writing these stories and she'd call me up and I would turn in the story to her. And then I hear her kid, oh, get over here. I go over there. And she's like, what is this? And I'm like, what? She goes, read your lead. And for those of you don't know, the lead is basically your first, the first part of the story. And I read it. She looked at me and she goes, you know, you can do better than that. And I said, I can. And she goes, take it back. And she goes, don't you ever, you know, send me anything that is not your best. That's a lesson, you know, I mean, right? You think every day you're writing the little, just turn this in. That stayed with me. So it's that discipline to always do your best, no matter how tired you are, which can be hard. So that stuck with me at discipline equals great performance. I love that you brought that up because discipline is such a necessary part of success. And I also talk about how risk promotes growth. And what are what's an example of you taking a risk in the past so far? You know, there's a lot of things that, whether it's personal or professional, I know a lot of people don't know this, and I'll share it with you because it's since it's beyond the lines and people probably have me in some box. There was a point where I was called from a director, Broadway knows for the show stomp. And they had a slot for me because I had been recommended to them. And for those people who don't know, I had done acting early on. And when I was a reporter right before that, I was doing acting. And then all my actor friends, I guess somebody it dropped the line, got to call her. So then I'm thinking, Oh, my gosh, I had a flight in New York, because they don't just say, they're like, show up this time, use your audition time, blah, blah, blah, you get there. So I go to the Orpheum Theater and off Broadway. And there's it's a cattle call, but there's a side door. And there's like about a dozen of us. So I was part of that select group that was called so they could see and then they throw you in with other people. That was a risk, you know, like one, I hadn't been performing in forever. And I hadn't been dancing certainly in a long time. And I go there and rusty people have their like legs above their head. And I'm like, Oh my God. And I was just excited to be there and still being that reporter me, I want to know where everybody's from, what they're doing, but they're very focused and seriously had, you know, headphones in and so I thought, okay, I've got to buckle down. But I made it through. Actually, I got called back twice. And so what that means is you get called back, call back, call back, and then that's it. No more. And it was really cool because I went there to just give it all I had. And I made it. And then the last thing they said was, okay, we're going to send you guys home. And you'll get a call. And from there, it's just whether or not they can place you in a company, right? So either in whatever state or New York or overseas. And I did get a call. And the call is that they could not place me, but they wanted me to audition again the next round. That was heartbreaking to hear when, but I looked back and I think, Hey, I mean, I made it all the way. Like there were people who didn't get called back and right there, they're breaking down in front of me because they're like, I've been trying for five years. What is it that I'm not doing right? And here I am coming out of news. No one knows like I'm this television reporter. I don't dance. I don't do anything. I made it, you know, but I didn't get the part. But that was a risk for me to just go for it and take it and go to New York. Another risk was that people don't know is I went, I moved to Spain. I didn't know anybody there. I didn't speak the language. But I did it. And I was conversational after five months, but then the home kept calling. So I came back here and I didn't have, for instance, spoke Spanish in Hawaii. So I no longer speak it. But that, I mean, I think that rusty, I don't know. And then not only that, but I was on buses. I would just go holo holo all over the place. I would never do those things now. I think, oh my God, I was like the only girl on a bus full of men looking for work throughout Portugal and Spain. And I'm just exploring, right? I would never, if I had to talk to myself back then, I probably warned myself never to not do that. But hey, you know, I just did it. So I'm not risk averse rusty, but I will say that starting this company, DDC Consulting is a risk for me. And I know that it comes with challenges and I just face it straight on. Well, Donalyn, knowing you, I could do an entire TV show on you, sharing about the risks you've taken. But that's what got you to this point where you're successful and you're helping so many people with their goals. And I want to ask you one more thing before we wrap, Donalyn. What's an important lesson you learned in life so far? Gosh, so many. But there was one thing that was in your book again that made me think about a quote that I use. And this was, for those who haven't read the book, you read it, you'll find it. But I'll leave you my quote, which is, you can pray to God, but you got to go to shore, you know, got to put the work in. But on the other hand, you also have to have faith and hope and believe that you're going to make it believe in yourself. The other thing, too, is just to listen to your now, listen to that instinct that tells you, go for it. There's going to be that fear, but you just keep going, go for it. Well, Donalyn, I really enjoyed having you on the show today. I mean, you are such a highly respected person. You're so positive and you have so much experiences that everyone just absolutely loves you. So I just want to thank you for really being on the show and providing those insights today. And I like to think it's that aloha spirit, right? You give it back everything, you take it and you give it back as much as you can and everyone should do that. So thank you and aloha to you, Rusty. Thank you for having me. Thank you, Donalyn, and thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. For more information, please visit RustyKamori.com and my books are available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I hope that Donalyn and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.