The Epiphany That Led to My Career Breakthrough

“If you’re not growing you’re dying” is a common phrase from the famous motivational speaker, Tony Robbins. And it couldn’t be any truer than in the following queen’s story… 

If you are attentive and in synch with your life’s quest, you will surely experience many “Ah Ha!” moments in life that can lead to groundbreaking victories. That was the case for me.  As a successful, “go-getter”, finance and accounting professional, I was used to putting my best foot forward at all times and basking in the results of my corporate career.  However, as a young working mother of 2 young girls with a third on the way, there came a time where the sweet career dreams I‘d been chasing seemed to gradually become night tremors.  

10+ years into my career I was in a decent accounting role in a large fortune 500 company that was leveraging all my professional skills but I was unhappy. I was working 3 to 4 times harder than my peers with absolutely no work/life balance and yet the climb up the corporate ladder was much slower than I envisioned. I was at a standstill.

And then my epiphany. I decided, I could’t keep doing the same thing and expect a different result and so I took some much needed “Me Time” to reflect on my current career journey. The result of that self-evaluation was that “I deserved better than the credit I was not getting.”  Plus, I was not fulfilled personally or intellectually and wanted to be part of something bigger that impacted people’s lives in a very real way.

The tide began to turn for me, when I began a relationship with a mentor who was very successful in my professional field and I highly respected. The primary gem my mentor gave me that helped navigate my professional journey was “encouragement”. It boosted my confidence making me believe in myself and what I had to offer. This pushed me to step outside my comfort zone and envision myself working in an organization in a capacity that fully leveraged my skills, allowed me to grow; and whose core values aligned with my personal, longer term life goals.

The actionable steps I took were 1) I took some professional development courses that made my profile more attractive to recruiters. 2) I strategically sought out companies that shared similar values and missions. 3) I applied for all types of roles including some I didn’t fully meet all the qualifications. This was intentional. I stretched my vision because I love challenges and believe I can do anything I put my mind to.

The end result was I landed in an organization that not only provided me the career opportunity I desired, but allowed me to grow and afforded me the work/life balance I needed. The icing on the cake was the company’s mission aligned with my personal values. I was so much happier. Suffice it to say, taking that “Leap of Faith” paid off big time.

My advice for any queen at a crossroad professionally that feels “stuck” not knowing how to break that glass ceiling is…

1. Know your worth and what you bring to the table. It may sound cliché but this is critical to the process of building your confidence which you need to take the first step toward success. Take time to do some soul searching and ask yourself “What contributions am I making in my current role? What unique skills do I have? What does success look like for me?”
2. Touch up your resume. Take a look at your marketing collateral aka your resume’. Make sure you highlight both hard and soft skills that will make you attractive to your dream organization.
3. Lastly, according to song artist George Michael “You got to have faith!  To be a great leader, it takes courage. Step outside your comfort zone and apply for that dream job even if you don’t meet every single criterion/check every box. Men do this all the time which is why they are so successful.  It is okay! You can learn some things on the job and that is how you grow.  Maintain a positive attitude. Trust God and the process. Know that once you’ve done your best everything else will work out for your good in the end. It did for me and I know it will for you!

Signed by,

A Queen.