I have been in the workforce since I was 15 (23 years now). At my young age, I was obviously not really focused on a career…. just wanted enough money for gas and clothes! When I failed out of college and began working two jobs in photography studios, I then began to think about my future (and how badly I had screwed up by not getting through college). I lightly thought about where I wanted to be and what I wanted to do. The easy thing was to consider a career in photography so I entertained that idea until I made the crazy decision to join the Army. Life really changed then and I started figuring out how good it felt to be praised for a good job and how it can take you further. Of course, in the Army you gradually make your way up the enlisted ranks by time in service until you hit Sergeant and then it becomes more rigorous to get promoted. During my time in service I began to figure out what my passions/interests were and started considering what I would do once I was out of the Army. I was very motivated in my job and was given awards and such that made me want to do even better. Even then, I wasn’t thinking about getting to the proverbial “top”, just doing a great job and being respected for that. Once I got out of the Army I went back to school to take advantage of the GI Bill. I was basically starting from scratch and didn’t have a solid plan on what degree I wanted. I was also working a basic admin job at a fire station so there was no ladder to climb there. I then moved to Florida and got a job at a large defense contracting company. I started as an admin since I was still working on my degree. This is when my mind transformed from a “just a job” attitude to “I must get to the top” attitude. There were so many people at this company in many different capacities finding success. I wanted a piece of that. I watched Managers all the way up to Vice Presidents who had great credibility getting treated with respect. These people were making a difference in the company, bringing in business for the company and world class technology for our nation’s warfightersI wanted to be like that. I wanted to make a difference. So I began my journey by going above and beyond and showing my manager I could do more than what was just expected of me. I started to get recognition and subsequently, promotions. I got my degree and got promoted again. At this point is where I began to notice that although I did great work and everybody wanted my help, no one was giving me the opportunity to show the company at large the potential I had. The next eight years was a struggle of getting recognition and what I call lip service about how great I was but with nothing real to back it up. I was still considered a junior employee therefore, not empowered. It was discouraging but I kept at it until finally, FINALLY, just two weeks ago I received a promotion to Manager. I now work with people who not only respect me and trust me to do my job, but also empower me to make decisions. In the two weeks I’ve been in my new position, my boss has already relayed to the highest levels how great my contributions have been to the team in such a short amount of time. Now the executives are seeing what I can do and best of all, appreciating me and that is the goal I’ve been working toward… not to be a Vice President, necessarily, but to gain that respect from my peers and executives so that I can make a difference in our company and for our nation’s heroes. THAT is the sweetest taste of success and THAT is better than birthday cake!