About Me

My Career

My corporate career began at twenty-two when I was promoted to the corporate office of a major men’s fashion retailer. I had put myself through college working in the retail stores and even run more than one location. The promotion to the corporate office changed my life in several ways. I had exposure to all C-Suite executives in the company immediately and my first supervisor in this position was my first powerhouse female mentor. I was asked to build multiple programs for the company, and I knew absolutely nothing about the three areas I was asked to build out. I got to build a trade show and event program, training program, and then, a spokesperson position as well.

It was exciting, terrifying and I learned the most during my career through this experience. When I left the company after seven years, the event program alone generated over twenty-five million in revenue after three years of its creation.

I am often asked if I always knew that I wanted to be in events, retail, or leadership, because that is where I landed. The honest answer is not at all. I worked at the retail stores to be financially independent and put myself through college with zero debt. That I did accomplish. My career evolved from there, but I do always say be careful what you wish for. I remember being twenty-two and staring out of the window of the retail store I was running. I was the youngest store manager in the history of the chain, let alone the youngest woman. I felt like something was missing for me. I felt like I was caged. I knew there was more out there for me. I spoke this out loud to the window actually and told it that I wanted to travel and create. That’s exactly what happened for me two months later when I got the call from corporate for a position I never applied for and was created.

I found through my corporate career that I discovered what I liked, disliked, excelled at, had areas of opportunity, and so on as grew throughout my twenties. My twenties were steady corporate work though as I stayed at two companies. I would venture to say I learned more then than I ever will even though I have so much more to learn. We all do. However, it’s really where I learned how to be a leader and how to step into leadership. In my opinion, the three most important qualities leaders must possess are empathy, compassion, and excellent communication. When I say communication, I mean great leaders know how to listen just as well as they know how to speak.

I did not become a leadership mentor or even knowledgeable about leadership overnight. I learned from my experiences and challenges in the corporate world. My first corporate experience was exceptionally male dominant and my second was the opposite, quite female dominant. As you can imagine, there are challenges with both, but I am grateful for these experiences because it shaped me and my knowledge of leadership. Being as young as I was going to corporate in a male dominant environment, you name it, it happened to me. I was discriminated against, ignored, bullied, underestimated, and this was not isolated to one company.

I got the strength and motivation to keep going because I am one determined woman. But, in my opinion, I think what helps keep you motivated is understanding why you are there and checking in with yourself. In addition, it is imperative to remember that poor leadership or culture is only a reflection of you if you are the leader. I had to learn to detach from negative environments and that’s not easy when you are first starting out. I find that you tend to take everything more personal. So, that’s my advice, do not take everything personal. On the flip side, I highly recommend maintaining boundaries in the workplace and if it does not feel right, then it is not right. Trust your gut, always.

After being in the corporate world, I worked for smaller companies and startups. I think that’s when I really knew that I wanted to go out on my own. I started to feel like, “Hey, I can do this.” But it took some time for me to act on it. Another piece of advice I’d give is do not wait, just go for it. If it scares you in a good way, then do it. That’s how I knew I had an entrepreneurial spirit, and this was going to be my path. I also realized I had been an intrapreneur since I was at my first corporate job. The lightbulb that went off for me was realizing that I loved creating something from nothing or just an idea. That’s when I knew I was also an entrepreneur and that’s how my podcast and brand, MaYapinion^® , were born in 2017.

I have had a lot of great moments and highlights in my career but launching my podcast and brand were huge for me. It has been the start of my independence and entrepreneurship.

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The sky is the limit now. I am proud of myself for creating something from just idea but this time around, it is for my company. My podcast, MaYapinion^® , is the leadership podcast for women, where I share my opinion about leadership, my journey through corporate America and entrepreneurship, and I invite onto the show inspiring women who are leaders from all different walks of life.

From the creation of the MaYapinion^® Podcast, I also mentor women “How to be the Leader of Your Life.” In my opinion, we have leadership entirely backwards and I help women see that they are already leaders. Before you step into a role where you are leading a team, it’s imperative to know yourself and who you are as a leader first. I created this mentoring group and one-on-one mentoring because I wish I had this when I was promoted into leadership roles at such a young age.

After diving into the world of entrepreneurship, I also run my own consulting business that assists with leadership, event logistics, and program planning for non-profits and corporations. In September of 2021, I launched my next business in beta mode, Find a Co-Host™, which is presently a white glove service to help podcasters find their perfect match when looking for a co-host. I look forward to continuing to help women and entrepreneurs everywhere with my podcasts, services, and businesses. My final piece of advice to you if you are an aspiring entrepreneur is that if you have an idea and it haunts you then chase it. That’s what you are meant to do. Then, figure out how to make it happen and do not be afraid to ask for help and mentorship. You’ll be grateful that you did.