What opportunities have helped shape your career?

Starting all the way back in high school, I realized that I could create my own opportunities. It was eye opening to realize that I didn’t have to wait for an opportunity to present itself to me but could ask for internships that didn’t exist, reach out to people whose career I admired for help, etc. In high school, I volunteered to launch our school’s chapter of DECA, an organization that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for college and careers. In college, I joined the leadership team for our chapter of Delta Zeta and figured out new ways to support speech and hearing-related causes. In law school, I started down a different path than most of my classmates and focused on the transactional side of the law (drafting contracts, forming entities, etc.) rather than litigation, and ultimately started working with entrepreneurs and small business owners.   All of those opportunities gave me the courage to take a leap and go to work for a growing investment firm in the entrepreneurial space instead of taking the typical law firm route, which ultimately led to my role now.

What words of wisdom or advice do you live by?

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” Amelia Earhart

How do you make sure you stay connected with your professional network?

I’ve found that it’s easy to stay connected when you build your network organically.