401. Controlling Her Own Destiny

At 17, WendyY got recruited to sell Amway.  What she learned about herself was she had a talent for connecting with people and forming relationships that would be an important part of her career, especially in the couching she does today.

“The big breakthrough for me was I could work and get paid for it, so I had role in my own success. I learned, through the Amway recruitment process and what I was able to accomplish, that I could really control my own destiny, just based on sales, just based on how I showed up in connections and relationships with people.  And I loved knowing that. Work really defined that for me in a major way.”

After jobs in administrative positions, WendyY got her first “professional career job,” as she calls it, as a process manager in a telecommunications company. The job meant the world to her, and she felt liked and respected by her co-workers.  But the V.P. of her division, with whom she had had a good relationship, brought in one of his friends and told her to train him. It was clear to her that he boss was going to replace her with his friend. Before that could happen, she found a job at a higher level and higher pay at another Fortune 500 company. Her career progressed well, with several promotions, including becoming the Senior Manager of her own department.  As the only Black female Senior Manager in the division, she soon realized she was not being supported.  “In fact, I was not being supported …right out the door. And that’s when I decided I am NEVER going to be in a position again where I’m relying on a company or corporation to really meet their end of the bargain, so to speak, in my employment!”

Co-dependent No More, Melanie Beattie

Fearless Living: Live Without Excuses and Love Without Regret, by Rhonda Britten