Last night, we attended a Women Driving Excellence talk. The guest speakers were Candace Jordan and Janet Davies. Both are women that you probably recognize if you’ve spent any time in Chicago. They are both successful in their field of reporting for doing things no one did before.
Candace, also known as Candid Candace, is a former playboy bunny. Yet, you can’t just discount her as being one thing. As she and Janet both stated, you have to be able to do it all. Part of her success she attributes to accepting opportunities given to her without hesitation. A big part is due to her ability to do everything. You must know how to do the jobs of the people working for you. If you cannot do that, then you cannot fill their shoes when something goes awry. If they can’t show up, then you have to do it all without them.
Janet is a reporter for ABC 7 News Chicago. 190 North is a show, she not only hosted but produced which is rated only second to Bozo the Clown, a Chicago legend. In that sense, Janet can be considered a Chicago legend in her own right. She has been successful in a field previously dominated by men. Yet, the advice she gives is good for everyone. She decided on her career by figuring out what she loved to do most of all. The only logical choice was to become a television journalist.
Oddly, not the first time, I’ve heard this advice. An uncle of mine had proceeded to ask me a series of broad questions when I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. Everyone who walked past thought the conversation crazy, but knowing I didn’t particularly care for water cuts out a large portion of jobs. Sometimes, you just have to narrow your choices down from everything.
The rest is up to you once you determine what you want to do. You must chase opportunities. Most of all if you want to succeed, you must not retire, but retool. A great tip from Janet Davies that we all loved. Why retire when you can just add a few extra skills to your repertoire. Janet claims learning social media has kept her able to keep doing what she loves.
We enjoyed hearing about their stories. They shared ups and downs with us that work best in person. You can hear someone’s life story, but when you hear from their perspective you get much more out of it. You can tell that they have been humbled and have learned lessons the hardway. There is always so much detail that you can’t just get online. So, perhaps you should look into Women Driving Excellence for yourself. The series is free to attend and hosted by ChicagonistaLIVE and Space by Doejo. The next installment will be on February 14th.
