Taking My Own Advice

Life changes happen out of nowhere; a combination of hard work, luck, and timing. At least, that's what I've been telling my students for the past 13-ish years.

And then, after many meetings with various people on campus and elsewhere in my network, I realized that I was starting to hear from others the same advice I've been dishing:?you have to be your own advocate.

While reflecting, researching, and advocating for myself, I came across a company and opportunity that I didn't think would check all of the boxes for me at this stage in my life, one that...

• has a mission as well as core values that emulate my own
• will challenge me professionally
• will support professional career growth from within while allow me personal flexibility

Let me introduce you to Carrot Fertility .

And how did I learn about the company? Someone from my network posted about the company and job opp, of course.

I have been trying to find the words to describe what this next life change means to me, and I am instantly overcome with gratitude. I am thankful that a faculty member took a chance on me in 2005 to be part of a new academic program at Syracuse University called Sport Management. I am thankful for the female supervisors on my internships that turned into lifelong mentors and friends to solidify that working in the sport industry was the right one for me. I am thankful that in the market crash of 2008 I found college athletics, a space for me to be creative, start traditions, break records, and learn that my true passion is serving others.

I am thankful that my first marriage failed so that I could start a new professional journey in the academics space (and let's be real, this is a double-thankful line item so I could also find my soulmate to build the life we both wanted and deserved). I am thankful for the very special city of Memphis, TN for helping me reinvent myself just before I turned 30. I am thankful that the same faculty member that took a chance on me as a student brought me back to Syracuse to give back to and inspire the next generation of Orange people. I am thankful for so many colleagues, employers, students, and alumni that believed in me and our mission in the Department of Sport Management - you are all the reason we are one of the best places to learn in the country; even if I wasn't an alumna, I'd still say our alumni base is the very best in the whole world. And now, I am thankful for technology that kept me in touch with a high school classmate that turned into a mom-friend, navigating sleepless nights with a newborn together and being a support system for me when I felt very, very lost.

I still can't believe that I have the dream opportunity to further my career while enjoying and nurturing the family my husband and I created.

I will be working on the solutions team as a proposal writer for Carrot and cannot wait to dive in head first! Bonus: they are Orange, too.?

Until then, I am so honored to get to celebrate the Class of 2022 this weekend and take a group of women from the Sport Management program to NYC next week on a professional immersion trip. It's only fitting that my final days with Syracuse University "as an adult" will be with young professionals that aspire to work in the sport industry and "have it all" someday.

Now, I hope more than ever, they know that they CAN have it all - whatever that "all" means to them - with a lot of hard work, luck, and timing. And I am honored to be part of that journey from the sidelines as one of your biggest fans.?