Q: Looking back on your career, where do you think your career first began to pivot?
A: When I worked on the rollout of the Zap CRM at ERA Real Estate, I had the opportunity to work with Donna Basilavecchio. I formed a great relationship with her and approached her to let her know I was looking for growth and change in my role. She was in the process of opening up a position that fit my skillset so I applied and ended up accepting the role.

Q: You recently worked with the Anywhere Product Team, what would you describe as your best takeaway?
A: I started working with the Anywhere Product Team about four years ago and that’s where I met Chris Padilla, Vice President Of Product Management. He’s been a great mentor and over the last few years has been very supportive and encouraged me in my career journey. One of the best pieces of advice he gave me was, “Don’t let your career happen to you. Take control of your career.”

Q: How do you find ways to continue networking in a remote/hybrid style environment?
A: Because we no longer run into people in the hallway, I had to find new ways to network with people outside of my usual working circle. I started setting up casual coffee chats and just reaching out to people to keep in touch with them. 

Q: Do you have mentors? If so, how have they helped you navigate your career?
A: Yes, mentors have played a big role in my career journey. Morgan Salama was one of the people I reached out to be my mentor and our sessions were valuable and inspiring. One piece of advice she gave me was be clear on what you want to do next in your career path, create an elevator speech, and articulate that to different people. Even if there may not be current opportunities, something may come up in the future and people may remember your elevator pitch and approach you for the opportunity. 

Q: What were some major career obstacles and how did you overcome them?
A: When I was with the brand, I really struggled on getting new opportunities to move forward. Everybody internally appreciated my work, but I wanted more opportunities to grow. I assumed that my great work would create the opportunities for me and that  did not happen. So, I had to get comfortable with networking with people outside the brand and being more proactive. 

Q: Were there any learning and development programs that you took advantage of? If so, what was the name of the program and how did you benefit from it overall?
A: I was excited when Anywhere established the relationship with LinkedIn which opened up a wide variety of learning resources for us. I’ve taken advantage of many of the LinkedIn Learning courses. 

While I was part of the Business Transformation team, my manager was Six Sigma Black Belt Certified. In order to strengthen her team, I chose to become Six Sigma Green Belt Certified, and I leveraged LinkedIn learning curriculum to help me achieve that. 

Q: Who is your greatest inspiration?
A: The mentors I’ve had with leaders like Chris Padilla and Morgan Salama continue to inspire me. Tanya Reu Narvaez, our Chief People Officer, is also very inspirational, especially when she talks about how you can incorporate Winning Behaviors in your career journey.

Q: What do you do personally to recharge and reset?
A: Since we work remotely, it’s easy to be pulled back to your home office to answer one more email. However, it’s important to walk away and disconnect so you can reenergize and be refreshed. I enjoy spending focused time with my family and friends.