As an outsider, breaking into an industry can often seem like an impossible challenge and so we reached out to some very generous folks who agreed to share their stories of how they broke into their respective industries.

Annemarie Sampson

It seems like yesterday, when in fact almost 4 decades ago I graduated from Purdue University to start my career with the Hyatt Corporate Training Program. The training and skills I learned where invaluable, but I knew this would not be the career path for me. The fitness Industry was in its infancy. Some YMCA’s and a few big box gyms were making their way into peoples lives, then along came Aerobic Studios- a place to work out/dance to choreographed routines that were filled with energy, music, personality, and leg warmers! Read more>>

Tiffany Townsend

As my ex husband and I planned our divorce, I found myself pregnant. Again! This would be baby number 5 for us and I wanted to do things MY WAY. I decided to birth Adayah, my baby girl, at home. As I searched for a midwife who could relate to me culturally, I came up so short. At the time, I was a doula and what I witnessed while supporting my clients in the hospital and reliving my own experiences I knew I had to figure it out. Read more>>

Pamela Morse Garland

First, I have to say that my friends, and friends of friends, have been so supportive of my new business. As soon as I opened my little shop on Etsy, I had many orders from friends of the past, even my most lovely 4th grade friend whom I hadn’t had contact with in decades. But my first sale to an unknown was at my very first festival. It was a gorgeous day, I had no idea what I was doing or if I would even make a sale. Read more>>

Toni Abdo

My passion for health and fitness started at an early age when I started martial arts training. After becoming the two-time European and World Champion, I spent time studying Kung Fu at the distinguished and renowned Shaolin Temple in China. I understands the mechanics and fundamental discipline required to be successful in mind and body transformation! Read more>>

Genardra Pugh

I feel like I was destined to get into a field where I would work with people. My mother was a supervisor at a behavioral health group home and my father was a counselor at a prison. Additionally, my grandparents were teachers. In elementary school, I was nominated to be a peer-mediator, listening to classmates’ problems and helping them to find a solution to their interpersonal problems to decrease needing faculty and staff assistance. Read more>>

Elaina Greenberg

I want to share a story of a job I didn’t get. Of an interview I totally bombed, and how it was a great thing to happen to me. After graduating at the top of my class in acupuncture school, I applied for in internship at my university’s community clinic. There I would see private practice patients, supervise student clinicians, have the opportunity to do clinical research, and receive an instant paycheck as an employed acupuncturist. Read more>>

Amanda Waterman

I was looking for answers to why people would relapse after going to inpatient treatment for drugs and alcohol. I knew that there was something that we were missing… but what was it? I chose to jump right into energy healing as soon as I had experienced my own session with my friend. I was not aware what energy healing was at that time and it was very intriguing. After that session everything in my life kept creating a space for me to help others. Read more>>

Kerri Scully

It was the summer of 2004 after I graduated with my Master’s Degree in Applied Clinical Psychology. I worked full-time all through college and graduate school at low-wage jobs because they were flexible enough to accommodate my class schedule. I was eager to put my education into practice and help others and hopefully earn a little bit more money. I got a taste of what it was like to work as a therapist during my internship in my last year of graduate school and I could not wait to become a full-time therapist. Read more>>

Diana Jyoti

I currently work as a full time hospice nurse, Prior to that I worked as a maternity nurse and school nurse. The hospice position literally fell into my lap when the hospice agency called me to see if I was interested in the position. I had just returned home from a week-long vacation in Costa Rica where I participated in my first-ever medicine journey. In the journey, I was confronted with my own mortality and realized the only way to move through my fear of death was to surrender to the fear. Read more>>