Before I even knew that this thing called “marketing” had a name, I wanted to be a part of it. I was the kid who loved watching commercials, reading ads, looking at product packaging, and talking to salespeople. Some of my fondest memories are the Saturdays I’d spend with my Dad looking at cars, to see how the manufacturers went about marketing them and watching the dealership sales process. I don’t know that I could have put my feelings into words, but whatever it was intrigued me.

I spent a lot of my high school years in retail and gained an understanding of the role marketing plays in that sphere. I studied marketing that inspired me. Ever the car fanatic, I immersed myself in the news of the auto industry closely from the manufacturer side and the aftermarket. 

I enrolled at the University of North Texas, and I knew from the minute I sat down in Freshman Literature what degree would come out the other side. I endured non-marketing classes so I could get to my consumer behavior, advanced marketing management, and market research classes. Then, the day came that I dreamt of that first day in Freshman Lit; I walked across the stage and received my diploma, indicating that I had received my BBA-Marketing.

Then reality hit. 

Marketing in real life provided me with a steep learning curve. Putting what I had learned, combined with how it is done in the real world, into practice was a struggle at first. It took a few more years of study, long hours, and lots of failures to feel the flow. But flow it did! Now, not only does the passion from when I was a kid remain, but the skills, knowledge, and leadership experience I have gained have allowed me to do some exciting things and work with some wonderful people over the past two decades, and I look forward to more, especially from this group!