As the Training Team Lead, I oversee the training program for a 10 member intelligence team and provide focused subject matter knowledge for a 30 member reporting and analysis cell based on my 7 years in the intelligence field.

As a mission manager, I led a small team of intelligence analysts, ensuring accountability, quality control, team situational awareness, and timely dissemination of intelligence products. I was responsible for assuring my team stayed on task, for maintaining team cohesion, keeping leadership informed of critical mission activities, and for updating mission documents. This job required precise attention to detail, situational awareness, time management, and effective communication in a highly time-sensitive, high-pressure environment.

I decided to become a Cryptologic Linguist in the United States Air Force because of the security of a government job during an uncertain economic environment, to show myself that I had the capacity to learn a very complex and intellectually demanding career field, and to improve myself by learning a language and building a foundation for a healthier lifestyle. As a Cryptologic Linguist, I was expected to conduct in-depth analysis and development of a specific target set, often with little direction. I tried to be flexible to add the most value that I could to the mission, which allowed me to get involved in some exciting opportunities. After developing and becoming the SME of my specific target set, I branched out to take on additional responsibilities to further my understanding of the overall process of the shop.

My mother has owned a brick and mortar specialty retail store for over 20 years. This store sells adult products, costumes, incense, candles, and other metaphysical products in Dothan, Alabama. For years, this store enjoyed a protected niche in the retail market of the area, but the niche has all but disappeared since the early 2000s. The store lost its protected niche as internet retail became more popular. The store was too slow to adopt the internet as a tool for selling its products, and could not keep up with changes in technology. Then, the economic crisis of 2008 came, which forced many people to rethink their purchasing decisions of the specialty products that the store sold. As the economy recovered, the store was faced with increased competition from pop-up costume stores and large internet-based stores. Growing up in a small business family in the retail industry has taught me some inside information of running a business, such as marketing, business development, the importance of finding a niche in the market, and customer satisfaction. Perhaps the most important thing that I learned, however, was the importance of being a nice person.