Brenda Stevens, MA, CBA®

I attribute my success to faith, family, and determination. My parents instilled in me very early on to be diligent and to persevere. Times have been difficult, and we've had challenges in our lives and my family's life. I won't sugarcoat it - we've had ups and downs, we've had moves and tragedies, but really persevering through that and understanding that my faith is my glue, my family is my glue. There are resources outside of that that help me and have helped us to maintain and really grow in the wake of some of the challenges that we've faced.

The best career advice I received was to be myself, to speak my truth, and to own and take responsibility and credit. Sometimes as women, we don't take credit for things when they come out good, so I learned to take responsibility for things that don't go right as a leader and to take credit for things that do go right. That advice was given to me by one of my mentors, and she also told me to be confident in the work that we do. In the very beginning as a young professional, I suffered from imposter syndrome. However, as time went on and my voice was heard in rooms and in boardrooms, I had to gain the confidence to speak truth to what was going on in the room and situations that may have been happening. As I began to continuously speak truth and own up to that and own that, I began to be more confident and to feel more confident in my views. Knowing myself, knowing who I was, understanding my culture, and understanding who I was helped me to own that truth.

For women who are starting businesses, they really will have to seek resources outside of their norm. A lot of times, we go to what's familiar as women, but you really will have to look outside of what's normal to you and begin to tap into resources that might seem different. Check with other women who are doing something similar. I tell my businesses all the time that your competitors are not a bad thing. Competitors sometimes can be allies, and so seek those allies that can help you grow your business. Getting the counseling and guidance from other sources is a good start.

In the industry of business consulting, the biggest challenge right now is funding. For example, we don't know how funds will be dispersed for the state of Ohio, and I'm looking into some things here in North Carolina, but in the state of Ohio, I know for the Minority Business Assistance Center, the funding is secure right now, but the future, we don't know what the future holds. In order to continue to serve these businesses and to be able to provide certification assistance, access to capital assistance, procurement assistance, and helping businesses procure jobs, that hangs in the balance. But we keep working in spite of it. We just keep working along and doing what needs to be done for businesses in spite of what lies ahead. I think for every industry, there's an uncertainty, and so for this industry, it is too.

In my personal life, my faith in God is first and foremost. It led me to my career, and it also guides me in the things I do, how I approach leadership, how I approach individuals, and the empathy and compassion that I have for the work that I do and the community. In my work, it's really about doing the work and working hard. My mother always told me, Brenda, work hard, and you will feel satisfied, even if you don't accomplish some of the things. You have to put your best foot forward. So always putting my best foot forward, working hard, and being diligent and serious about the work that I chose to do.