Carley L. Bearden

The best career advice I've learned is that we are in a people business. At the end of the day, yes, you are selling and introducing a product, but at the same time, you're really selling yourself. You're getting to know these people and understanding their needs and what they need in order to make their business better, and you build friends and mentors out of that. Another piece of advice is don't be afraid to ask for the business - ask for what you want. My boss Josh Irving has been such a major impact on my life, and the biggest thing is ask for what you want and do the research beforehand. Do your homework. When you approach a situation, you know, when you approach it kind of not knowing the behind the scenes or the business of how things operate, it's really hard to have that confident conversation of being confident in who you are. The last thing Josh says that really stuck with me is, if you're not excited, stay in bed. It's such a basic but powerful thing - if you're not excited to go out and market and be passionate and help build these businesses and help build this brand, then stay home.

I would say, one, to not be overwhelmed. It can be a very overwhelming industry if you aren't able to really organize and schedule yourself out to balance work and personal life. We are in alcohol sales, and alcohol is universal, it's all around. You can really get caught up in your work and your job, and you want to be able to set your schedule so you're able to still take care of yourself outside of it, so you can be a better worker or be a better partner or family member. What I say a lot is chin up, cowboy. It's so important to me because I say that to myself a lot. You really just have to, again, don't get overwhelmed, get organized in a way that's most natural to you and that helps you work, and never, ever, ever forget your unique talents. That's what I would tell a young woman if they approached me and needed help. What are you good at? Let's make a list of the things that you are good at. Let's make a list of the things that is being asked of your job and your role. How do you want to make an impact? Because, yes, we're selling alcohol, but how do you want to impact this industry?

With Socorro, I'm so proud of being a part of this brand. Socorro is only in 4 states right now, we have about 15 employees, and as of February 1st, if you fly American Airlines, we now have 3 cocktails on the airplane, which is huge. So the opportunities to continue to grow and be better and be a part of something bigger with Socorro is right around the corner. The challenge that comes with that, I would say, is reviewing kind of who I am and not allowing myself to get scared or intimidated. I would say to also trust myself. My boss Josh always says, trust your gut. Even in this business, trust your gut. If it's a specific account, someone you're working with, really trust your gut and say, is this a right approach to a business or wrong. When it comes to me and my abilities to help build and be a part of this company, trusting my gut and speaking up is important. It really goes back to confidence. Chin up, cowboy - don't be scared, because you've been given the opportunity to help grow something amazing, don't be scared to go chase that.

I would say confidence, for sure. Having the confidence, again, to ask for what you want and being able to execute what you say that you will do is really important in the industry and in my life. I would say my biggest principle of my life and of my work, and how they kind of trickle into one another, is being a human being. We don't have a rulebook of life, we don't have a rulebook on how to do things. We have guides, we have mentors, but you were hired as an individual because of your individual skill sets. They don't want you to be, you shouldn't want to be like everybody else. They hired you for your unique use, so how can you use your unique skill sets to help build and push in my business and in my personal life. One of my biggest impacts in this world is my fiance - I get married in about 20 days. I can come home and talk all day long about business and logistics and things, but she asks the question of, okay, and how are you? How are you feeling about that? Like, think about it from a perspective of you and what you want. So it's finding balance of the uniqueness and being yourself in this industry and this life is so important, because you got hired as a unique you, and yes, they teach you how to do the role and they inspire you and mentor you, but you don't have the same skill sets as everyone else. It's important to really hone in on what you are capable of and your abilities to be successful.