Darlene Bennett

I attribute my success to God. Every day, I wake up and say, what's our plan for today, Lord? What we doing? I cannot do it without Him - He protects us, guides us, and orders our steps so that we are in line with the plan that is for us. My children were also my saving grace. They caused me to mature and want better in life. Even if I didn't want it for me, I had to want it for them because we're setting a legacy here. Having my first child at 17 made me determined to ensure she didn't become a statistic. When she graduated college, she looked at me and said, 'Mom, it's now your turn.' I hold that dear to my heart because she was born to such a young mom, and I kept her at my hip at all times.

The best career advice I've received is to continue to give it your best, continue to level up, and don't get stagnant. If you see yourself wanting to do something, then do it. Because many times, most things that we really want to do in life came to us already as an idea, and we sometimes scare ourselves out of it. We think that this is too big. We spend so much time working for other people and giving it our all, but when it comes time for us, we don't do it. I also had a supervisor who was the first one to instill in me that I had a gift for motivating people and inspiring them. She told me, 'I don't know what that is that you have, but I want you to look into getting it, to defining it more, because what you just said to me spoke volumes.' That encouragement to recognize and develop my natural gifts has stayed with me.

I would say go for it. Attack your fears and address your fears as you move forward. Don't let your fears stop you, because there are gonna be things there to halt you. Maybe something there that God wants you to look at harder, to take that part in and study on that part a little harder. But take the easy and the hard, and keep going. Keep growing. Keep learning. Never stop growing. Every day, I look at my life and say I look to learn something new every day. I tell my daughter all the time to always find a person in your company where you want to go and start shadowing now. Always take that time to learn what it is, take your extra time and study, and become that person that you want to be. Put the hard work in early - it will reward you later in your life. Don't let no obstacle, don't let nothing stop you. I was a teenage mother. I desired to be a homeowner, I desired to have a degree, I desired so many things, and when those things were not met, I felt empty. But something in me said you gotta keep pushing, you gotta get going. And now I'm on the other side of that. Address it and keep going. Maximize your time.

The values most important to me are caring for others and treating everyone with love and respect regardless of who they are. I see your name, not your color - that's how I treat people. I love everyone regardless of race, color, creed, whatever you are. I believe in giving back and making sure people don't feel overlooked or beneath us. I speak to and spend time talking to the homeless, trying to find out how I can help, because sometimes they need someone to talk to. They are often overlooked, and people think they want to be in the situation they're in, not knowing that we all are that close to being in that very situation. I think God trusts us and tests us to see how we're treating people. Time is also incredibly important to me - it's the most valuable asset. You can't get it back, you can't make more of it, you just have to seize the time that has been allotted to you. Time shows you if a person is genuine, if they're not, whether you really want to do something in life or not. I also believe in never making another child feel bad, always making friends, and bringing people together rather than separating them.