Denise Horton

I attribute my success to God, literally God, and my family. I grew up in foster care, so I've been working since I was young. Being in different types of fields and having good leadership and role models to help guide me through has helped build me into who I am. I can't take all the credit for myself, but I definitely get up and make an effort to be on time and always give 100% to whatever it is that I'm doing. I'm always aiming to be on time and stay focused on what needs to be done.

The best career advice I've received is that anything you do, just make sure that you put your all into it. Don't half-do a job. Take responsibility for your actions and don't make excuses. When you go through your reviews and have to take that constructive criticism, use it to make yourself better. Always strive to be better at any and everything that you do.

For young women who want to grow in this field, just come with a lot of passion. Do it because you love to, not because you're forced to, not just for the money. You can always take these different skills and roles and make it your own, even open up your own business. I want young women to see me and know that I started from the bottom as a dishwasher, and now I'm in a leadership role where I can help and hire people. It's motivation to show that you can start from the bottom and work your way up. It doesn't just happen by luck - I worked hard to get here.

One of the biggest challenges I've experienced is not having the same staff - the hospitality field has a big turnover. Getting the right people to stick with you is difficult, and when the season slows down and then picks up, I'm always having to adjust and teach different people every time they step in the building. Another challenge is making sure that we're giving every single customer the best service we can give them. We're not here for us, we're here for the guests. They're coming for an experience, so we have to go over and beyond to make sure we're walking with dignity, presenting ourselves, smiling, and keeping the right team environment around. It's always going to be a challenge, but it can be dealt with.

For me, the most important values are having a passion to take people's ideas and thoughts and consider how you would feel coming from somebody else's perspective. You have to value people's time and respect. Respect is huge - you have to respect the people you're working with. Teamwork is definitely something I'm big on too. There's no I in we, and there's no I in team. We have to do this together as a team. That's something I'm really big on, even with my family, instilling that in my daughters. Having some kind of self-worth is important because people will see that coming out of you in your personality and the way you carry yourself.