Her Story
About Jacqueline
I have been working in coaching and workforce development for nearly 20 years, with the last 7 years as a self-employed consultant since 2019. Before starting my own practice, I spent almost 11 years with Year Up (now Year Up United) in Atlanta, a workforce development program for young people ages 18 to 24. During my time there, I developed a partnership with Mary Max restaurant where I would teach etiquette classes at our facility and then take students to the restaurant for hands-on practice in a safe environment. I specialize in professional presence and etiquette coaching for emerging professionals, focusing on the 18 to 25 age group. My work centers on teaching the unwritten code of corporate culture - the soft skills that go beyond technical abilities and academic degrees. I teach everything from proper business dining etiquette to workplace communication, professional behavior, and how to read the room in corporate settings. I operate on the principle that you're hired for your tech skills but fired for your soft skills, and my goal is to help young people not only get their jobs but keep them and advance in their careers. I also taught Project Management 101, which I consider one of my most notable achievements because I learned the material just ahead of my students, and many of them are now project managers earning six-figure salaries. Today I work as a consultant, conducting workshops as requested for groups preparing to enter college or recent graduates.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Jacqueline
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received was that the years are going to go by anyway. A woman told some doctors who were hesitant about the 8-year commitment that yes, it might take 8 years to become a doctor, but those 8 years are still going to go by whether you pursue it or not. So you might as well make something out of them and have a doctorate degree at the end. That will make it a worthwhile 8 years. I share this wisdom with my students all the time because it's so powerful. The years are going to pass regardless, so you might as well use them to work toward your goals.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell young women entering my field that you are more than enough, that you have exactly what you need to begin your learning. It is a lifelong process and you'll never know everything, and that's a good thing because that means you're always willing to learn. But you can step into any environment for which you have a passion and you have an entry-level skill set. You can step in and know that what you have is enough. You have something to offer, as well as something to learn. So just be more confident. Step in with confidence and grace - grace for yourself, as well as grace for others. If you work with somebody that's your dad's age and he might say something like he didn't know a girl could do that, give him one moment of grace on that. His generation, he's telling the truth. He's probably never seen a woman engineer. Well, you say, well, I'm so glad that you're meeting me. You're helping him break out of his own bubble. You'll never be without a job if you have confidence so that you can expand your network.
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