Kenyatta Hampton

I attribute everything to God. I am nothing without Him, and everything that I have, everything that I have achieved, it's only because of Him. He takes all the credit, none of me, all of Him.

The best career advice I have ever received is to see yourself and be yourself. I know there's a lot of rules and pressure, but as long as you go in and do your job, do what is needed, and continue to grow, that's what matters. Don't ever get complacent. Continue to look for ways to grow, even in your current position. Even if you're at an expert level, find a way to grow someone else. For me, it's been perfect, and I just continue to grow. I'm continuing to find avenues to grow and develop me, who I am, and what I do. Just be yourself and continue to find ways to advance yourself. Don't ever stop learning, don't ever stop growing.

I would tell them that the work is always changing, so don't be frustrated. Keep your head up. Learn all that you can. Keep learning. And any opportunity to learn outside your job, take it, because it is beneficial, especially if you want to grow into any leadership position. Also look for ways to grow outside of where you are at. The work is constantly changing, so don't see that as a roadblock, but see it as something you can take on, something you're ready for.

Some of the challenges are that because we are so short-staffed, we are under a lot of pressure to get a lot of work out. We deliver, but it's still not putting a dent into the work. Big people are not seeing that it's only like 5 of us with the work of 2 million people. That's challenging because we're pushing out the work, it's just not enough people. But we still show up, and we still push out work, we still excel. We do a lot of work. Another challenge is work-life balance, because I'm in school, I'm about to get married, I'm a youth director, so it's just trying to stay afloat and keep everything balanced. Sometimes work exceeds with a lot of meetings, and it can become a lot on my plate right now. But I just keep showing up, because I know it won't always be like this. It's a growth opportunity for me, just knowing I can handle this much and knowing when to stop.

Consistency, loyalty, and honesty are most important to me. I think if you're consistent, that's my biggest thing. Your word is your bond. I'm a lady of action. If I give you my word, that's my word, and I'm going to show up. Be consistent, be loyal, and be honest.