Her Story
About Tiffany
I'm originally from Jamaica, a small island where we're impacted a lot by hurricanes, and I was in one of those volatile areas. Growing up there, we kind of had to learn how to do things for ourselves, and if you wanted to live better, you had to learn how to do it yourself. My father was a contractor, and that's what triggered my interest in construction engineering. I just loved the feel, and I continued with it. I do structural designs and ensure that buildings are to code. Currently, I teach online for the University of Technology in Jamaica, where I still do structural design work with them. Since coming to New York to give my two young children a better opportunity, I've been working to get into the market here. I was recently employed on a contractual basis by LearningMates, improving their AutoCAD software school program, which just finished. Now I'm in between contracts and working on getting my engineering and training license here in the U.S. The transition from the islands to here hasn't been easy, but if you love what you do, it's okay. It's about learning a new process and a new environment and just keeping moving forward.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Tiffany
01What do you attribute your success to?
I'm lucky to still have my grandmother and my mother around me, so it would be really and truly the women in my life. I was in high school when my mother sat us down and said she needed to come to the United States so we could have a better life. She always wanted to be a nurse, and having us kind of deterred that career goal, but she ended up being a nursing technician, which is a little bit close to her goal, and she never stopped. That in itself showed me I can do it. It doesn't matter how difficult it becomes, you just have to know what you want, and if what I want is a better life for myself and for my kids, what is there to stop me? Every time I feel like I want to complain, I say no, Grandma did it. My grandmother is the old Caribbean lady, born 1927. Jamaica wasn't even independent yet. She went through the tribulations and the backlash, and she did it with four kids. So what am I supposed to complain for in a time which gives you so much opportunity? It's how you use it. And even when it seems difficult, another anchor would have just been God to tell the truth. So those two women, and having faith, that's it.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Keep your passion alive. Let the passion fuel you and drive you, because as you say, it is still male prevalent, and because of that, you might get that push, but from you understand and you know what you know, just keep understanding that at the end of the day, every challenge is just going to be another struggle, and from you can pass that struggle, you're good to go. Just mostly motivate yourself and try and find what you love and do what you love.
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