Tiyana Dennis

I would say the women around me. Everyone around me that I grew up with, in some way or another, has dropped off a special gem with me and made me want to push through and just be the best woman that I can be. I want to carry on not only my grandmother's legacy, but my mom, and how hardworking she is, and the sacrifices she made throughout my life, and I want to do the same thing for myself, my future kids, my nieces, my nephews. I want to leave a good legacy that my family and my loved ones can be proud of.

My grandmother always told me to finish the job. Don't not finish it. That has stuck with me. She's an educator, so for her, school and education was not an option. Taking education and learning and being able to read and write and do our math was not an option.

I would say believe in yourself. No one else's thoughts or beliefs in you matter if you do not believe in yourself. If you do not believe that you can do whatever it is, it's cliche, but whatever we decide that we want to do, we can do it. I'm literally working and learning that lesson now, continuing the learning. I've seen it, we hear it all the time, but I'm literally seeing that if you just trust in yourself and put one foot in front of the other, you can accomplish whatever you set out to do.

I think being a woman in general, we kind of have to face that no matter what, unfortunately, sometimes it's a man's world. I think in society in general, we're starting to shift that narrative. One of the challenges is being confident and making and knowing that it is okay to be confident in your skills and your experiences and being true to yourself. I think sometimes opportunities feel like they come few and far between, or it's hard to get to the next level, but if you want something and go after it, it may not be in your current job or current company, it may take a move, but just knowing that the opportunity is there for you to get where you want to be.