Valerie LaTour

I attribute my success to really quieting that inner voice and knowing that I deserve to be where I am, that I've worked hard to get here. In this male-dominated industry, I think women can get intimidated and feel like they don't have the confidence to say yes, I should be here. But my secret sauce is making sure I believe in myself and present myself in a way that comes across as trustworthy, likable, and composed. I try not to be ego-driven like some presenters might be. I'm really just there to educate and help others, and that's what I care about at the end of the day. I've also learned the importance of refilling my cup, which is something I learned later in life. I make sure to schedule time for myself to go out and be in nature, even if it's just five or ten minutes between meetings, to reset my framework for the day. I'm very diligent about making sure my team has time with their families and that they're refilling their cups too. And honestly, I think people have seen how hard I've worked in life, and it's just about being kind and planting those seeds in others, letting other women know that you have their back so they can achieve what they want to achieve.

I would start every morning looking in the mirror and just saying those positive statements to yourself. It means so much and it does so much for your confidence. Just surround yourself with other like-minded women to help support you. We all need community, we can't do it on our own. And just anything that you can do, if it's meditation, reading devotionals, anything you can do to support yourself so that you believe in yourself. I just wish I was told that when I came out of college, and I kind of had to learn through the process. But that's what I would tell young women now, because it really makes all the difference in how you show up and how you navigate this industry.

I just think it's a male-dominated industry, as far as leadership goes, and a lot of these men have been around for years. But when they retire, we just need to set ourselves up so that we have the same opportunities to grow and be mentored, so that we can rise up and have that equality in the industry. It's definitely still a challenge that leadership roles are predominantly held by men, but I see the opportunity for women to step into those positions as the industry evolves. We need to make sure we're creating pathways for women to be mentored and supported so we can achieve that equality.

Serving the community is one of my most important values. I think when we're humble that way and serve others, it just makes the community better. I've brought that into our workplace, and once a quarter, the whole team gets a day off and we go serve the community in some capacity. It's just a change in the posture of your employees when they're doing that, so I'm a big advocate of that. I'm also a big advocate of team building and making sure everyone feels heard and respected. One of my greatest joys is planting seeds in other women and then seeing how they've been successful, and then having them come back and thank me for the time I took to listen to them or support them. I don't think there's a notable award or anything, but I think people have seen how hard I've worked in life, and it's just about being kind and planting those seeds and letting other women know that you have their back so they can achieve what they want to achieve. And for refilling my cup, I make sure I schedule time for myself to just go out and be in nature. I also make sure my team has their time with their families and that they're refilling their cups too. That balance is so important to me.