Erica: Hey, girl. By now, you know I have HER Collective, my online community for ambitious women who are done doing it alone. HER Collective is for the women who are smart, capable, and driven, but they find themselves stuck on the sticky floors like self doubt, burnout, and waiting for permission that quite honestly never comes. Inside HER, you get more than motivation. You get real support, real strategies, and real momentum.

Erica: We work on things like clarifying what you want now and what's coming next, building confidence without burning yourself out, navigating hard conversations, career moves, and leadership moments with clarity, and surrounding yourself with women who actually get it. This isn't about hustling harder. It's about moving intentionally with the right tools and the right people in your corner. If you're ready to stop spinning, start choosing yourself, and build a career in life that actually feels aligned, I'd love to welcome you inside HER Collective. You can learn more and join us at www.joinhercollective.com.

Erica: Because honestly, girl, you were never meant to do this alone.

Erica: All right. Welcome to the podcast from now to next. I'm your host, Erica Rooney. And I am super excited today because I have a longtime friend with me, Monique Levy, who has been, gosh, in my life since the college days at the University of Florida. And Monique is going to be such an inspirational person to listen to.

Erica: She is a former attorney. She is a former CEO, and now she is a fractional COO owning her own consulting business and rocking out motherhood all at the same time. So, Monique, thank you for taking the time to link up with me today and talk. I'm so excited to have you.

Monique: Oh, well, thank you, Erica. It's so nice to join you today and reminisce and chat about our days at Florida. Oh my gosh. Yes.

Erica: It just shows you too how wonderful it is, like, the connections that you can make all the way back in college and then watch how people have grown their careers and their lives. And, like, I don't even wanna say how many years ago that was, but it was enough. It was enough years old and then still be able to connect after all this time. But I would love to just kind of kick off the session with like, tell me a little bit about yourself, how you got into this consulting business and what you're doing.

Monique: Yeah. So for me, it kind of got here in, like, a very wound up roundabout way, like, most of our lives. You know, once I left Florida, the state of Florida, I went to Baltimore. From there, kind of ended up in St. Louis, and this is a very short version of this story.

Monique: Mhmm. But St. Louis has become this place where I started to figure out what I wanted for my career. I started in tech startups as an operation manager. And when that company decided to downsize, I was out of a job and with a almost one year old.

Monique: So very quickly needed to pivot. We just purchased a house. You know, all of the things that you're, you know, you're supposed to be doing. And I found myself jobless. So I very quickly found a role with a nonprofit, and that role is what really kind of launched where I am now.

Monique: You know, working in the nonprofit space, one, helped me understand that the people you work with are incredibly important. Like, I was surrounded by other working women who were also young mothers. So the flexibility was understood. I didn't have to worry about if I had to run to a doctor's appointment or if someone got sick or if a school closed. All of the things that are almost commonplace now for everyone weren't commonplace.

Monique: There were only issues women dealt with a couple years ago. But that experience helped me in that I had a support team and a leader who really helped develop my working skills and really saw what I was good at. And so from there, pandemic and needing to, you you know, still branch out and wanting to do more. And the one downside to smaller nonprofits is there's nowhere to grow. So I took on the role as the CEO of a local, economic development firm here in St.

Monique: Louis focusing on fashion. And very quickly realized that my skill set was very limited in only working for one person. And that's kind of what spawned the idea that, hey. I love operations. I love helping people succeed.

Monique: I like the tedious back end work. I also enjoy talent development. So why not do that for as many people as I can? People who really want to grow their teams, people who are interested in scaling. So that's why I focus on nonprofits and startups.

Monique: They tend to have more heart in the game. And so the collaboration is more powerful, and it's more meaningful for me. And everyone's also a little more relaxed about the process, which helps me because me personally, as you know, I'm very laid back. And I think it took a while for some of our friends to realize that I am a professional. And so

Erica: And the C suite individual too. Right? Like Right. Professional at the highest level. Right.

Erica: Exactly.

Monique: I I know some people like, wait. You, of course, easily. I'm like, yes. Still am. And but I'm also still the same person.

Monique: So working for myself has allowed me to balance the two. I'm still the party captain just on a much more professional and, like, you know, even keeled manner.

Erica: Yes. Well, I love, I love it. I love party captain too. Part part party captain, part time. Right?

Erica: Part time, part time. So, I mean, that's an awesome story. I love just kind of hearing how you went from attorney to jobless, to c suite to fractional COO and owning your own business. I am sure that did not come out without a lot of heartache and struggles along the way. And as what we've talked about in the past and what I really focus on in this podcast is, like, that road to success is not easy, and it is not easy for women because of some of the things that you talked on.

Erica: Right? Like, being a mom, like, you don't have a job, but working like you don't have a kid. Fortunately for you, you were in a good position at that time with other female leaders, but these, quote, unquote, what I call them sticky floors, really kind of hold us back from kind of hitting this type of trajectory that you have done. What have been some of your sticky floors that you kind of experienced throughout this journey?

Monique: Yeah. I would say one of the ones that and this is for me personally, and I wanna share it so other women understand that self reflection is very, very key in this journey. And one of my own personal sticky floors was my own behavior and my own ability to get in the way of myself. Going back to that person who likes to have fun, I often prioritize, oh, it'll be a good story. Oh, I can stay out late.

Monique: Oh, I can go to that conference. I can go to that happy hour without realizing the toll it was taking on me professionally and my ability to advance. So as hard as it was to give some of that up, it was the best decision I could have made to find a new set of friends and surround myself with people who also worked just as hard as they played or maybe played a little less. So that was that was one of the ones I absolutely, like, just had to come to terms with. Another sticky floor was just being around the wrong types of people as far as, like, a bad relationship?

Monique: I will be the first to tell you that I have a first I had a first husband. Yeah. And at that time, it didn't seem like an issue, but as we were going through some things and kind of seeing, like, where I wanted my life to go, we did not have the same vision for my role as a spouse, as a partner, as a as a mother. In fact, I didn't think I was ever going to be a mother when I was with that partner. Wow.

Monique: Because it it didn't feel like a place where I could grow and be myself. So I had those types of floors and then the usual ones, you know. I always tread lightly on this one, but I think it's something we have to talk about. And, Erica, you can probably attest to it. Pretty privilege is a thing.

Monique: It's also a blessing and a curse. Yeah. Being an attractive woman who is smart, you are often picked to do things, and you'll get the job, or you'll get to go to the conference or be in the room or be at the table, but no one will take you seriously. Mhmm. So the promotions don't come your way or the fancy jobs don't come your way.

Monique: But you're absolutely invited, and people want you to be there. And men want you around, like and people want you in the room, but you're not supposed to say anything. And you're not supposed to do too much. And you're fun too. Right.

Erica: And you're fun. And why not get invited? But that's I love that you said that because I've never actually heard of it. It's called pretty privilege, but I was listening to the book on tape called burnout, which I'll have to look up who wrote it and I'll put it in the show notes, but it is written by two doctors. And so they actually have stats behind this, but they talk about the importance, which I use air quotes around that of being attractive or being thin or, you know, looking a certain way because science shows that those things get you further along.

Erica: Right? It gets you invited to the room, all of those things. Right? So we tell people bring your whole self to work. Right?

Erica: It's okay. Do that. But but not if you if you weigh that much or not if you look a certain way or not if your hair is curly when it should be straight. You know? I was talking to one woman yesterday, and she told me that someone had told her, you look more professional when your hair is straightened, which what the hell does that even mean?

Monique: You know? I agree. Everyone has the curly hair. It's not even a race specific thing. Like, curly hair is just

Erica: Hey there, listeners. If you have ever felt like you're stuck in a place, held back by self doubt, perfectionism, or that pesky inner critic, you're not alone. We all face those sticky floors that keep us from reaching the heights we dream of. But guess what? It's time to shatter those limiting beliefs and toxic behaviors to uncover infinite possibilities.

Erica: My book, Glass Ceilings and Sticky Floors, is your ultimate guide to smashing through barriers, overcoming limiting beliefs, and stepping into your full potential. This book has been endorsed by none other than the great Mel Robbins, best selling author and motivational powerhouse. It's also been featured in Success Magazine, so you know it's packed with insights that work. Inside, you'll find real life sticky floor stories, practical strategies to help you navigate your own sticky floor moments, and a whole lot of inspiration to keep you climbing. This isn't just a book.

Erica: It's your road map to success, confidence, and freedom. Grab your copy of Glass Ceilings and Sticky Floors today at www.ericaandersonrooney.com. Whether you're in the boardroom, the classroom, or just starting out, this book is for you because no one, and I mean no one, deserves to stay stuck, no one deserves to feel small, and you have glass ceilings to shatter. Let's do this.

Erica: Yeah. And it was just why and, you know, as a as a woman, her immediate reaction was, oh my gosh. I guess when I'm going to these meetings, like, I should straighten my hair, you know, because I want to be taken seriously. And then, you know, she kind of had that little coming to Jesus moment where she was like, no, that's, that's bullshit. Guess what?

Erica: Maybe if you had more hair, because you're balding, you'd be taking them seriously.

Monique: I, you know, but like

Erica: we don't say those things, you know, so

Monique: Because So the facts yeah. The fact

Erica: that that was actually said to her and then how we internalize that, and it's like we have to unlearn a lot of those things.

Monique: Mhmm. I mean, you know, we were grow we grew up in the South. Like, the way we look and the way you leave the door is was, like, hammered into us and me especially since what? We were five? Since we were old enough to remember your mother being, like, sit down, cross your legs, tuck in your shirt, fix your hair.

Monique: And, like, I

Erica: I specifically will say I remember a time in my career when I was interviewing for a high level position, and I literally have the conversation in my mind of what I should wear so that I appeared a certain way because I knew that I was interviewing with c level men.

Monique: Mhmm.

Erica: And I firmly believe that how I dress and how I dress that day made gave me a leg up.

Monique: Yeah. Absolutely. And and it does. And it's one of the things where we're still like, we still deal with it. We're making changes, but the changes aren't happening tomorrow.

Monique: So you still have to manage that. And it's a and it is a sticky floor because as women, we are treading this fine line of, okay. I am attractive, but I what what do I wear? What I what I what I don't, or how do I put my hair back? And then you're like, did I get this job because I'm pretty?

Monique: Did I get this job because I'm smart? And then sometimes you get there and you're like, oh, I got this job because I'm pretty because you won't let me do anything that a smart person does.

Erica: Yeah.

Monique: It's something you perceive to be smart to do.

Erica: Yeah. Right. Exactly. Yeah. No.

Erica: I think that a lot of women either go through that and they completely realize it or some of them, you know, are completely kept out of the rooms because they don't fit a certain mold or they don't look a certain way or talk a certain way, which again, it's just wild because we sit here and we say, bring that whole self to work, like show up as your authentic self,

Monique: but not too much.

Erica: But only that. Only if it fits this picture that I'm about to give you. So I love that. I also love the self reflection that you talk about. I think too, like, alcohol is just so prevalent in everything that we do and in the corporate world.

Erica: Right? That a lot of how you get ahead is by going to the happy hours and staying out late at the sales conferences and doing all those things when maybe that's not who you wanna be going forward because you have small kids at home. And your body doesn't recover the same way it did when we were back in the dorm room. And we do not keep up with it.

Monique: I mean, thank God for high waisted jeans, but they still have to fit.

Erica: They still got a button. Yeah.

Monique: Right. And alcohol is not your friend after 30. It's

Erica: not. And I know for me, it just caused so much more brain fog and kept my productivity. So, so much. I didn't think it was low at the time,

Monique: but back and I'm like, I went to work hungover. What? Like, I would never even imagine doing that now.

Erica: Yeah. But just just the amount that you can get done and the productivity and how much better you feel, it's just wild. Like, I'm trying to decide if society is swinging a little bit more in the other way now because I do think there are a lot more people who are cognizant of how it's affecting them as a sticky floor and holding them back. Kinda like how smoking

Monique: went through that pendulum.

Erica: You know, like, you've got the pictures from the nineteen seventies of moms smoking in the living room, you know, with their newborn right there. And I don't know if it's swinging or if it's not quite there, but there's definitely a lot. I'm starting to find when I'm going out with a lot more people that I work with now that there are a lot of people that just choose not to drink at all or they say I only drink at special occasions or only on the weekends. Yeah. So I do yeah.

Erica: I identify with that as well.

Monique: Yeah. I have found for me that I'll either do, like, one glass of wine at a networking event so I have something in my hand Yeah. Wouldn't either have, like, bartender refill it with club soda Yeah. Or just only put club soda in a drinking, like, a wine glass or a rocks glass so everyone assumes I have a drink. Because you still fall into the trap of, like, there's always someone's like, oh, let me get you a drink.

Monique: Oh, you need a drink. And you're like, I don't. But if you have one in your hand, no one has to continually offer you one. Yeah. And one thing that socialize.

Erica: Yeah. One thing that I have seen too is you have to really be a drinker to make it in those circles.

Monique: Oh my god. Yes.

Erica: You know what I mean? Because it is, let's go for wine. Let's go for happy hour. Let's talk about this over a drink. And if you sit there and you say something like, well, I don't drink, or I only drink during the week or whatever your parameter is, you know, your boundary.

Erica: If you say something like that, people tend to maybe be like, oh, well, I don't wanna I'm not gonna invite her. Right? Or they have that converse the conversations are then had over the table with wine and hors d'oeuvres and things like that, but you weren't invited because you don't drink. Right. So then you're missing out on climbing that ladder.

Erica: This is it actually reminds me of that Friends episode where Rachel was not a smoker, but her boss and another colleague were huge chain smokers, and all of the big decisions were made on the smoking breaks. So she was like, well, I've gotta pretend to smoke. And it was this whole thing, but that's, that's very much so how it is, right? Like you are perceived a certain way if you were to turn down a c level executive or someone high powered who said, let's go out for drinks, and we'll talk about this deal. Yeah.

Monique: You they'd be like well, a part of it also, comes from, oh, well, you think you're better than us or the holier than thou or you're a prude. Like, all of the things that maybe your may or may not be true just because you declined to drink Right. In the middle of the afternoon.

Erica: Right. You are absolutely right. And so, yeah, it's easier to just pretend and, you know, that can be a strategy for sure. I know I have done that, like, at sales conferences and stuff. I just do the club soda trick, like you said, and nobody's the wiser.

Erica: And the next morning when everybody's struggling in the bus, looking all sorts of ways. And then it's kind of funny because then when you can tell people like, no, I really was just drinking a club soda, Then they're like, oh.

Monique: Then they're like, oh, you are smarter than me.

Erica: You're like, correct me. I was doing that. Exactly. Exactly. So I do think the self reflection is a huge one, and that's that's in a lot of different forms and not just the form of alcohol, but, like, how you proceed with your daily life.

Monique: Mhmm.

Erica: You know? I mean, for me, I'm a big fitness freak, and I am very intentional about working out in the mornings because when I do, it gets my brain right. It sets me on the right track. And then I can like kill the rest of the day versus those days where I'm not doing something to move my body. I'm in a lot more of a negative space.

Erica: Things are not flowing the way they should. And that was kind of like an moment for me that when I don't stick to my little habits like that, they don't it doesn't go well.

Monique: Yeah. It just knowing the routine and, like, what that means for you is huge. Like, especially with what I do for work. Like, sometimes I even start, like, meetings with clients and, like, so how are you? And I mean it.

Monique: Like, not how are you, how are things going at the office. Like, no. How are you? What are you doing to keep yourself healthy, active? Because most of the people I work with are all leaders, either founders or leaders of an organization, and they're the biggest asset.

Monique: So, yeah, they can't they can't be hungover, and they need exercise routines. Because if not, then they fall apart and the whole organization falls apart. But it's a self reflection piece that's so key so that way you can understand what you need to be to be better at it.

Erica: Well and I love that you asked that too because the people that you were dealing with, these leaders and stuff, and often, I think women are felt this way is, like, we don't have the luxury of actually telling people how we really are. Right. You know, we don't have the luxury of falling apart because we've got small kids at home. You know, someone's still gotta get to soccer practice or these book reports still have to be done and leaders, you know, at the top, they can't spew out everything that they are upset about because they have to be strong and in charge and present themselves a certain way. So I love that you lead your conversations with that question and, like, actually give me a real answer.

Erica: Like, don't give me that I'm fine answer. Yeah. Everything's great answer. Thanks.

Monique: Well, is it right? And I always say, I'm like, look, I'm not cheap. So you might as well tell me the truth.

Erica: Right. And like, let's, let's prioritize all of this and figure out what we can do and how we can make it better for you.

Monique: Exactly.

Erica: Absolutely. So do you have any sticky floors going on right now that you feel?

Monique: I would say right now, my and this is a good place for me, but my only sticky floor would is wrestling with this idea that maybe I am settled. Mhmm. I am somewhat of a commitment phobe and that I I like I like to move around. And this is I've lived it's my third city. I've lived two places in Florida.

Monique: I was in Baltimore for a couple years. Been in Saint Louis for five years, and I'm starting to get itchy. And I'm like, do I leave again? But where do we go next? Is that necessary?

Monique: So, effectively, I'm creating my own sticky floor. But what I'm saying in the

Erica: beginning Let me do that.

Monique: Right. As I said in the beginning, I am I am my biggest sticky floor for most for most of the things in my life. And I am learning to just be okay with what I thought I wanted is maybe not what's gonna happen right now, and that's okay.

Erica: Yeah.

Monique: Right now, I have to think about what's best for my daughter and our family. And what that looks like now may be different in a couple of years. And so as much as I like, I really wanna go home back to Florida. Like, that's always been my goal after I left ten years ago. And every year, it feels like it's getting further away.

Monique: And this was the first time I've realized that maybe it's not anywhere in the near future at all. And so what does that mean? What does that mean for me Yeah. And my growth and because it's home. You know?

Monique: I I miss the beach. That's a big part of my of my ability to, like, remain calm and feel at peace with the world is being near the ocean and being on the beach. And I don't have that. I live in the middle of the country in Saint Louis. So there are no beaches nearby, and there are no warm ocean breezes.

Erica: There's a lot to do in Saint Louis. There's some good food. Right. There are no beaches.

Monique: There are no beaches. Let's be clear to you about this. And no really pretty rivers or like, there's really not a lot for me to, like, make up for the fact that I don't have a beach.

Erica: That big body of water. Yep.

Monique: Right. And but on the flip side, staying means I am still working on my business because a lot of it right now is referrals and word-of-mouth. I'm running into people who wanna work with me, and I've got some good stuff on the horizon. So do I really wanna walk away from that? And most people would in a hurry, like, no.

Monique: Of course, you stay in town and build your business and make a bunch of money, but I'm like, but I wanna go home. And so that is that is my floor is every day I'm like, ugh, I don't wanna be here. Yeah. But then I do wanna be here because there are so many good things going on. But it's hard to it's hard to leave the the ocean and the coast and, like, the culture of my family.

Monique: And Florida is very different than that of the Midwest, like, politics aside, of course. Yeah. But the diversity that I have when I go to South Florida, like, I blend into crowds when I go home. Yeah. And my family blends in.

Monique: Whereas, like, in Saint Louis, we stand out. Yeah. I and that we live in Saint Louis City, so there's more families that look like ours. But, you you know, being a woman of color in the Midwest is very different than being a woman of color in South Florida.

Erica: Yeah. I would imagine so. Mhmm. And then you've got to raise a daughter through all that as well.

Monique: Yes. And we are Jewish, and my husband is Jewish. So I have this beautiful, gorgeous biracial daughter who is ethnically ambiguous somehow or another. We if you look at her, you're not really sure because she somehow ended up with straight hair. But in South Florida

Erica: the best. Oh. Everybody does say to this podcast. I just wanna snatch it off her head and put it on my own

Monique: because it is so ridiculous. But, like, in South Florida, she just blends in, and we blend in Right. Families that look like ours. But here, we you know, we're we're unique, and we're different. Yeah.

Erica: Interesting. And that

Monique: and that can be annoying because sometimes you do just wanna blend in and not be bothered or looked at or just any of the things.

Erica: And, again, as a mom, you know, having to raise a child in that kind of atmosphere, it's just it's different lessons that you're having to teach your child. So that's a that's a whole another podcast discussion and a whole challenge that you could go into because I yeah. There's a lot to unpack there. Mhmm. So what would you say, you you know, if you're talking to other women out there who kind of found themselves in these sticky floors, right, that you talked about?

Erica: Because you gave some really awesome examples of sticky floors that I think will resonate with a ton of women. I mean, I know they resonated with me. So what would you say what are how do you get out of these sticky floors? For me, and I would say the best advice I can always give is be okay with your limitations. Like, know your limits

Monique: and be okay with them. Because once you've gotten to that point, then you know what you're good at and you know your value. And so you'll start to lean in on the things you are good at and the things that bring you joy. And knowing your value is also knowing your worth. So you're less likely to take shit from other people.

Erica: Yeah.

Monique: But you're also more likely to ask for help and not sign up for things that you wouldn't normally do because you were now aware of your limitations. And and above all, I think for women, especially, is be okay with saying no and learn to like it. I absolutely love saying no. It's one of my favorite things to do, but it took me a while to get here. So that's what I always tell people.

Monique: Like, you've gotta be okay with saying no. And no is a sentence. No period is a full sentence and own that. And if you need to work on it, no thank you. So that way, you know, have that nice little.

Monique: You can make it nice. You can make it nice if you need to. But, yeah, knowing your limitations and saying no are two of the best ways to start getting off your sticky floors because half the time, you could probably get yourself off of it if you started saying no.

Erica: Yeah. There's a quote out there that says, you know, when you're saying no to something, you are saying yes to something else. Correct. Right? I actually think this was in a book that I read, and I read way

Erica: too many books to remember which one this was because it's not on

Erica: the top of my reading list right now. But it said, you know, when you're saying no to that additional project or no to a different client, you are saying yes to being able to take your daughter to soccer practice. You were saying yes to having your me time at the end of the day. Mhmm. So it's like, you need to kind of reframe it in your mind of, like, I'm not losing out this opportunity.

Erica: I am gaining this other experience or opportunity or whatever it is. Right? You know, when you said no to husband number one, you opened up the door for possibility for husband number two to come through the door. Right? And then you were saying yes to motherhood and yes to a great relationship and all of these other things.

Monique: Mhmm. Yeah. And it it's true. I actually say it to clients all the time. I'm like, you have to learn to say no because as you start saying no, you will then say yes to the things you want to do because you have the capacity and bandwidth to do so.

Monique: And so many times, we, like, don't consider our own bandwidth. We're like, oh, I can do it. I can do it. I had one person who was like, oh, it's okay. I'll just I'll sleep for five hours today and tomorrow, and then I'll catch up over the weekend.

Monique: I'm like, no. You won't. You have three kids. Well, I know. Right?

Erica: And I have been a 100% guilty of, like, back in the day when I was a personal trainer, if somebody said, like, I can't make it this evening, can you do 5AM instead?

Monique: Mhmm.

Erica: I would always say, yes. Yes. I can do it. Yes. I can.

Erica: Like, even if that meant I wasn't gonna get sleep because I knew I was training someone until 10PM the night before.

Erica: If, if I actually have the slot on my calendar,

Erica: I would always say yes and inconvenience myself over because I wanted to make it nice for other people, which there's actually I've got another podcast on deck about women making it nice and having that be our sticky floor. But the whole saying no thing, like, really connects me back to that because you have to put up your boundaries and you have to protect your peace and, like, really safeguard that and only take those boundaries down, like, if it really calls for it. But that's a hard that's a hard lesson to learn. That's one I still struggle with right now for sure.

Monique: Happy to chat with you about saying.

Erica: I was gonna say, I'm gonna

Monique: I'm I'm gonna have to

Erica: put up a sticky note or, like, your picture right here on my monitor to just, like, remind me. It's okay to say no and, like, just text.

Monique: You'll be like, did you how many times did you say no this week?

Erica: Just text me the word no.

Monique: No. Not gonna do it. I like to think of, this is gonna probably date me a little bit. But old SNL skits when Dana Carvey was playing George p wait. One of the Bushes.

Monique: The first George w. Yeah. Who knows? I don't know all their their middle names. But George Bush, when he's like, nope.

Monique: Not gonna do it. So every time I go ahead, I'm like, no. I'm still I'm not gonna do that. Nope. Mm-mm.

Monique: No, ma'am.

Erica: I know. You know what else really kills me with that too is I had an old boss one time, and we always used to joke that he always said no. And I actually bought him because he did he had a no button that he could just hit. And then I went out and bought him a yes button. But so clearly, I need to go get that no button.

Monique: You need the no button. I need to We tell

Erica: our kids no. That is true. I'm good at that.

Monique: Right. So why not tell everybody else? You keep exercising that. Mhmm.

Erica: I like it. Oh, gosh. Yep. Know your boundaries. So if you had to tell your former like, go back to your attorney days, right, to where you were when you were attorney, you know, then, you know, you moved and you were doing the the tech start up, you had a one year old, a house, you were jobless, what would you tell yourself then?

Erica: You know, your former self, what kind of advice would you give yourself?

Monique: One, that you were right about the impairment that you're right, that you weren't wrong. And the people that the people around you didn't really know what they were doing. And not like they didn't know what they were doing with their jobs. More like they didn't know what they were doing to develop and manage talent. Mhmm.

Monique: That is not a skill everybody has, especially in the tech world, especially because the tech world is run by white men.

Erica: So You know? Yeah. So, you know,

Monique: there so there's that. It's under it was I was not in a place where I could understand that what I was facing wasn't necessarily my fault. I thought I wasn't smart enough or I needed to read more books or listen to one more podcast or just if I could've gotten the special that job at a larger firm, or if I would have gone to a better law school, if I would have done better on my LSATs to get into a better law school, I would be where my perceived colleagues and peers were. But that had nothing to do with me and everything to do with the people I was working with, the environments I were in. And if I could just tell myself, you know, you were right.

Monique: You were smart enough and you are smart enough. You just need to find a new environment and you'll you'll be okay. But it took a long time to understand that, like, sometimes things are gonna be chaotic and you just have to work through it. But at the end of the day, things always work out.

Erica: Yeah. They do. Right?

Monique: You know? They do. They just do.

Erica: And there's the the infamous quote of, you know, if it's if it's not okay, it's not the end. It's gonna be okay in the end. If it's not okay, it's not the end. Yeah. And there

Monique: I always have some parameters around that. Like, for me, I lost my mother at a young age, so that gave me a lot of life perspective. And that at the end of the day, I'm like, well, did you die?

Erica: Here we are. Here we are. Still here. Yeah.

Monique: Or right. Or as my husband who's, the general manager of a bar likes to say, every shift ends.

Erica: I like that. Every shift ends. That's a joke. At some point,

Monique: it will be over. Yeah.

Erica: Yeah. Well, that's so cool. I think I mean, gosh. All these sticky floors, like I said, they have resonated so deeply with me. I know they are going to touch the hearts of other women who are like, I am absolutely in those shoes.

Erica: So I appreciate you sharing your perspective and stories on those, because they were very personal stories. Right? And but they've made you who you are, and here you are running this consulting business, which I just think is so kick ass. Thank you.

Monique: I'm really enjoying it.

Erica: Yeah. So where can all of our listeners find you if they wanna reach out? You know, they wanna check out your page. Where can they find you?

Monique: You can find me on LinkedIn, Monique Parasram Levy. Very easy to find. Or, my website, levyconsultingco.com. Super easy. You can reach out to me there.

Monique: And I believe if there's podcast notes, I can drop my email address.

Erica: Yeah. Yep. I will definitely add those all to the podcast notes. We'll get them in the email or your email address there, and everybody can reach out. But, Monique, thank you so much for for your time and for sharing your perspective.

Erica: It was really awesome.

Monique: No. Thanks for having me, Erica. Anytime.

Erica: Have a good one. You too.