Hi Tana, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
My passion has always been helping people and selling. I’ve always been an entrepreneur where I got my first chance at selling in middle school. I quickly learned that I’m a great saleswoman and people easily bought from me. Following that success I waitressed through high school and during college. I really loved and excelled at that job. I’ve always been everyone’s HYPE girl and a successful motivator of people. I am a high energy, high frequency person and love to be in motion. A fast paced, high stress, exciting job like waitressing was a perfect fit for me. In that profession I learned that I genuinely love people and can sell and multitask well.
My greatest lesson in life is that you can’t change people! I learned that hard lesson when my boyfriend of 4 years asked me to marry him. I did what many women do, I said “yes” because I thought I could help and change him. Of course ignoring all the red flags and warning signs. I was married to him for 8 years and had 2 beautiful children with him, but had to voluntarily sign up to be a single parent. I always wanted to be a mom, I planned for both of my children, but didn’t plan on being divorced, however, I dedicated my life to being the best mother.
Leaving my life behind I reinvented myself at 30 where I found my entrepreneurial stride, and new found independent energy and confidence. Soon I was flourishing.
I was blessed to have met the man I always prayed for and we dated for 2 years. He asked me and my 2 children to marry him and to move to Iowa to start a life together. I respect any man or woman who can heal a heart they didn’t break or raise a child they didn’t make.
My husband was an on-air meteorologist and I was a stay at home mom. My passion for selling and wanting to make my own money led me into a business that allowed for both, Mary Kay cosmetics. Encouraging others while selling products to them was a natural fit for me. Soon I was the #1 saleswoman in my unit of over 6 thousand consultants. I became a motivational speaker for MaryKay teaching others how to sell and be a stand out. My presentation “The Art of Being Unforgettable” was a perfect fit.
My highlight reel got exciting when I was cast to be a contestant on the #1 reality TV show at the time, “The Apprentice ”. I went on the show to learn from America‘s business icon Donald Trump what it takes to be a billionaire. I wanted to prove to myself that I was the best of the best, so I applied. So did over 1 million high achieving go-getters. I always knew that I was one in a million and was selected to be 1 of 18 contestants and ended up the runner-up.
National TV changes lives. My life changed drastically for the better. Job opportunities poured in and I have not slowed down since 2005 when the world got to meet me. I get asked all the time what was the best part of being on the apprentice and it was doing the infomercial for “The BeDazzler”. The product sold over 4 1/2 million dollars in sales with me as their spokesperson.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Life has always been a smooth road for me because of my mindset and optimistic outlook on life. I’m a very positive person and I don’t allow negativity to settle in and or around me.
I moved a lot when I was young so I learned the knack for getting and making people like you. I am a very social person so networking, meeting new people, selling myself is easy, but most people don’t realize the potential that getting out can provide.
My only regret in life is not finishing college. I was on target to finish, but got off track while married to my first husband and after got the taste of the good life being an entrepreneur so never chose to go back.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I sell energy, enthusiasm, and excitement. My business is people. I am an inspirational speaker, business consultant, life coach, and author. My niche is sales, confidence, and motivation. The clients who hire me are; corporations or businesses for their national sales conventions or conferences. They love my competitive edge presentation “Sales the Thrill of the Hunt”. Women’s groups love my presentation “From the Basement to the Boardroom” where I share that the right choice is always to be better rather than be bitter. Patriotic groups and freedom fighters love to hear my experiences working on 2 historic presidential campaigns, “The BluePrint for America First Candidates”. High Schools, College & University groups love to have me share my “Noticing the Red Flags” presentation. I highlight the benefits of choosing the right path, by avoiding drugs and alcohol.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
My mother deserves all of the credit! She instilled a positive can-do attitude in me at a young age. She had her hands full with me being so active, I was just as inquisitive and challenged her power and every decision. She still has me believing I breathe fire and a can’t is still a dare for me.
