When I think of Erin Lima, I’m reminded of the movie, Working Girl, with Melanie Griffith. It’s the story of a secretary with ambition and talent beyond her current job, yet not given the chance to excel – so she creates her own chance.

Erin always had an artistic flair. She wanted to find a career that not only paid well, but where she could use her sense of style. After junior college, she drifted from job to job looking for her niche. She’s held positions ranging from cake decorator to newsletter and brochure designer, but none of the small companies where she worked offered what she needed.

With a new baby and a husband who owns a small business, Erin sought the security of a large company with its benefits package.

"I needed medical insurance," Erin said. "And I knew a large company would also offer educational benefits." She wanted to eventually obtain her Bachelor’s Degree.

A friend of hers told her about an opening as an Administrative Assistant – not exactly her dream job, but it would be a foot in the door. She was honest with her future employer. During the interview process, she made it clear, "I’m not a career Admin. I’ll commit to doing a good job for you for a least a year, but I want this job to learn and grow."

She was hired.

After settling into the routine of scheduling appointments, creating calendars, re-typing notes, ordering office supplies, and the endless tasks that went with the job, Erin looked into the option of going back to school.

A friend of hers who attended the University of Phoenix encouraged her to check out the upcoming semester’s schedule. Erin debated waiting until she returned from a planned trip with her husband. But Erin’s friend was persuasive, "Why wait? Why not do it now! Get everything organized, then you can start classes immediately after your trip."

Spurred into action, Erin wrote a justification proposal for her manager so the company would reimburse her tuition, and filled out the necessary school paperwork. Two days after returning from her trip, she sat in her first class.

She adapted to the hectic schedule. Up at 4 a.m., take her son to day care, drive thirty miles to work, work eight hours, then go to school one night a week and study group another night or two a week. Erin’s mom often helped with the baby at night.

Then, a month later, Erin discovered she was pregnant again! Should she quit? She considered her options, the extra responsibility of another child. But now she was already progressing on her path toward her goal. Already at the limit of time and finances, Erin’s ‘Can Do’ attitude said, "We’ll just find a way to make it work."

Looking back, Erin is grateful her friend convinced her to start school when she did. Making the decision to begin school with two young babies would have been overwhelming, but when you’re already juggling, it’s easier to add in another priority to the mix.

Erin’s last year of school with both babies in diapers and little personal time put a strain of her marriage, but they worked through it. "We’re life partners," she says. "Through good and bad, you just have to try to keep the lines of communication open."

Finally, Erin graduated with a degree in Business Marketing and began to seek out promotion opportunities in the company where she worked. But, many prospective hiring mangers seemed to discount her since she was ‘only an Admin.’ Tragically, a person coming from outside the company with her degree had a better chance of getting a job in the marketing department. Erin’s manager wrote glowing references and she began to make a little headway, just when the company restructured and downsized their marketing department.

So, Erin looked outside the company. There was an opening at a small high-tech company just down the street for a Marketing Communications Manager. The recruiter told Erin, "They’re look for someone with chutzpah. Someone with spunk. He told her that none of the people he had sent there had made it past the first round of interviews. Erin decided, "Why not stand out from the crowd." Foregoing the usual charcoal gray suits, she marched into the interview dressed in lavender.

When asked if she had any questions, she said, "Yes. What do I have to do to get this job?"

The interviewer was taken aback. "I like someone who asks for what they want."

She was invited back for an all day round of interviews.

She got the job.

It is with mixed emotions that she left her current company. They had treated her well and supplemented her education. She also gained respect for people in administrative jobs. She calls them the backbone of any company. "The department would fall apart without them," she says. "But for me, I needed more. I want to use my creative talent, make decisions and see the results. As an Admin., I felt underutilized and without enough of a financial future."

In her new job, Erin will be in charge of designing themes for trade shows, designing marketing communication plans, creating advertisement strategies, and eventually hiring a staff.

"Who knows," Erin says, "After a few years of experience, I might go back to my previous company as the Head Marketing Manager." Why Not!

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