I learned the importance of networking and being known as a child when I was the poster child for the American Cancer Society and the Ronald McDonald House. After being diagnosed with cancer at age 8, I was asked to speak at events, throw out the first pitch at a Cubs game, and participate in countless opportunities to help raise awareness for childhood cancer. Those early experiences taught me the power of visibility, connection, and storytelling—and I am blessed to be alive today to share that lesson.

As I grew up, I saw how networking opened doors—not just to donations for those organizations, but also to getting them on the agendas of events where key donors were present. But even with that exposure, I didn’t yet understand how to apply networking in my own life and career.

It wasn’t until I realized that achieving my career goals would require me to better articulate my value and speak confidently about what I wanted next that things began to change. A mentor encouraged me to share my aspirations openly and taught me how to advocate for myself.

Because of that, I landed a role in the Human Resources department at McDonald’s Corporation simply by telling everyone I knew that I wanted to grow my career on the people side of the business. I had a marketing degree and operations experience, but they took a chance on me—and it paid off.

That led to incredible opportunities at McDonald’s, from working on the Olympic Games project to launching McDonald’s at Disney. Eventually, one of my former bosses left to lead HR at a non-profit and, remembering my work, called me out of the blue to invite me to apply for a role on her team. From that point on, I never had to formally apply for a job again. My reputation, relationships, and results spoke for themselves, and people remembered me when opportunities arose.