Hello everybody and welcome to another week of boss talks this is episode 68 we have a great guest today Lyra escobosa she’s out of Delaware and she has done a lot of great things in her career she has she started out um as somebody that had some things that maybe stacked
Against her a little bit but she didn’t let that get in the way of really making a name for herself and being successful in her role and she’ll definitely talk about just her life her story the things that she’s learned obviously had to to work through but never has it held her
Down never has it gotten in the way of her being successful and ultimately getting to the place where she is now she is a executive with the board of the Delaware Department Association she’s a senior property manager with Ys management and she also started a foundation called fix her crown
Foundation where she is taking some of her own life lessons and learnings and helping mentor and make sure people make good decisions and um ultimately um again maybe avoid some of the things that maybe she’s gone through but even if we all make we always make mistakes
In life but it’s what you do with that and what how you learn from it and she has such a heart for people in that space so I am excited to bring her to the show but before I do I’m your host Evan happle with boss talks I work for
Community boss as their director of marketing and we have a great solution that helps you manage the physical spaces of your community whether it’s your parking your amenities or mapping we have you covered we even can help you generate some revenue and ultimately make it a great resident experience in
Using the physical spaces so if you have any questions let me know but today ly let’s bring her to the show all right ly thanks for being here thank you for having me absolutely and I always appreciate somebody knows the assignment and wearing the boss bling so
Thank you for rocking it absolutely I love my Bloss love it and I know you have two about to have three which you know you can spread the love give it to somebody that boss worthy like a boss absolutely but uh yeah you’re going to get some goodies um if you don’t know
Already you’re going to get some of our boss Blend Coffee you’re G to get a managed like a boss mug and some more boss bling so it’s coming at you I’m excited in the mail should be on its way um but again thank you so much for being here it was such a
Pleasure to meet you at apartment aliz and to have you roll up making a tick Tok as you arrive making an entrance when she came to our uh boss brunch uh at apartmentalize which was fantastic and I loved you love that Tik Tok yeah it was fantastic um you started at the
Airport and made it all the way and tick toked all the way and created one so it was so great to uh to have you there to meet you and to have you now to tell your story and to inspire others um in the industry so thank you you’re
Welcome so I like to start off by just asking a few questions and then we’ll get into kind of more your history and your story uh but the first question I like to ask is when it comes to building Community what is it that you do or like
To do to create community in your personal and professional life yes so um as you stated I’m the senior property management for Ys management and I oversee the community The Edge at Green Tree um I’ve been at this property for about almost seven years and building the community here it it
Took a little bit of a process but I will say just having that like home kind of feeling doing events with my residents and just getting to know them more joking around with them and not being so serious about every single little thing um in the day I’m a very
Transparent person so sometimes I be like I don’t know if I was supposed to be a therapist or what because they come in here like oh can I close the door absolutely let’s close the door let’s have a conversation but just making them feel safe and welcome and it not always
Being just about the business right no that’s important you know and then in your personal life I mean you’re doing you’ve created a foundation and all these other things that are obviously another another Avenue of creating community in a very intentional way um so that what we’ll
Get into it a little more but maybe just an overall just kind of broad stroke like what that is exactly yes so uh fix her crown I created that um do I was helping Mentor some young girls who go to an adolescent School here in Delaware
And being as though that I was actually a a student of that adolescent school I wanted to make sure that I was able to give back so what happened was I kind of branched off created My Own Foundation to help those girls so they’re not being judged and they feel comfortable
Speaking with me being as though that I’ve been in their shoes um one thing that I’ve learned with dealing with a lot of different people and not just with those girls if you have not been there it’s kind of hard for you to relate to that person and for that
Person to understand where you’re coming from so it made it a lot easier for them to deal with me I’ve been there I was 15 I had a baby like I get it so I know what you’re going through I feel you yeah well that’s great that you’ve done
That I mean as if you’re not busy enough to be able to I mean and obviously you have how many kids do you have four okay so four kids I mean I have three kids I know how busy that makes me so well two of them are older so don’t
Have to do too much my oldest when I had when when I was a he’s 21 and then my second oldest is 19 and I 14 and the niney old so the 14 and the nine year olds are the ones that really need the most attention now right but you even
With them it’s they’re a little more self-sufficient yeah I call my nine-year-old iPad kid oh here that’s funny all right uh thanks for answering and so next question I like to want I like to ask when it comes to hospitality and having someone over for a meal what is it that
You would prepare for them to make them feel special um lately a lot of people have been liking when I make mac and cheese now okay the crazy thing is I really can’t eat it anymore makes me not want to make it w so I’ve been on a a weight loss Journey
For uh over a year now and yeah macaroni and chees is probably not what my doctor’s gonna want to hear not on the list yeah like oh I gotta make this and I am making it for um Thanksgiving this year I am making it but it’s like
There’s certain things that I would love to make and that people want me to make but then I’m like I can’t even eat it man what a bummer but I’m going to make it because I love my family and they want it and I’m gonna make it you can e
A scoop of it I mean just a little just a smidge for me the problem is if I enjoy the mac and cheese I’m going to have multiple Scoops exctly that’s the problem that’s the that’s where that is the problem yeah all right well thanks for answering and
Then final question when it comes to your caffeinated beverage of choice what is it that what is your go-to so over the P it used to be coffee with French Vana creamer but over the past four weeks it has changed to Celsius um okay I I have not had coffee
In the past four weeks I drink Celsius because I go to the gym at 4 o’clock in the morning like a crazy person yeah that is a crazy person in the morning and I really don’t need the extra caffeine throughout the rest of the day because that thing just
Keeps me moving for the rest of the day like I don’t need it oh just one Celsius huh one wow so you take it right before you drink it right before you have your workout yep as I’m going the gym at 4 and yeah usually I crash and burn around
Like 5:30 six o’ I’m done sure yeah I can see that you woke up what at 3:00 a.m. or something to get to the gym up about 3:45 or so sometimes I push it to to 4: but I’m usually out of my door by like 420 oh man yeah more
Power more power to you you see my Tik Tok go check my Tik Tok you’ll be like yeah she’s crazy I literally post it every single day that I go oh okay awesome well good job way to way to be consistent and sticking with it yes it’s great
All right so thanks for answering those questions now I just want to get right into your story because I know that there’s I mean I don’t know the the details so it would be love it’ be great to just hear a little bit more about your journey in life and like where
Where you started where you are now and like your what how is it formed who you are and how it’s made you I mean really sounds like a fighter really fight through everything it’s been a fight so um at 15 I found out that I was pregnant
With my first son and of course terrified scared didn’t know what was going to happen um but at the end of the day it is what it is it had to it happened and I had to move forward um I then in a short version turn around
And did it again um and and ended up having my second son um once I had my second son things got a little bit more complicated um especially schoolwise and things of that nature um I was still doing school work and everything but because of my attendance it caused a big
Issue with me actually graduating that year um I came back and found out that I wasn’t able to graduate and I was not happy um about it um left the school and just like I’m going to figure out life so I will say skip past all that um
Trying to find a way to get my life together make sure I can support my boys and keep it moving um in the midst of that I did meet my husband um we’ve been together for 19 years oh 19 years yes 19 years we’ve been married for 11 years we
Just celebrated our 11 year wedding anniversary so I met him while having um both of my young boys without their father not being around to uh help out so then about 13 years ago I ended up getting into this lovely multifam industry um and it was it was different
I actually worked for a small company um that managed Like Houses in the city so it was more like not an apartment multif family so they had about a 100 properties in the city of wilington that I helped manage for a few years until I got pregnant with my
Um my last uh son and then that’s when I left them for a while so I’ve been in the business for about 13 years moved my way up um and then I started at the property where I’m at now about seven years ago so in the midst of that so
Much had transpired as far as having kids trying to build a career um wanting to go back to school not going back to school so then about I would say about four years ago um my sons CU we know how some boys are are little Knuckleheads and they like to challenge their mother
So um my kids know my whole story I’m like I said I am the utmost transparent person um they knew that I did not finish school so my kids decided that they wanted to challenge their mother but they should not challenge me at all um they were messing up in school not
Focusing not doing what they were supposed to do and comments were made like oh you didn’t finish school this then third okay I got you so I decided to go back get my last few credits I ended up like I said just recently graduated but it’s probably been like
Four years that I went back got my last few credits graduated from pen Foster took my kids to Sprint and Pa and let them watch watch me walk across the stage and then I told them that now you can’t say anything that’s my way of parenting so it it was an amazing
Experience though for them to actually see that even after all those years I didn’t need it it wasn’t something that I needed it was something that I had to do to show my kids um but it wasn’t needed because my career was already set I was um where I’m sitting at right now
I was already here um where I had got to I was already here without it it didn’t matter um because at the end of the day yes and like my girls that I Mentor I never tell them that don’t go to school this that and the third like they know
My whole story and everything like that but I never tell them that this you can go back and do this don’t don’t be like me like literally please don’t please don’t be like me um kind of thing like that but um working hard showing your worth and showing that you are a capable
Person definitely helped me get to where I’m at today like I said I didn’t have a diploma I didn’t do any of that thing it was me showing my worth and me working my butt off to get where I’m at today in in that point blank period um
So I like at seven years of like being here at the same property and just watching the things that transitioned and changing of owners ship and just learning things every day I’m learning something new it it’s just been an amazing experience and I like I love
That I get to share my story with the youth um the youth is a big thing for me um like my Foundation is based off a youth I am a community partner with wington Job Corps here in Delaware and they bring in interns to me and I sit
Them down we talk we have conversations because I want our youth or our future like one day I ain’t gonna be here somebody gon have to take this role so I’m big on the the green like so when they say oh um will you hire someone who’s green
I absolutely will hands up all day every day because at the end of the day if you do not give someone that opportunity how will they learn someone gave me an opportunity 13 years ago to get in this industry I a have no experience I a know
What I was doing but they give me an opportunity and look at me now I I I took it and I ran with it some people will take it and run with it some won’t yeah no that’s true and do you remember um kind of the circumstances
Of getting your first job in this industry like how did that transpire was it somebody that you had met or no actually it was a Crist ad okay it wasn’t anyone that I met um I actually applied for them they they needed someone just to help them with like
Office stuff um at first and then they were like oh well you can just kind of like manage the properties and like over the course of years I literally just managed their properties did all their Court followings and just learned as I went like I didn’t know them at
All and so was it ever an issue that you uh didn’t have a you know finished diploma or anything like that no did they did they asked for it in the beginning no lot most of the places that I’ve worked for they never even asked for it okay well that’s good I guess
They bypassed all that and seen my experience and went along with well I mean I would hope at this point that that’s kind of irrev like yeah no one ever no one ever um no one ever asked for it um and literally when when I left
My high school I literally was like five credits four or five credits like so when I did the P Faller it was I was done very fast I literally four or five credit short I was in my senior year when that all went down so right I like four or five
Credits gotcha yeah that’s I I’m glad that you didn’t have that be a hindrance to you getting a job because I mean it’s obviously allowed you to learn as you go and just you know Forge a path uh for your career um at what point did you start getting more
Involved and things like the apartment association and things of that nature so I would say about five years ago um five years ago I started getting involved with them going to the events checking everything out um I had heard about it but I just never really attended anything and then three years
Ago I was asked that I want to um be nominated for the board and I said okay and I think I was doing oh and I was membership chair as well so both of those came in and fell into place and I ended up being on the board three years
Ago and membership chair I am still currently the membership chair for daa and after my two-year term on the board I was uh nominated by my peers for secretary I actually was nominated for secretary President and Vice President um so I was nominated for all of those
Positions um but I decided to take my name off the ballot for vice president and president being as though that I was new coming in and I wanted to just work my way up because I want of course I want to be involved but I want to make
Sure that I’m comfortable and I know what I’m doing and I don’t look like a crazy person doing it either so I was like I can leave my name on the ballot for secretary and I was absolutely fine with that nice and then more recently well couple things you you had was it
Recently you won an award or was that a couple years ago so um in 2020 I actually won property Vander a year which okay and so what what is it that um qualified you slash um I guess your credentials in wom so um I was up against I think it
Was I think it was six or seven of us uh property managers in the state of Delaware um we had to interview uh that year we had to actually like submit a video and everything and um submitted it U there was a recommendation there was multiple recommendation letters that were sent
From a staff that I’ve worked with residents that I’ve dealt with um and then my my actual staff here at the office so yeah when I uh went into the war it was my first time like that I was pretty new like I said with the daa and
Everything so I wasn’t really expecting much but yeah when they called my name um I cried like a little baby and everybody was like this is the most authentic winner i’ ever seen CU I literally cryed like a baby because I had no idea that I would possibly win
And it’s so funny because after I won one of um one of the supplier Partners Vicki she was like that’s why I had to stay away from your office cuz she wasn’t coming to see me she used to come and bring me Starbucks and I’m like oh
She knew yes she knew I had to stay away from you you because I would have told you but it was amazing experience um uh Ed Lucas he came in second place Love Ed you gotta get him on here yeah Ed I’m ging you a shout out um he actually
Ended up winning the next year and he just recently won regional manager of the year so um but me and him I feel like we always be competing against each other that’s awesome so did that I mean I can only imagine that that not to say that this is the
Pinnacle of your career at this point like it’s not over but it’s it’s it had to have been something that really obviously made you emotional and made you go wow look how far I’ve come I’ve gotten to a point of being recognized for the work I’m doing I mean
What it really really did like when I got home and it all really like synced in I was like girl like out of all the managers that were in there in the state of Delaware you were 2020 property manager of the year like from everything that I started from
With having my son in 2002 to 2020 I’m like everything that I’ve did and everything that done was so worth it um like getting that award was it was worth it and then obviously other Awards came after that which I’ll go into but um it it was very humbling I was grateful I
Yeah and I like to this day I’m just like oh wow I really want that yeah and then is that what kind of springboarded you to want to um move to the National stage and like apply for uh what is it that you just recently so I recently just graduated the NAA diversity
Leadership program um so yes I definitely wanted to get more involved on an NAA level and um just put Delaware out there more Delaware is a small state we’re very small around here um and I just wanted to make sure that our state was being recognized just as much as our
Big States as well so applying for that program and getting accepted into that program out of tons of candidates was amazing um I had some very supportive people as far as like my boss Jacob and um the owners of the company Stewart and H and then some of the people that I worked
With prior um with first service residential were very supportive with their uh recommendation letters as well nice and so what what was that experience like of going through that program and um at first I was like I don’t know if I could do this I was like way too busy it got
Way too much going on but that quickly changed um when we had a meeting that went over pretty much like how we are and how we operated and I’m like did I just take a test to tell me how I am was like and it was true and everybody I
Sent it to was like well it wasn’t lying and then meeting the other other 14 people that I was in class with was amazing when I finally got to meet them um at apartment lies in Atlanta you would have thought that we had known each other forever and that wasn’t the
First time we seen each other and it actually was like we clicked so much it was like a family we were running around Atlanta that whole entire time and it was just amazing to get to know them and learn more about each other with the session that we have we’ve cried we’ve
Laughed I’ve been the mom like it it went atena was a little crazy I had to I had to play mom while I was in Atlanta because like what are you doing like lit like we left one of the days and they were like standing outside like get in
The car like what are you doing out here like why are we standing outside on the corner what are we waiting for like get in like but um I I love them dearly like I’ve learned so much just being with them my mentor l’u like she pushed me
She knew I was a whole hot mess um like can’t get me on the phone what are you doing but um I I learned a lot from that program that I’ll be able to take and use um in the future and in everything that I’m doing with being diverse and
Being inclusive um with everyone because that’s just me across the board like everybody matter to me when it comes at to the end of the day like I said even when it comes to empy employee stuff like oh I’mma hire a green person all day long yeah so when it comes to that
Program what what was your biggest takeaway um I would say the big the biggest takeaway was finding out more about me um okay that program like actually it teaches you a lot about yourself and things that you can do to kind of not really fix yourself but kind of
Adjust and handle things in a different um perspective uh I’m a very direct person in certain occasions and sometimes I got to tone it down and I can be intimidating the people because I’ve been told many of times but I think with that program it it it showed me
Different ways that I can handle different situations and I did love that and I needed that and I do refer back to it and like maybe you could do this a little bit different it’s going to take some time it ain’t gonna happen overnight but I try yeah yeah well
That’s good I mean it’s great that you learned a lot about yourself I mean it’s always good to have more self-awareness and to be more aware of like your Tendencies or the way you handle yourself in leadership situations and things like that yeah yeah yeah I I I think that’s good
For everybody you know we all need to we all need to know everyone can take that cont of test they need to take it just because it was real it was real it real what was the what was the part that with that that really stood out to you about
Yourself that test yeah yeah there was a part that stated that ly does not like to deal with slow moving people um and I’m a busy body and Like You Gotta Keep It Coming keep me engaged because if not I’m like you lost me like and I’m
One of those people like okay like I’ll be having conversations with people and they they’re drawing out I’m like okay okay let’s like let’s get to the meat and potatoes like where are we going with this like cuz I can’t sit still and listen to this for twoo mons longer like
Yeah get two points gotcha that part and I was like oh my gosh this is me a hundred times over yeah so so in like getting that called out I guess by the by the uh and then I was like did this computer system just call me out like this I’m like like
When I got like who wrote this I’m like I want to talk to whoever wrote this yeah no kidding so what when it comes to that and those other types of things where you’re like oh my gosh that is me does it is it now when you’re in
Situations make you a little more like okay I need to I need to let this person be who they are it does um I learn to just sit and count for a moment and let it go and understand that everyone is not me um because in my head I think everyone
Moves the same way and they don’t so like I said it made me sit back think and think a lot before I speak on certain things um and try not to be so direct and intimidating but sometimes it can get a little bit hard and the only
Reason why I say that because as a woman of color in this industry and especially like when I sit in this office people try to challenge me a lot so I think it’s it’s just gotten to the point that I’m sometimes very I’m very direct when
I say stuff and that’s only because I I can’t play around with everyone because they’ll take it and they’ll run with it and try to use it against me I’m very nice very sensitive like I I get very very senstive but sometimes I have to Stand My Ground
Because I don’t want anyone to think that oh like we just going to walk all over her no I mean what I say and I say what I mean yeah so kind of I guess hitting on that a little bit like have you what is it that you have been faced
With when it comes to um diversity issues being a person of color like is there things that you’ve you’ve been confronted with that you really can say this is because of that um so in this position um and like my boss so in this position I’ll get a lot of times that
People they don’t want to talk to me they want to go and talk to the white corporate male and it is what it is at the end of the day oh I want to talk to corporate because they know who corporate is kind of thing like that no
Matter what that I’m the one who’s sitting here in this place and I’m the one who’s making decision and most time he G to send it right back to me anyway cuz he always tell me he like that’s a you problem like exactly but they don’t
Understand that um so fa that that has been a challenge um and it’s still a challenge I I still deal with it all the time and try to get people to understand that I’m here for a reason they hired me for a reason um I’m here to take care of
Their property you can discuss it with me and stop trying to use speaking to them and think that you’re going to get something different um it’s a big thing and I know I’m not the only one who who faces that when they don’t want to talk
To the black woman sitting in the office put me with someone else so that’s it’s a big diversity issue that is is still lingering around I don’t think it’s ever going to change um because that’s just people mindsets and and the crazy part about it is sometimes it’s people of the
Same color and that’s what shocks me like like why I I it it I don’t understand that so like I said I still have a lot to learn when it it is coming in regards to the diversity but I experienced that a lot a lot so do they
Not take you seriously they don’t think that you have the capacity to handle the situation not they don’t take me seriously they think that they’re going to get another answer from someone else um if they go to someone else which is never the case um I’m like this is the
Rules this is what it is you signed your release this is the Delaware landlord tentacle I’m not telling you anything I’m not making anything up off the top of my head kind of thing I I I stress that so many times I’m like well everything I’m saying to you is in black
And white and you signed it so whether you you want to go with that or not it’s up to you but you going to corporate is not going to do you any better because they’re going to come right back to me they’re going to ask me what the issue
Is I’m going to tell them what the issue is and they’re going to tell me to handle it yeah I already tried to handle it with you so yeah I don’t ever think it’s anything about them not taking me seriously it’s just that they want to
Hear from someone else and I’m not the person they want to hear from yeah and they think they’re just if if I escalate this this will go away I want to speak to the manager okay I mean I am the manager but yeah CLE I’m not manager enough for you so
You wan you want to speak to the other one who’s gonna send you back to me okay yeah yeah and then when we were talking few months ago you just kind of brought up your own like in the same vein of like diversity kind of your own take and things on Dei
And like it’s that topic um your own perspective I guess yeah so like my perspective on it like in just seeing how different things move in everything like that um Dei is kind of like put into place for us as diverse to come together obviously but not just stay in
In that circle like that that never has set well with me like I I’m an all over person I love everybody and I want everybody to shine at the end of the day I know we focus a lot on diversity because of the not just because of this industry multiple Industries because
Because us as people of a diverse background we want to move up we want to do more things we want to be in those higher executive positions and everything like that but sometimes a lot of companies are more standoffish and obviously they’re going to go a different way but that does not mean
That we form a cult or a little click together kind of situation and not like just still be open to everyone else’s opinions like everybody’s opinions matter to to me at the end of the day um I it like that stuff doesn’t I I don’t I
Know it’s cliche to say but I don’t see color kind of thing like that because it’s not it’s not it it should never be that way like I I have family members who are weake like I do and I’m like I’m never going to be like oh you can’t come over here
Like oh I’m trying to do this oh what you don’t like I I that’s just not how I move that’s not how I operate um a lot of my a lot of the females that I deal with in my program yeah I I just I will
Never operate that way and I just wanted to make sure like that diversity yes we understand there’s a lot of issues with diversity especially when it comes to workplace but at the end it don’t have to be like let’s all gang up on everyone
And like make it a big thing I I don’t I don’t I don’t it doesn’t that well with me so like when it comes to like Like official programs and stuff you feel like sometimes it actually amplifies certain things yeah like it just pushes it pushes it more
Than pushes it more than what it really needs to be kind of thing like that and it it doesn’t I don’t it doesn’t I I guess it just doesn’t work for me it may work for other people but it just doesn’t work for me because I don’t want I don’t want
Anyone to think that I’m singling them out who’s not of a diverse background because I’m a part of something else and I never want anyone to feel that way like I felt left out in certain situations and everything like that obiously I was the team M so yeah I was
Left out or a lot of situations so I don’t ever want anyone to feel that way yeah yeah yeah I I can see like all the different sides and why people people would want to like you know create create groups and things to be to to feel empowered and things like that just
Like you created your foundation and stuff I have a foundation I in recently after our conversation I recently created a um nonic sority so I am one of the three co-founders of a nonic sority of women of all diverse backgrounds all diverse backgrounds they literally they officially actually just crossed
Yesterday which is crazy so so yeah what is that yes so um obviously everyone knows about uh the sororities that when you’re in college but there are non-ic sororities that you can join if you have not went to college so it um focuses on like women who are business owners women
Who didn’t go to college women who U just want to be a part of a Sisterhood and decided that they didn’t want to pledge in a four-year College because you have to be in a four-year College to uh to pledge a sorority so this you don’t have you don’t have to go to
College and and some organizations have their rules and set ways but with our organization you could be whatever you want whatever you want to do honey um kind of thing because at the end of the day we’re going to empower each other and we’re going to support each other
And we just gonna figure out life together as a whole um I literally over the past few weeks I had the pleasure of just experiencing with 42 different women in a group chat you can only imagine how that goes on a daily basis sheesh especially after yesterday sheesh but getting to know
Them having side conversations with some of them listening to their goals and things that they want to do and things that they want to accomplish and like I said everyone is all the like there’s different back backgrounds in the organization and it just made me feel good that they appreciated me doing that
Um so that they can have something because they they don’t like I didn’t go to college obviously I just told you I just finished high school a few years ago um but some people take that option to go to a two-year college or go to a trade school and they won’t they won’t
Get to enjoy that Sisterhood bonding creative moments that they wanted and with non-c colic sororities and there are many of them and always tell people make sure that you just look into the ones that you um looking and fraternities as well fraternities as well I’m not going to lead them out um
But there’s so many different ones and some like they’re based off of what your preference is and what you are looking for in your life and what fits you yeah totally I hope you’re seeing the comments and if you’re not make sure you click on it because you’re getting some
Love on the right side hit comments I I like I didn’t see anything yeah a so you’re getting some love a look at them got some got some people participating both LinkedIn and uh YouTube and uh watching along I love that yeah thanks to everybody that is watching we appreciate you yes yes
Supporting Lyra um so yeah that so the or not the foundation but the the non-collegiate sorority um is it like you do social things together but also like um maybe so um service community service um I am big on community a lot of my my community services focuses back on the youth um
That I do but there’s other times that I’ve been out um beating a homeless in womenon and going down giving them a hot meal um everybody need a hot meal every now and then so just going down there like here’s some spaghetti like hot meal
Like here take it um kind of thing like that and they appreciate it they gotten so used to it um they figured out when I switch cards so like for a long time I was going down there in one car and I I pulled up they like where’s your red car
I’m like yeah I don’t have anymore so it’s like it’s it’s it’s nice that they actually like look for um look for us when we’re coming down there um doing diaper drives I collect a lot of diapers and a lot of supplies for the girls who
Are in my organization so all the most of all the girls that in my organization are t- moms um some of them have just graduated high school some of them are still in high school um so I get a lot of donations that come in for them that
I need to drop off and um that they need um on a daily basis and then uh we obviously also do things just to empower each other um you get a lot of sometimes you’ll get a lot of women that you deal with on a daily basis that
Are not as nice and don’t support and but they’ll speak women empowerment and push women empowerment but at the end of the day some of them you can find out that that’s not the case um I am involved in way too much let’s just say that I need to s down like immediately
Um and I’m big on I promote myself like it’s nobody’s business because who’s G to promote yourself better than yourself BL yeah um but I’m also big on promoting other women as well in their accomplishments um and the everything that they do I like literally just had a
Conversation with someone right before I got on this of like someone not congratulating her and everything like that what she thought that that person was and sometimes it’s going to be like that it it will be like that but guess what there’s other women that are going
To be around that’s going to clap for you in the background and that’s going to celebrate you all day long um so that that’s the biggest thing with our organization we’re going have some trips I’m going to Atlanta in March um so because some of the women I have not met
In person out of those 42 women so having also this is kind of everywhere it’s not just in I have people everywhere right now not just Delaware okay all over the place so yeah we’re gonna be meeting up in um Atlanta in March and then we everyone
Will be in Delaware in August to celebrate our first founders day and have a large conference oh that’s awesome yes well that’s great so were you a part of anything like this previously or just so I was um I was a part of something else but as I stated before I
Don’t like to be a part of I don’t like to be a part of groups that doesn’t make me feel comfortable if I’m not comfortable I’m I’m going to push and I’m going to move somewhere else um that’s me that’s my um my background on how I do things
Because what I’m not going to do is I’m not going to give my 100% And then someone else is not giving their 100% And if I see anything shyy shady or anything like that I’m just going to move left real quick and keep it moving
So I was a part of something um it just didn’t work out for me it can work out for someone else but it didn’t work for me at the end of the day um uh so myself and actually my two um other sores who are co-founders with me it just wasn’t
Working for us so we decided to part ways um and create what we wanted and we always say Be the Change you wish to see because at the end of the day like we knew that there was not going to be change so we had to be that change and
That’s what we did oh good yeah it’s better to I mean you probably tried at first and oh we tried yeah yeah so it’s yeah at the end of the day like if if things aren’t working out it’s as long as you and that’s the biggest thing
Is I think people should at least try it first right absolutely definitely try it um it was it was close to two years it it would actually it actually this month it would have been two years um so I tried I I definitely tried I gave my all
Um I can say that um at the end of the day I I have no ill will I completely respect them because being honest if I did not do what I did with them I would have never met my two sores who I created this organization with
So if anything good out of anything came out of it it was meting that’s great and was that what you did the pageant through yes yes okay so speak on that because you did that kind of because of you wanted to do it not just for yourself but also for was it your
Daughter yes so my daughter was in the pageant as well um she really wanted to compete in the pageant and then she wanted me to compete in the pageant too so I ended up do the pageant um representing the other organization that I was in
And I did um come back home with a n a national title wow yeah so I am um Miss National Authority 2023 2024 I did not bring my crown with me today so I can show you but um yes I where’s the crown I know you know what the crazy part is I
Actually looked right at it this morning before I walked out the door and I was like I don’t need that I ran back I ran back downst to get this okay all right but um yeah doing the doing the pageant so I I had never done pageants
Before um that actually was my second one I did a virtual pageant um that was my second pageant that I did that was a in-person pageant this recent one that I just did um I was nervous um I’ve never been a big like public speaker this is the most public speaking I’ve probably
Done in my entire life this past like year like never I am the background person like I’ll write all day long um put me in the background but it came a point that like okay girl you gotta get out of the background so I did the pageant it was a very humbling
Experience um doing it with my daughter driving all the way to Atlanta to get us there with all the tons of luggage we had and competing and meeting the other queens there which are amazing like the support that you get from women in a pageant is crazy like
They’re like we call each other sister queens or rhinestone Queens it’s amazing because no matter what at the end of the day where you place everyone cheers everyone on when I was walking down that Runway and I was nervous out of my mind all you see is all these Queens still
Chering like matter how nervous I was they wasn’t gonna let nobody say anything and it was an amazing experience and to come home with a national title it was amazing now probably won’t do it again not going to defend it completely h probably won’t but um I have a 14-year-old daughter I’ll leave
It up to her yeah and she must have been so proud she was I was more proud of her after she so she won before me and I was like oh we could go home now like oh so you both won yes she and that’s amazing
Actually the overall winner so she was a she was the high score winner for her packet oh wow that’s fantastic winner well big props to you guys and just thank I mean I will not be doing any pageants I don’t know if there’s any male pageants
Be I will point you in the right direction there’s crazy enough once I got into this I found out there is a pageant for everyone okay no matter your age size color male female like you want to be a drag queen every everyone there is a pageant for every person in the United
States I I I can imagine yeah I never knew that until now but there is a pageant for everybody yeah so what is it so what are some of the things you had to do in order to compete and ultimately win um so I had to do interview I had to
Do a fun fashion outfit and I had to do um evening gown so the interview part probably was the most stressful part with me like I said I am don’t get it twisted because I’m speaking on here right now because this like I I was never this way before um
But I was nervous um which I don’t know why I was nervous because literally I was asked everything that I had already um kind of laid out in like my bio info sheet kind of thing like that so I don’t know why I was so nervous but I was uh
It was something new to me and it’s something that I had never did before but it like I said it was a great experience so yeah I did the interview I did my fun fashion little outfit which I had a big hiccup with that and my zipper
Decided that it wanted to act crazy when it was trying to get me on the stage but it all worked out and I pushed through it and then I did the evening gwn nice I didn’t optionals talent and all that stuff I wasn’t doing it well again congratulations that’s
Really great and just it sounds like it’s been a big year it has also um right before the pageant actually happened so I was actually nominated for there’s an award in Delaware and it’s called the she’s on her way award so this past May in 2023 I actually took
Home the 2023 she’s on her way award which was given to me by the first lady of Delaware and I received a certificate signed by um the governor of Delaware so it was oh wow yeah I was um one of those other moments just like when I won
Property manager of the year was um very shocked to receive that award and to see that someone else seen all the accomplishments and everything that I have been doing over the year prior to that to give back to the youth give back to the community and all the other
Million things that is doing so it was a definitely a humbling experience um taking home that award out of it it’s they uh select four people out of hundreds of applications wow one of the four congrats again I mean I I just am so happy that you have been you know
Obviously it took time to get recognition but to get it all so overwhelmingly at you know in this last year and then you know it started maybe it was the starting point was getting the one through the association but then thereafter it’s just kind of like continued to grow which is just
Fantastic and I just I’m really happy for you that I’ve always wanted to a lot of people say that I do too much but I’m one that I gotta stay busy um I can’t sit still um I guess just with everything that I’ve experienced and went through in life I just I have
To find ways that I’m not sitting and thinking and suling into into stuff and and that’s why I keep myself busy um I had lost my dad and then I had lost my grandma literally a year to date later um when I was just getting into this
Position that I’m in now here and it hurt so I will say probably within the past um about the past five years going on six years that’s when I like flipped and changed and just started being involved in everything getting out there um making my dad and making my grandma
Proud and just staying busy so I’m not I’m not sitting and thinking because I I’m a thinker and if I sit too long it’s I’m going to turn into a mess so that’s that’s one of probably the biggest reason that you you’ll see me like oh
What she doing now she done Bounce from here she doing this that and third but I get it all done my line name is organized chaos and is that for a reason I’m I’m very organized but I’m I live a very chaotic life well I I applaud you and you know the
Chaos I’m sure over time as you you know get older maybe the chaos will calm down a little bit I hope so because I’m like girl like I was um with one of my friends and she was like why are you being so quiet and humbling why are you
Not telling everybody what you do I’m just I’m not I’m not big on she she will boost me up like it’s no buy business she will write out every single thing that ly is involved with but I just be trying to sit in the B chill and observe
And stuff like that and just do what I need to do and I’m doing it um it I love that like she she looks up to me there there’s a lot of girls who I talk to on a regular basis that look up to me even even my swords they’re older than me
Like what like I’m old enough to be one of their daughters and she like I want to be like you when I grow up like like you’re be my mom so but um them just seeing that you can no matter what you went through you you can still succeed
And do whatever you want like the big thing that I tell my girls when I’m I’m talking to them like you write the narrative to your own story I’m writing the Nar to my story this is my story and this is how I wanted to go and I’m I’m
Going to be the one who finishes it and I’m going to be the one who posted that chapter but you can’t let other people write the narrative to your story because it’s never going to work it like I I had to get that out of my head I had
To get it out of my head or I wasn’t G to go anywhere yeah well that’s that’s great and so when it comes to your foundation uh fix her crown Foundation what what is it when did it start and about how many girls do you engage
With with it so if um it was founded in August of last year um so I founded that organization and it’s still been slow moving pickup um Lyra is the big profiter of fixerr foundation because I don’t know how to say no um especially them like
Because they need me um at the end of day I know I’m horrible like and a lot of my friends know they like will you stop I’m like I had to get out of my said um being that person like that doesn’t like to ask for help I am huge on that
It is one of probably my biggest weaknesses to be honest with you I do not like to ask for help I will do it myself I don’t care if it’s a refrigerator I’m gonna carry it on my back myself because I’m because like I I don’t I I never
Want anyone to think that I’m taking from them and I just I that is just my mentality it’s something that I do need to work on and I do need to get over um especially being in the position that I am that I can help other
People um I had to come to a realization of that like it’s not bad to ask people for help I just had a bad experience that when I ask someone for help and they tried to rub it in my face and I had to throw it back at like oh
Here you can have your donation back because I don’t do that um kind of thing like that I don’t I don’t need from anyone I don’t want from anyone but to help the girls I had to I have to get out of that to make sure that I’m
Supporting them the way that I want to support them on what I believe when I started my Foundation I I assist probably over 20 girls at this moment with getting them diapers wies them calling me just to ask me questions hey this is going on with the baby hey um
Low on food can you help me out um I need help with this paperwork it it could be anything like any day my my like any moment my phone can go off and they’re asking me for something um as far as like just either guidance or they actually need something for their baby
And at the end of the day I’m never going to let a child go without I will never do that um they need something I’m going to do everything in my power to get it um for them just to make sure that they’re comfortable like I said
They’re teens like so they they don’t know some of them don’t have um parents that are very supportive um some of them don’t have parents that are able to support them because they can’t support theirselves as well so and I’ve had talks with some parents that needed some
Assistance and some guidance as well and end up mentoring and guiding them just to kind of help them so they can help their child at the end of the day and help their grandchild at the end of the day like like I said mistakes happen it is what it is but
Unfortunately you got to get over it and move on there’s kids involved and we need to make sure that they’re always always in the safe space yeah well I hope I hope some maybe people are listening right now some of your uh sorority sisters or people in the
Industry of De in Delaware Apartment Association I know they know you’re doing all this stuff so hopefully they’re hearing you the things you’re doing you you you’re not Superwoman you can’t do everything you’re doing great things but let’s let’s help Let’s help her out and help her expand her ability
To do good for these girls so if you’re listening and you’re near her reach out to her I she doesn’t want help she wants she wants to help these girls yes me I’m good I’m I’m I promise you guys I’m good at the end of the day I I literally it
What I do is for the girls it’s for the Youth and I like like I said I love dealing with the youth and I I don’t know because everything that I went through as a youth but I I want to see them succeed and some of them do and
Some of them really really honestly do want to do better especially like the job for kids I see coming in here they they be in my face like what can I do what can I do like do I need to do this like who do I need to contact like like
I I always look at it so like like I’m saying with my job Court students that come in here you job C is a choice you don’t have to go there like no one’s forcing you to go there if you’re going there you’re going there because you wanted to
Change yourself and you wanted to see better in yourself and that’s how I look at it with jobor because your parents are not forcing you to go there like they would be in high school you made the decision to go there you had to sign the paperwork to go there no one forced
You to do it any student that goes to that school had to sign off so when I see them come in here and they’re here with me I know that they want to be here because if they didn’t they would just drop out like Point BL perod like they can sign
Their themselves out of those schools no matter what um but I I love their program and I love their that I get to meet with them and Mentor them and help them and guide them and point them in the right direction and try to get them involved with other people in the multif
Family because a lot of them once they here they want now they want to be a multif family I’m like okay and they like oh she know everybody so um it it works like one of my actually one of my m guys at my property I wish he would have came here
So one of my maintenance guys actually was a job course student um we bought him in as an intern and he is he’s actually coming up on his so I’m going on so he’s coming up on his five years of being here at this property and he
Was a student he was 19 at Jore and he has been here for five years he has changed his life he has changed his life and that’s the kind of stuff that makes me happy at the end of day every day I see him like me and him argue I’m like
Big sister shy and everything like that but like seeing him grow over the past five years from being a student at Job Corp that came in as an intern to an amazing maintenance guy um and he’s he’s stuck with me and been here at this property with me that makes me happy at
The end of the day that’s the kind of stuff that makes me happy I’ve had leasing agents who have came in here no experience at all didn’t know nothing that they were doing I’m big on green one person who’s in multi family Christine muda she was working at Olive Garden
Before she came in here that girl is doing her thing with Burger residential right now and I love it I’m loving every single minute of it like that’s the kind of stuff that makes me happy when I can see them grow in set their themselves up
In great position it makes me so happy that’s great well I I just want to give you a big hand and uh Rebecca she uh disagrees with me she says you are Wonder Woman um superwoman I love her to the higher degree Superwoman was U my previous reg
Regional manager before we um my company just changed ownership uh love her she believed in me from day one when I came to interview here I interview with her over the phone I came here the next day and that woman hug me like I need you it
Was the most awkward situation ever but our relationship has been amazing but like literally I interviewed over the phone and came the next day and this woman just like runs up to me and hug me like like I’ve known her all my life but I I love her she’s always went the bat
For me um with in this organization and she still does to this day I love her that’s great well L sha thank you so much for being here today thank you for everybody that joined us and watched and and listened to her story cheered her on
So appreciate you being a part of the show and ly you are a boss where the it’s not quite a crown it’s not quite as Royal but it is a name tag right it is just proclaiming who you are and you are a boss and so I appreciate you being here
Because my maintenance guys even know yeah lady boss lady guys call me boss lady do not call me by my name fun they will they refuse to call me by my name for some reason that’s funny well thanks again for being here and sharing your story
And all the things you’re doing and I just so happy that you’re getting recognition you’re getting uh yourself elevated to the point of where you deserve and I just appreciate you taking the time to share that with us and uh those that you know across the country
That may listen to this in the future uh I I know that they’ll get a lot out of it so thanks thanks again for being here today thank you for having me and let me just be transparent and be me today you bet that’s what it’s about being a boss
Is being yourself being authentic so I appreciate it please be transparent people please that’s right it works out so much better for you it’s true and if anybody’s listening and they want to be on boss talks if you have a a story to tell some leaders ship to to share that
You just want to help other people get farther in their career or have an inspiring story to share I would love to have you on boss talks this is a show for everybody so if you’re in multif family and you want to be on just let me
Know reach out so till next time not next week because it’s Thanksgiving we’re taking some time off the week after we have another great guest so tune in and check it out and if you missed this catch the recording or the podcast when it comes available next
Week till next time it’s been boso thanks everyone for watching bye
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