How I'm Wired

I am many things but definitely not a procrastinator. I’m the type of person that sets my sight on a goal or project, aligns it in my scope and BOOM! It's off to the races! I once had a boss who called me GO. He would write it in emails, on correspondence, and use it in meetings. For a long time, I just assumed he liked using my initials. Then I noticed he didn't do this with anyone else. When I finally asked him why he used GO instead of Gayla, he replied, "Because if there is anyone who can GO, GO, GO and get things done, it's you."

As I’ve journeyed through my career, I’ve been exposed to countless people and companies along the way who have impacted the way I see life, the world, my colleagues, and the workplace. Every stop I’ve made along this pilgrimage has been ripe with rich learning experiences that have in some way shaped and reshaped my emotional and intellectual wiring. It’s been a fantastic journey so far. Then there was this seismic economic shift and the challenges brought forth by it impacted virtually every industry, business, and person I know. Everyone was standing around scratching their heads and wondering, “When will things return to some sense of normal?” Most continue to struggle to get a handle on the new landscape of things. But I digress...enough about the economy for now, let's talk about me!

I’m just an ordinary girl who has had some pretty extraordinary experiences. I was born in Los Angeles, where I called the little suburb of Westchester home. I spent my early informative years living in a rented post-World War II built home, that looked like every other home on the sweet gum tree lined street. LESSON ONE TO SELF: Learn how to stand out in a crowd. We were a family of six. I had three brothers two older, one younger – I mention this because I’m certain my birth order has some mystical impact on the person I am today, the implications of which I’ve yet to discover. My brothers and I were split into groups of two, and shared the only two bedrooms in the house and one bathroom. LESSON TWO TO SELF: Learn team work, master the art of negotiation. My father, a Danish immigrant who by trade was a bona fide master craftsman – a cabinet maker, earned his living as a carpenter and contributed to developing the skyline of Los Angeles. My American born mother was a homemaker and sometime artist/painter of above average talent, who didn’t learn to drive until she was 32 years old.

We led a fairly humble and conventional life in those days. I say this because people often have the misconception that growing up in Los Angeles assimilates to some sort of entitlement; as though your life is a continuous episode of Beverly Hills 90210. LESSON THREE TO SELF: Never, ever assume…ever. Over the course of my childhood we bounced around and between Los Angeles and San Diego counties, which contributed to my enlightenment! Okay, okay it really translated to uncertainty and adaptation…to new neighborhoods, new schools, new people, new friends, and new bullies. LESSON FOUR TO SELF: Hone your people skills (you’re gonna need them!).

When I graduated high school, Plan A was to become an actress (I know what you're thinking but in my defense it WAS Los Angeles). That plan was abruptly foiled by Lillian Maxson, my high school drama teacher, who informed me that in this pursuit I would need to be prepared to ‘compromise’ my principals. Not quite grasping exactly what she meant, and being that I was fairly grounded in my convictions at the ripe age of 17, I aborted Plan A in favor of Plan B. Plan B was to become an advertising executive, like Don Draper on Mad Men, but I wouldn’t smoke cigarettes. I headed off down the street to college before accepting a job in the thriving aerospace industry and the amazing companies that would become my classrooms, producing the greatest education one could earn.

It was an exciting time to be in Los Angeles. The technology that was pumping through the veins of these companies was phenomenal. We are in awe of the Think Tanks that dominated the Silicon Valley around the mid-90′s, but the intellectual cache in Southern California during most of the 80′s and early 90′s rivaled it. It went largely unnoticed due to the sensitive nature of many of these projects. Later, a lot of this technology would be adapted to benefit our daily lives.

I split the next four years between Hughes Aircraft and Northrop Corporation, cutting my teeth on projects that to this day have left some of the greatest impressions upon me professionally and personally. In this realm, I developed a deep consciousness about the impact of ones work, and experienced teamwork and camaraderie at a level of which I’ve yet to see rivaled, anywhere. These unique environments enabled me to form my first professional and emotional bonds to the companies I worked for and with the people I worked along side. It was profound.

Since then, I’ve been fortunate to work for and help shape many great companies. I’ve had the good fortune to explore numerous industries, while experiencing diverse cultures and unique customs. I've traveled all over Asian and learned to respect different cultures. I've reported to a boss and been the boss. I’ve garnered infinite experience every step of the way. I have worked with some very smart people, and some not so smart people. Mostly, I’ve had talented and generous mentors who have given me the gift of their wisdom and their mistakes; while encouraging me to explore and develop my own inherent strengths, and make and reflect upon one or two of my own blunders.

My journey has allowed me to develop a unique personal brand, that is all my own!