Answer: “Angela” came from a well-educated and gifted family on the East Coast. She was supported and encouraged by her parents to tackle challenges. She grew up expecting that she would succeed in whatever she decided to do. Angela attended a small, rural college in the Northeast with an excellent reputation for providing a broad liberal arts education. She then received a Master of Science degree in Public Relations.

Extremely bright, she graduated with honors writing a thesis that immediately led her in a direction she would follow for the rest of her career. The topic was about emerging technology companies in Silicon Valley. That was where she headed to begin her career.

With her advanced degree she ranked in the top tier of communications graduates and was quickly hired by one of the major public relations agencies in the country. She progressed rapidly from an entry level job to an Account Supervisor. Instead of jumping too quickly, which is often the case in the beginning stages of a career, she stayed for 4-years. She had no trouble keeping up with the pace of the “action.”

This was an exciting time to be building a career in tech PR. There were agencies forming, companies looking for PR talent to promote products, and venture firms looking for the next “big” idea. Silicon Valley was ground zero for what was happening. Failure was not an option.