Leisa: Hello, I’m Leisa Holland-Nelson and welcome to another edition of Women Mean Business, where we’re going to take you up close and personal with extraordinary women doing extraordinary things. My guest today is Sandra Porter, Vice President of Corporate Marketing, and Business Development for Hines, one of the world’s largest real estate investment firms.  Sandra, welcome to Women Mean Business.

Sandra: Thank you, Leisa. It’s great to be here.

Leisa: I love having you here, and one of the reasons I love having you here is that I’m going to just say this, you’re a very good friend of mine, and incredibly successful.  So, I myself am looking really forward to hearing what advice you would have for what we call the next generation or anyone wanting to achieve the success that you’ve achieved.

Sandra: Don’t limit yourself in any way.  I can honestly say that most of the jobs that I took were not where I wanted to be at the time, but I found a way to add value. I looked and kind of strategically thought about it. I would see an opening here, I’ll give you an example: I was working for a brokerage firm, they had hired an ad agency and I was the liaison between the two co-chairmen and the ad agency. I was telling them this was what we want, and they would come back, it wasn’t it, and I said, you know I can do this. We can do away with that retainer. I went to the two co-chairs; I can do this. Pay me what you’re paying them, or a portion of it, and let me try it.  And they said, ok, we’re going to let you try for 60 days, or 90 days. I got them their first cover on their first national publication, and the rest, as they say, is history.

I just looked for an opportunity to where I felt like I had a natural ability for this, it came naturally easily to me, and I really enjoyed doing it and it was something I found I was very good at. I saw the need for it so I put myself out there and I said let me do this. So, don’t be afraid to go for something different. Don’t hesitate to take a job because you think, well that’s not really where I want to be. If you love the company, you love the industry, you’ve decided that’s where you want to go with your career, get in there. Prove your worth. I’ve always said, hey, if you open the door for me, I’ll make the best of it. That’s really what I’ve done. I owe a lot of that to my father who instilled in us a great work ethic all of his life. He still works as a consultant part-time, he’s 87 years old now and he has never missed a day of work in his life. I can’t make that statement, but he has just always instilled in my brothers and I that, really, go in and give it your all, and do your best, and you will prove your worth. I think that would be my best advice to someone.

Leisa: So, don’t box yourself in, be opportunistic, and don’t be afraid. Go for it.

Sandra: Don’t box yourself in, be opportunistic, don’t be afraid, and show your value. Smart people, aggressive people, you can get in and you see where you can make that difference. Look for that opportunity.

Leisa: Thank you.

Sandra: You’re welcome.

Leisa: There you have it, another extraordinary woman doing extraordinary things.  I’m Leisa Holland-Nelson, Partner, Vice President, and Chief Marketing Officer of Astoundz, your one search, one click, one company resource for all things interactive, website search engine optimization and social media.  You can find me at astoundz.com or follow me on Twitter @lhnelson. We’ll be back again next week with another edition of Women Mean Business.