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 Jill Griffin, Author and Corporate Board Director and I’m excited to have her new book right here, Earn Your Seat on a Corporate Board; Jill, welcome to Women Mean Business.

Jill: Thank Leisa, so glad to be here.

Leisa: I’m holding the book; I know you’ve got great advice for all of us, tell us the best.

Jill: Okay, number one lesson is don’t wait for people to recognize you; raise your hand, go and ask for what you need. And my example of that is when I was in college I desperately wanted to get my MBA. I was waitressing down at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; I had been accepted into the MBA program but no financial aid. And so I got into my beat up car, drove up to Colombia, South Carolina, went by the Registrar’s office, picked up my transcript and then camped out outside the Director of the MBA program’s door until he could see me. And so when he allowed me in I walked in calmly, put my transcript down in front of him and I said Dr. Lyles, I desperately want my MBA but I don’t have any money but I know you do, so how am I going to get some of it?

Leisa: That’s fantastic.

Jill: And he looked at my transcript and agreed to give me a one semester assistantship and that based on my performance it would either continue or not. So that was the first time that I understood you don’t wait for someone to notice you, you go and ask for what you need.

Leisa: I’m going to go wow I wish I knew that because I was kind of the gal waiting for someone to ask me to dance, I totally relate.

Jill: Yes, yes, I was too, I was too.

Leisa: Thank you so much. There you have it, extraordinary advice from an extraordinary woman. I’m Leisa Holland Nelson, President and Co-founder of ContentActive, Houston’s leading web and mobile technology company. You can find me at ContactActive.com or follow me on Twitter @LHNelson. We’ll be back again next week with another edition of Women Mean Business.