Personal motto:
"I became indispensable for the companies I
worked at or the boss I worked for," she says.
"I looked around and saw the things people
didn't want to do. I would read and learn
everything I possibly could to be smarter
and become an expert. I would do the
projects that no one wanted to do because
it meant missing vacations, late nights or
weekends."
Taylor says it's not working harder, but
working smarter that she credits with her
success. "What I hear a lot of from my
supervisors and peers is that I am able
to see the big picture and break it down
to the details. I can work backwards and
forwards."
She credits her acute business sense from
something her grandmother taught her.
"Learn from your competitors because they
are going to teach you something."
It's a personal philosophy she subscribes to
daily. "You can learn from everybody. Don't
ever think you're better than anybody."
Taylor is very deliberate in her abilities as a
leader, and as a woman. She says one of the
biggest challenges facing women today in
the corporate world isn't the glass ceiling,
but ourselves. "e biggest part of our
balance is getting out of our way and stop
holding ourselves back. We're afraid to say
we want it all. ere's something in our
heads that says you're not supposed to have
all of this: 'you can't have the perfect family.
You can't have the perfect career.' e
balance is in ourselves and you need to find
out what works for you."
While she admits she demands a lot
from herself, she was deliberate in her
management style to cultivate a culture
that encouraged her employees to grow
and participate in the process. Her hard
work and sacrifice didn't go unnoticed.
She successfully launched a government
52 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com
