Join Amanda Voss on a 20+ year journey with MGM Resorts, from a reservation agent to VP of the iconic Bellagio Hotel Sales Team. Learn how MGM supports career growth. Discover her transformation from individual contributor to team leader, managing high-pressure situations, and empowering her team for success.
Join Amanda Voss on a 20+ year journey with MGM Resorts, from a reservation agent to VP of the iconic Bellagio Hotel Sales Team. Learn how MGM supports career growth. Discover her transformation from individual contributor to team leader, managing high-pressure situations, and empowering her team for success.
Greetings. I am Dorothy Dowling, a Principal of DEI Advisors. We are a non profit organization dedicated to personal empowerment. I am truly delighted to welcome Amanda Voss, Vice President of Sales at The Bellagio. Amanda, it is an honor to have you with us
Amanda Voss:today. Oh, thank you so much. I am looking forward to a nice robust chat.
Dorothy Dowling:Wonderful. Let's get to it. So Amanda, I'm hoping you'll share your career journey with us. You have had many roles in your journey to vice president of sales at the Bellagio with MGM. And I'm wondering if you can share your development path and how this has made you into the very successful executive that you are today.
Amanda Voss:Oh, thank you so much. I've been with MGM Resorts for celebrating my 22nd year and Bellagio falls under the MGM Resorts, which is the largest, one of the largest hospitality companies and and being a part of such a large company, I've been fortunate enough in my career to work at eight of our properties in different capacities. And I started originally out in hotel operations. As a reservation agent and front desk agent and then really hops. to different resorts to find out what I really enjoyed. And that's what I like about a hotel, right? I could still keep my seniority through all these years, but maybe go into a different division or experience different kinds of service from select service to no ultra luxury. And then specifically for sales, I really, I started entry level. I was the receptionist. In the sales department at Treasure Island and moved my way up through services and then to sales and was fortunate enough in my career with MGM Resorts to experience unique projects. I opened Aria and Vidara Resorts. I went through a major gutting of a hotel and brand change from Monte Carlo to Park MGM, all really changing me as a leader and as a person going through those kinds of projects, not normal sales all the time. And but I do, when I do new hire orientation we stop by as an executive and welcome the new. Class and this is almost weekly. And I tell them, I say, this is my second tour of duty at Bellagio. And I said, the first time I was here, I was a secretary in my own department. And I was, and so to come back as a vice president of sales many years later is just full circle. And I like to give any, everybody that inspiration that you can be that secretary and move up to an executive, absolutely. I hope that in it. Yeah.
Dorothy Dowling:And that's an amazing story. Amanda, it's amazing story about you personally. But I know we'll talk a little bit later, but I also think it's a real testament to how MGM really grooms talent and puts really strong development plans and allows you to experience a lot of different roles within the organization to really build up all of your competencies. It's a real model for what great companies are doing today.
Amanda Voss:I appreciate that. I do feel that is, I sometimes I'll say, what's your love language, which keeps you to, stay at your company. And for me the sign of the investment that they made for me I w I've been through two of our leadership. Programs here, fortunate enough to be on some of these special projects of design or opening a hotel. But it always fed me that yearning to learn and I continue to have that path and ask them for whether it's, tuition reimbursement. And so not only just for me, but it also starts at the entry level, all those kinds of supporting and educational opportunities. So I'm very proud MGM resorts. Absolutely. Yeah,
Dorothy Dowling:and I think it's pride that it's very well placed, Amanda, so congratulations for being part of such a remarkable organization. I'm wondering if we can talk a little bit about your current role, because you are at a five diamond property. Certainly it's a crown in the MGM portfolio. I know you have multiple property responsibilities, but you also have a very broad role within Bellagio in terms of the catering and, Understanding the solutions that you bring to your customers, not just the selling of the opportunities to the customer. So I'm wondering if you can talk a little bit about how the breadth and scope of your work really allows you to drive that performance for MGM and the Bellagio.
Amanda Voss:Sure. Bellagio is, give or take 4000 keys. My second property is a give or take a little over 3, 000 keys and so they're very large properties and when you're predominantly your career has been in Las Vegas, sometimes you think that's the normal and you forget that's not the normal. That's a lot. And post COVID, much like everybody, there was, some combining and reorganization. So I'll speak specifically to Bellagio. But my role expanded not just in sales, but really also on the operating side or different avenues of sales. So I have the traditional group sales, but I also have wedding sales. I also have catering only sales, social sales, also group dining, events that are in restaurants and private dining room sales and then expanded that into services and. Who knows that at this time, what else I might take on. But I think that was an incredible opportunity for me to expand that. You don't just, you don't just have to lead in your certain discipline that you're, have had your career. You, it can expand and sometime provide a different point of view, whether it's sales and weddings or catering and social market. But I've had to shift and maneuver. To understand that. And there's sometimes I'm wearing a operator's hat and sometimes I'm wearing a sales hat. Now, Bellagio at an ultra luxury property like ours, and with a brand recognition, every detail has to be rehearsed and reviewed. And it's a fine balance because you want to have your employees feel empowered. You want them to be able to make those quick decisions and execute consistently. But with the customer changing sometimes that has been interesting to, to run through and just a heightened expectation, but we enjoy that at Bellagio and we like that. It's a challenge and we. Wear it with a badge of pride that comes with a well known brand. But aside from empowering them is a really robust training that we have. And you don't just train at the beginning and total and set them free. You train all year in different facets and you almost make it a culture. So it's a culture of empowerment, but continuous training. So that they always feel that support. It's like recruitment to me. Now recruitment's different. You recruit them into the job. You recruit them to stay in the job. You're you're recruiting all every day, that same employee. But we have had to elevate our game here, but I love it, but it is a very attention to detail with the rise in rates. And all the special events that we have here in Bellagio's iconic, we just had F1 with the beautiful Bellagio Fountain Club that we built on our lake. That was two football size buildings that are, we basically extended my convention footprint. to the front of the property and executed events up there for three days to, super bowls coming up, you're going to see CBS building a stage on our lakes. So there's just a lot of special events that has been the new and they'll always come. Bellagio will always be a part of it because it is so iconic on the TV. So it's exciting.
Dorothy Dowling:Yeah. Oh, I'm sure that the demands are extraordinary, but I also think the opportunities to learn and grow, I'm sure, can measure with the kinds of demands that you experience, Amanda.
Amanda Voss:Yes, I love that not every day is the same. So it's always great.
Dorothy Dowling:I bet. I'm wondering, as you have been on your career journey, if there has been any kind of personal mantra that has been part of your career success?
Amanda Voss:I used to say I may not be the smartest in the room, but you can't outwork me. And so I've always had, I think that's probably common with a lot of people that, you know, they really. Leverage what they're really good at. But there's a point in your career where it's not working for you anymore. It gets you successful to a certain point. I think there's that book. What got you here won't get you there. And I really had to learn. Specifically when I started to become a leader and an executive that I had to change. I'm still incredibly working hard, but I have to delegate smarter. I have to empower others and in order for myself to be successful and really the post COVID life and the consolidation and increase has really. Pushed me into that direction. And how to lead in the new world. So that and your, what you say, work life balance or your mental wellness. And as I've moved from and matured in the seasons of leadership, I really take my health care as a priority. And I'm a big sports fan. So I equate it to a professional sports. I tell leaders often, I say, think of yourself as a professional sports player and they are, they have insurance on their body and they're, they've got, trainers, et cetera. And I don't say that's what you need, but you need to start, taking care of your body and having that adequate sleep, having the right diet and finding outlets. to let that that stress that you may have out. And I feel when I keep that in the forefront, I'm a better leader to everybody. I'm present. I'm on it. I'm emotionally sound. And I, and also for my family at home too. And so for me, that's where I treat my body as a temple and it's not out of vanity. It's out of, balancing as much as you can so that you can enjoy the ride and not get in a position where you're not. And you should.
Dorothy Dowling:anD that is such a powerful message for today, Amanda, because everyone is talking about wellness. Of course, mental health is one of the big issues that many employers are facing. But I do think your guidance about really taking care of yourself and making sure you're getting a lot of the Basic fundamentals brings you to the role in a much more powerful way. And I think that's a good message for us all to pay attention to.
Amanda Voss:And Dorothy, if I can add, and I think this may resonate with others and our company has been like every company, but trying different ways to retain talent. And so one of the sectors of talent was the leadership side. Into your entry level leader and above. And so they rolled out sabbaticals, which I've only known sabbaticals from like a hip, trendy company and all these things. So I thought this was just a wild concept for hospitality. And and but, being with the company for so long, I qualified and I qualified for the max and it was, fully paid. And I just said, okay, I'm gonna push myself and I, I gave a year's notice because, I like to be give a lot of notice even though you didn't have to. And I chose to take this sabbatical and it was really life changing for me. I I thought again, it was euphoric. I said, okay, in the planning stages, I'm gonna, I'm gonna go away. I'm gonna really disconnect. And so I had to do a lot of planning on the forefront and I planned everything to a T and and it gives the opportunity for the leadership below To have that face time, to have that experience, it could be a part of their leadership development plan. And so I carefully picked out different leaders, what they would benefit or what their strong suit is on my duties while I was out. And so I really felt very comfortable. I give a lot of empowerment, but there were a few things that I discovered. So going on my sabbatical, I maybe reached out twice. Two times and it was very interesting when I go on vacation, I tell my leaders, okay, I'm going on vacation, but if you need anything, and, they do, they take me up on it, but the word sabbatical empowered them, they would just respond. Thanks, Amanda, but we got it. Enjoy your sabbatical. So I caught on very quickly. Because, no one wants to hurt the leader's feelings, but I, Oh, okay. Okay. And I let it go. And I really under like thought about why I don't call myself a micromanager, but why do I feel sometimes the way I operate before to be there or something? And I would probably answer that. Oh, I just need to, just to, protect them and just, distill things. And I was like, what does this need to protect? What am I protecting? And so that I think that was one aha that I was like, okay, these guys are awesome and there doesn't mean I don't know and free up some of the times that maybe I was energies putting towards that I didn't need to anymore. The other thing with the sabbaticals, I really got to examine how I was running my life. And and what I needed to do differently, what was missing that I wasn't doing. And a lot of things that I discovered were my choice and the way I was running me, but I will be honest prior to sabbatical, I would have pointed fingers at. Other reasons. But the other aha was, it was what I was doing. And so I got to recalibrate where I was putting my energies and knowing that it was my, and I, and it was empowering to know that I could lift that. Why couldn't I see it before? I don't know, but I know now that I have control over. what I do and where I put energy. So I felt a better sense of balance and forward looking, and then really got to think about my next moves, where I want to go and step back. And you don't really have that time sometimes to do that. So it really came back to work incredibly proud of the team and empowered myself on my destiny and how I wanted to operate. And I just, I felt lighter and, I'm still, it's been, six months or more and I'm still on, we call it the sabbatical high, and I hope I hold on to that, but it was really getting some monkeys off my back that really made me feel lighter. It was incredible. Really was.
Dorothy Dowling:I think that's an amazing story, and I do think people being able to take a pause like you did, Amanda, and have some time to be able to take the time to reflect like you did, and really do that self assessment, and really, because I know that you spent a lot of time in terms of preparing your team and making sure everyone had fun. was in a good place to be able to manage their roles in your absence. But I do think that's a real credit to you to have the courage to take a sabbatical and to use it so effectively in terms of your personal growth, but also to empower your team to learn through that journey and give you that opportunity for that growth. So congratulations. I also think it's amazing that MGM does. that kind of investment in their teammates. Because you're right. It's typically the technology providers that have done that kind of investment in the past. So I think it's a credit that they consider their senior leaders in this way and give them, those kinds of opportunities for personal growth.
Amanda Voss:Yeah. And it was thrilling to really see some people get that. FaceTime and you were like, Whoa, okay, you're a future vice president. I got to lean in more with you. And so I don't know. It was incredibly prideful.
Dorothy Dowling:Yeah. That's quite amazing. I'm just, I'm wondering I know that you've had a few different people in your career that have been very important in terms of shaping your career path. I'm just wondering if there's any. Particular career champions or mentors that have been important in terms of shaping that career for you, that you would share with us.
Amanda Voss:Yeah. I really, I've had great mentors, whether it's. men or women. And I remember being intimidated by the word mentor and do you ask each other out? And how does this go? And finding that it's informal and and I've had some formal formal ways, programs of getting mentors. But the mentors that I have really enjoyed are the ones that have made me think they didn't tell me their opinion per se, but they did it in a way where they helped me get to that. And and I and there was another mentor that got another chip, a chip, I would call a chip on my shoulder in my career at one point that really helped me. Think about it differently. And and honestly, and I'll be very candid. It was when I was a new leader and I was struggling sometimes with certain executives that I didn't think were taking me seriously. And that I did I did feel like there was bias. And so I remember every time we'd see the certain executive, polite, say hi, and then. The mentor I'd say, see, you see how they treat me. It was different and it's because of, the way I look or whatever. And they finally said, Amanda do you know, you talk about this every time, do you know this comes out and you get fired up and I go, oh. I do. And they're like, Oh, yeah, it's clear as day. And I go, Oh, okay. And there were, they really discussed and he really made more me come to that, that, there are certain things about yourself that you can't change. And so you have to embrace you. That's what makes you special. And you also sometimes have to level up in certain manners. Yes. And and polish and everything's fine, and why are you harboring and building this into this thing? It's also which got you successful. And so I don't know why, but that was really freeing. And I was like, you know what, you're right. Why am I so obsessed with this? I've got it. And maybe it was confidence. I've just got to be confident in. This is it. This is how you got there and you can't change certain things and and that was really good. So I really like those kinds of mentors that are brave enough to have those kinds of conversations, but do it in a manner where it feels like it's self aware, like you came up on it. And and I think if that person hadn't have done that with me, I may have carried that and that chip could ultimately can take you down. And so that was really great. Now I'm in a season of my career of giving back and mentoring others. And whether it's we have a formal mentorship program throughout the MGM company that I join in, we also have a mentorship company mentorship program with our diverse vendors. We also have a diversity initiative with our vendors, so doing some of that, even though we're not in the same industry, we can still have a good mentorship together. And then informally with any of my employees. And I find that for me when I mentor I like to keep that in mind about helping them get to that. But I also try to make them feel normal and be and I become a little vulnerable and share that sometimes the mistakes that I made to make them feel, better. They put the leader on such a pedestal. She made them say, Oh, trust me, I can give you 10 things. I really enjoy it and I do have a passion for talent and people. I'm obviously as a sales leader, people, person. But I like to see the good and help everybody have a voice. I
Dorothy Dowling:do think, one of the big areas that people are focused on today is people's human skills, and I do think bringing that vulnerability forward, sharing some of those personal stories, Amanda, because I do think, you've said one, that the journey on your sabbatical was a journey of self awareness for you and helping you reset and identify what you could do differently, but it's also sometimes having someone to reflect back to us the way we see something. Is maybe not the way others might be looking at it and to be able to learn from those experiences and become more self aware to control our own destinies is, it is very powerful leadership to share with others because I often think people earlier in their journey, they need that voice in their ear to say, uh, sometimes maybe the way they see the world is maybe not the way others see it. And trying to put themselves in other shoes is always helpful. Yes.
Amanda Voss:Yes. Yes. Yes. And, you just don't want to waste your energy that much on something so
Dorothy Dowling:negative. Yeah. Yeah. No question. Negative energy doesn't get us anywhere. I know you are very involved in the industry next year. You're going to take on the vice chair role with the HSMAI Foundation, which of course, Their raison d'etre is all about talent and growth in the industry. So I'm wondering if you can share a little bit, because you are very passionate about talent within the MGM ecosystem. I know MGM itself has just an incredible investment in. really growing talent from within. But I'm wondering if you can elaborate a little bit about the importance of the foundation and what you hope to bring in terms of your role as a vice chair.
Amanda Voss:Yes. So I'm thrilled to be vice chair and working with the team at H. S. M. I. And supporting Laurie. But H. S. M. I. Is the perfect marriage for me because we stand on research and programs that we can support the hospitality community from a talent and development. And so this is really perfect for me. I've been on the board for a few years and really proud of being forward on the trends that are coming out. What to look forward to. The programs, the certification programs, which are so important as you want to grow your career and they're affordable and the, really the recognition that's out there that we provide for those who are in the spirit. And we really move a lot. We touch from collegiate all the way through, just being a specialist in your hospitality career. I look forward to. Raising more funds so that we can keep doing the research programs that are supporting not only, the D. E. I side, but all everybody in every fashion of the of your career. The one of the fun ones this year was we had a a marketing competition with schools and listening to what they did. And one group actually Did one on one of my properties. And so it was really exciting to hear. So I asked I asked the school and forgive me, I can't remember the school, but I actually had them do it again for some of my executive team here. And they were absolutely thrilled. And we learned some things. too. It's not just fulfilling for the industry. Sometimes selfishly, we learn things to in our company, but I'm really excited to see what we accomplished this year and the movement that we make because it's so vital. We saw such a hard hit in the hospitality community and and we still are seeing that. And so I think that our Our mission is more important than ever and will be for future years to come. So it's a blessing to be a part of.
Dorothy Dowling:No, I agree. I do think this conversation about talent and certainly many CEOs have expressed that capital is not the issue that's going to prevent their growth. It is really around talent and. Bringing them into the industry, supporting their personal growth and really connecting the dots so that they can bring value creation to the companies. So I agree with you. Talent is the most important asset that everyone now is fully recognizing. So I do think the foundation has got a real. important mission going forward. So congratulations on your role as a vice chair. Thank you. I wonder if we can move a little bit on, because in your role certainly everyone in the industry, certainly Vegas had a, was extraordinarily hard hit through COVID, but I'm wondering beyond sort of the COVID adversity that many of us shared, if there's other learnings of situations that have really put you into a demanding environment where you had to solve problems and things that you might share with others in terms of your growth.
Amanda Voss:Yeah, I think it's no secret what we went through in 2023 at MGM Resorts between a cyber attack and then going right into just even the fourth quarter. You had the cyber attack in September. We had the 25th anniversary to put on for Bellagio. And then we had F1 and then New Year's Eve. So it, it has been a lot. And and I certainly like to think fondly of my career, but have unfortunately gone through some other incidents as well. But I'll tell you. Stay on the the cyber attack. I'm incredibly proud of MGM resorts and the stance they took and the manner that they did and that they didn't give in. And I'm incredibly proud of the team and how we handled it because we were going in. I had groups at both of my properties, but I'll just stick with Bellagio. I going into that week, I had two full, my whole facility was. I had well over a thousand that was coming in to operate. And you don't realize how much you depend on email and virtual and oh my gosh. Luckily by then, BEOs and most things where MEOs were done product was already received and things like that. So we really if you needed a lesson in employee empowerment, you got it during that time because everybody was empowered to fix it in the moment as best as you can. And so we really had so many wonderful stories of ingenuity that every worker took on. To have a check in accomplished and a clean room that sometimes in crisis, it brings you together stronger than ever. And it forces you to think out of the box. And and they did, and, we successfully. Had this whole conference and was still able to accomplish it. We could have pulled a force majeure. We didn't we said, we can do this, we can pull this off. And we still, for a good month still we're not operating. From a software perspective, quite the best because we had to rebuild and rebuild, but the team, it increased really face to face communication, talking over details as leaders, helping them focus on what is the most important and removing barriers and really also being transparent with our clients. And assuring them from a safety standpoint that we can do this and you'll be safe and everything will be fine and and to be honest with you, there were so many stories we were talking as an executive team examples that in our quarterly manager meeting. We couldn't pick one. We had to acknowledge everyone because everyone, there were just so many incredible stories. And and I think as leader, you have to maintain calm, I know that I can move the room. And so it's remaining very calm, distilling it down, having a plan and then maneuvering and talking multiple times every day, okay, let's do another check in and I'm really proud of how we came out through that. And and yeah,
Dorothy Dowling:I do think it is really quite incredible because, I think if we all step back and realize how digitally enabled we all are today to lose all of that at the same time and have to be able to carry on and deliver at such a high level. Is amazing. When I step back and I think about that, though, Amanda, you and your team has been through a series of extraordinarily demanding events. So I don't know if there's anything that you can share from a leadership point of view in terms of how you kept You know, all of your teammates through all of those things, cause those it's one successive demanding a situation after another. And as you pointed out, New Year's Eve is a big time for Vegas, but in particular for the Bellagio. Yes.
Amanda Voss:Yes. And we when we looked at that fourth quarter and then going into through the first quarter, so I finished New Year's Eve, I'm about to host Lunar New Year, which is a, our big Chinese New Year gala. And Super Bowl, by the way, is here in Las Vegas. So I have a vent for that. And then we take a look. And that's just a vent. That doesn't talk about your cash paying corporate. Yeah. It is, it can be absolutely overwhelming, especially when you're at a property that you know you're always going to have some sort of fashion of a special event. The clients are paying an increased rate. There's a heightened expectation. And clients are really about experience. And so how do we give that experience and what does that look like? So for me, it really is helping them with clarity. I would say you can't eat an elephant in one bite. So let's itemize that out and a lot of it is helping them delegate removing barriers and and providing them the resources. We do have frequent meetings leading up to an event. We do try to when we start an event playing for event. Have its own org chart and responsibilities. And I always say specifically at ultra luxury, even if it's a simple little task and you think you can take it on when you're leading it, we let's just delegate it because that little touch. At a ultra luxury has to be so if one employee's job is something that seems minute, it will make a huge difference. So it's a lot of team collaboration and really helping them communicate and spread out the tasks and then thinking through each one. And then also as a leader, I pay really attention to their nonverbals and I can tell when I have a leader who's maxed. Or, when's the last time you've had a day off? When is vacation, okay, let's put vacation on there. So you have a bright North Star to look forward to. It's also constant recognition in your team updates, and having a culture of recognition so that departments aren't doing. Cause it's a team sport. I would say if anything goes wrong, there's at least. Three, four other departments that it passed through, right? So it is the ultimate team sport. So creative culture of recognition and also feedback help us. So we were just meeting prior to this on another event next week to just tie everything down and look at every detail because the expectation is like that. With the post COVID life, Las Vegas has just increasingly had these special events and they've proved to be obviously a very business success for us. And so we're starting to get used to it. And and it's been pretty exciting, but yes, it absolutely can become overwhelming. I'll ask my leaders also, how much time, how many meetings a week are you in just for a Superbowl? And then I can see, maybe they're spending too much time. What can I lift off their plate? What can be delegated or what additional tasks that you have that this is taking away and how can we redistribute it so that you can be somewhat balanced through it? And that's how I approach it to be able to better support them.
Dorothy Dowling:I think it's that strength of your human skills Amanda, and being able to recognize. When people are hitting their top limit in terms of performance and also just being very sensitive in terms of the recognition because I do know that it is it's a treadmill that's running on a very fast pace all the time in the environment that you're in. So speaking about work life balance your parent you have two young sons, and everyone in the hospitality industry always talks about work life balance, but I look at the role that you have because you have an incredible number of VIPs that you host, and you are on deck with. to make sure you greet. I know New Year's Eve you are on deck. Because you are that senior executive that has to be part of the hospitality experience for those customers as they come in. So I'm just wondering, how do you balance all of those kinds of things? Your parenting commitments, your leadership commitments and then also all the responsibilities you have in terms of driving the financial performance of the property.
Amanda Voss:Sure. And yeah, I guess when you put it like that, it is a lot. Huh? The VIP is alone. It's, you got your internal VIPs, you have your casino whales. Oh, and by the way, you have celebrities, you have government dignitaries, everybody has their own security. It does. It's it's wild. But Okay. It is a constant battle on what work life balance really looks for you. And I think it's different for everybody and what you're, what you feel feels like balance. I, with my personal life, I couldn't do it without having such a great spouse. And and that he has the flexibility in his position to be able to do things that this, my job may be and he supports me. He never makes me feel bad. And I appreciate that.'cause I think as mothers we, we naturally have guilt right away. And so to have a partner that jumps right in. Is a non traditional family. And allows me to achieve my dreams and not feel selfish about it is key to my balance. There are, and I try to somewhat create what they call boundaries and be there for my sons and I, but I'm also very comforted that they have a dynamic father. That's that, me in some ways people would think is the wife or the mother's duty that he does and vice versa. And so I don't, I had a one customer actually tell me young in my career, I think when I had my first child is she said, don't be afraid to ask for help. And I think at that point I was telling her that my child was getting ready to start food and I can't do this organic and I feel so bad. I don't have time to make it. And she was like, Oh my gosh. And she was like, just ask and really pushing me. And so I found different ways and I embraced, I say, I'm the outsourced mom, I outsource really well. I may not be in that classroom, but man, is he going to have the prettiest? I don't know. I'm going to finance that lunch. I don't know. And I couldn't, I had to let go of what society tells you or what the expectation is and be comfortable in my skin that my, my children are happy and healthy and everything's fine in home life. And and then from a work side from balance it's I try all sorts of different ways and sometimes things work for a while and then I have to pivot. And so I, I noticed that I used to try and log on late at night after I put the kids down. I noticed that my sleep is my priority and that I was really making mistakes. I wasn't actually getting ahead. I noticed that for me. Exercising every day is in the morning is a ritual that mentally I feel ready to take on the day. And so I probably am a little ritual about putting my health first. I love all, I also make sure I have a great network of friends and have social time to bond and not, and that's the other thing I like about the gym is it's a bunch of people that have no idea what I do. And we just talk, not work, about fitness and they don't care what your title is. I just, I get to be anonymous for a while. And so that as I also enjoy too. And so I, for me, again, if I stick to my routines, it's proven successful. When it comes to a project at work, I block time specifically and put it as the project time so I can move it faster. I bring in more people into projects to get diversity of thought and maybe assign different tasks so we can come together. And then I, and I just really highly manage that. The thing that I've had to fight with the consolidation is I tend, I want to be there for everybody. And everybody is important. They'll tell you everything they need at every meeting. So it's, been having to learn with my support staff, what meetings to take. And what not to take. Typically on Fridays, I try not to take that many meetings, specifically afternoon. So it's just, it's trying some of those different ways that have worked for me. And and having some personal hard stops. I will not work after this time. I will give this day and staying committed to it. That has helped my balance and and having a better frame of thought to my personal and professional.
Dorothy Dowling:And I think there's some really important lessons that, that you referenced there, Amanda, part of, is that self care and recognizing your own performance, because I do think that's a journey that many of us have that, we think putting the time in, but if we're not effective with that time, then it's best to just let it go. And I also just think that journey that you've been on as a parent and recognizing that your children are happy and healthy, and you've got a great partner that is with you in terms of being a good parent, so it is giving yourself permission that you don't have to be everything to everyone. So I appreciate your authenticity and vulnerability there because I do think we all need to hear that because many of us want to be those super leaders, super parents and quite honestly, as an individual human being, there are limitations that we all have to learn about that. It's just not possible. So thank you for sharing that.
Amanda Voss:Very well said. I think if you accept that, things will be a lot better. Sometimes I'll say when I have someone really worn down, I'll say, Are you working the business or is the business working you? And they'll say, I think the business is working me. I say, I know just what that's like. Okay, let's talk about switching that.
Dorothy Dowling:Yeah, no, that is great coaching to do that with individuals because I think we all have faced those kinds of situations. So we're coming up near the end of the interview, Amanda. And we always ask every D. E. I. Advisor if There is any final thoughts that you would like to offer to the audience in terms of wisdom or personal growth advice,
Amanda Voss:That's so funny. I, if I can be vulnerable for a minute here it's funny. I, and I hope this resonates with some people, maybe it's females. I don't know, sometimes that question you're happy to talk about your child. You're happy to talk about your business. And then when the, questions back on you. You're like, Oh, gosh, one of these people really care about what I have to say. And so truthfully, part of my growth is being a part of the conversation because I do have things to say and forcing my, myself to get myself out there. So I appreciate the opportunity that you've given me. And so if I could pass any wisdom down. And I think you've probably heard it a few times from my interview is putting yourself first. And a lot of things will come in place if you put yourself first. Now, that doesn't mean that we have to maybe lean in more on work at times. That doesn't mean that we can't real take in the feedback and work on our own growth. But if we have that spirit of putting ourself first, whether it's how you take care of yourself or how you manage your schedule. I think that you'll enjoy life. You only get one shot and so you got to make the best of it. And I don't know where that road's going to take you. I don't know how that's going to look, but if you think I've got, I'm blessed to wake up and to breathe. I'm blessed to have my health. I got one shot. So I'm going to get myself out of this situation and I'm going to make it better. And so that I can live a really full and very happy life. And happiness is different for everybody. So whatever you define your happiness is that should be your goal. And that's success.
Dorothy Dowling:I think that's a brilliant close, Amanda. So thank you for sharing that because I do think defining our own happiness and making sure that we take care of ourselves are, again, very important lessons that have come to all of us post COVID, that we've got to put those things at the front of the line in terms of our decisions. So thank you for sharing that. Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity to learn from you. And if I may with our audiences, if you've enjoyed this interview with Amanda as much as I have. I hope you'll come and visit us on our website, DEIadvisors. org, where we have many other advisors like Amanda who have shared their leadership journey and wisdom that hopefully will empower you with your career. So again, Amanda, thank you for being part of our show today and to our audience. We always appreciate your participation. So we hope to see you at many other interviews in the future. So thank you. Thank you. Thanks Amanda.