Hello, my name is Rachel Maddux, I am a senior getting a bachelors of science in OLEAD. I am the chief of staff for a director at an airplane manufacturing company in Charleston, South Carolina. Five years ago my husband and I moved from Seattle, Washington, where I was born and raised, to start a new life with new jobs in the company we worked for. At that time I left a job I loved tremendously to an unknown future away from my friends and family. I was terrified to say the least. Now that I have lived here for five years with my husband and seven months with my new daughter, I am happy to say I may never want to leave Charleston.
My current job is a lot of fun and I really enjoy going to work. I was on maternity leave for four months but I have been back at work for three months and happy I am back although I am not a huge fan of daycare. Just yesterday my boss asked me what I want to do after I get my degree and we came to the conclusion I am not in the right role to accomplish what I need to in order to get my semi-dream job. I want to be on the company’s side of union negotiations. In 15 years I would love to work on the NTSB (National Traffic Safety Board), with airplane accident investigations. I am not sure if my wish to work on the NTSB will ever come true but I will try to do it as long as I am alive.
As for leadership, I am the vice president of the diversity council and I am the leader of my employee involvement team. In all of my roles at the company I work for I have been a team leader. My past two jobs before this company were with small businesses where I was the office manager, over the course of seven years I managed roughly 100 people, no more than eight at a time. I do not have a favorite leadership quote although this makes me think, I should have one!
As I mentioned above I had a daughter seven months ago and I am amazed how much she has changed my life. My husband and I are beekeepers and we enjoy gardening. The whole reason we got into beekeeping had to do with our move from Seattle to Charleston. When we arrived we built a house and began a garden. We quickly realized that the growing seasons were much different here than from home. We took a class on gardening and the teacher mentioned that the decline of the bees has really taken a toll on how well crops grow in the South. Due to that single comment my husband decided we should become beekeepers and have a hive. After a long weekend of training and a very scary ride with 10,000 bees in the trunk of our car, we have a healthy hive and get 125 pounds of honey every year. It is amazing!
This is my daughter and I this year for Halloween.
Bee keepers indeed with that photo Rachel 🙂 It is nice to get to know a little about you. I look forward to working with you this semester.
–Brian
Rachel, What a lovely picture! What a leap you took in your life moving away from friends and family, your support system. I often wonder how people do that, I did not and there are days where I wish I had taken that leap in my life. I like the piece in your blog that your work is fun and that you enjoy it. I think that in order for work to be fun you have to like what you are doing.
Thank you for sharing and best of luck throughout the class.
Michele
Rachel,
So sorry, I’m not sure why my response for Tracy somehow posted under your blog. I’m still getting the hang of this forum. I see you are in the same degree program as I am. I think the OLEAD program is an extremely good degree to have in today’s job market. It sounds like you are doing well with your careers so far. I’ve always wanted to go to Seattle to visit. I have been to Charleston and really enjoyed the area. I’m glad you and your family feel you made the right decision in moving there. That is so amazing that you want to be involved in union negotiations. Since last semester, I have really found a passion for union politics. Eventually I want to hold a leadership position within a union. I also find arbitration to be very fascinating, but I’m not sure that I’ll ever become an arbitrator. If so that would be a very long-term goal. My husband told me I have a spark when I talk about unions, collective bargaining, and arbitration, so I’m thinking I have a new passion to pursue. I think you have a great goal and should continue to push toward being on the NTSB. It looks like you have a ton of leadership experience under your belt which will be great for this class, and I’m sure any other classes you take for OLEAD. Reading how you and your husband started your hive is inspirational. It reminds me that you can really do whatever you want if you put your mind to it. I think beekeeping is very fascinating and it is great that you are doing something to help the environment. Not to mention the sweet reward that comes from this achievement! I wish you and your family happiness, and I wish you a successful semester!
VR
Lucy Martin
Tracy,
I’m familiar with Altoona, my uncle and his family live there. Actually, a lot of my dad’s family lives in Punxsutawney, not too far from there. It sounds like your job and your role as a Pastor has really expanded your leadership abilities. It sounds like these experiences have helped you in developing relationships and effectively communicating with different people, which are excellent skills to have. I think it is commendable that you still find time to be involved in your township. One of my goals for the future is to get more involved wherever I am located (given that we move a lot with the military). The military was one of the best decisions I ever made and I wish both of your children the best in their military careers. I thank them both for serving! I also very much appreciate the quotes that you shared. I could not agree more with your thoughts pertaining to Theodore Roosevelt’s quote. I think I see now more than ever these bleacher riders you talk about. It’s sad to see all this destructive behavior and useless negative actions and words. Why not do or say something that will actually make a difference? That’s my small input on the matter. Lastly, I would say, it’s not about when you achieve your goals, it is about the fact that you do achieve them. It’s great that you are back to school and I truly believe there is no time frame for realizing your goals. I wish you the best this semester!
VR
Lucy Martin