Own Your Opportunities: A Story of Self-Discovery and Self-Determination

by Juliet Hall

Overview

Silver Award Winner in the “Personal Growth/Self-Help” Category of the Nautilus Awards

Own Your Opportunities is a self-portrait of a Black woman in corporate America who discovers her value and walks away from a company to pursue sanity and the freedom to realize her dream.

Own Your Opportunities is uplifting to women who may feel disillusioned and overwhelmed in corporate America. The story begins with Juliet Hall making a career-defining decision to leave a company after being told her desired career path would not happen. She then recounts her job experiences spanning twenty years—building a narrative to show how she evolved, discovered her gifts, and succeeded in a career amidst a backdrop of corporate trauma before making the pivot to realize her dream.

No matter the opposition—whether it’s family and tradition, systemic bias and marginalization, or difficult leadership—there is always a path forward. In this book, readers will learn how she:
· Identified her value and gifts.
· Refused to be put into a box and allow others to define success for her.
· Took responsibility for her own growth and development.

Vividly written, Own Your Opportunities is a champion to self-belief and dream fulfillment in women. Readers will benefit from Hall’s wisdom and personal experiences of how she developed her human capital, identified her value, took risks, and positioned herself to achieve her dream.

“Juliet will always bring light to your day. It’s a nice read when someone else can express your thoughts better than you can yourself.” —George Wallace, Comedian/Actor

“Through magnetic storytelling, Juliet masterfully shares truth serum for your workplace toolkit. In a pertinent and poignant reveal, she frames the need-to-know reality that survival in the workplace requires more than oxygen. Inhale.” —Patricia Russell-McCloud, Esq., International Motivational Speaker and Bestselling Author of A Is for Attitude

“Own Your Opportunities is an important read for any leader who is trapped in a workplace culture of marginalization. Leaders—women or men—who have the capability, capacity, and confidence that is unrecognized and/or intentionally underutilized will find wise advice and affirming assurance to seek windows offering new visions and paths charting new directions for their professional and personal lives.” —Martha P. Farmer, Founding Director of Leadership America (Leadership Women™)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781637585405
Publisher:	Post Hill Press
Publication date:	10/04/2022
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	232,737
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Juliet Hall is the principal of Juliet Hall INC, a boutique leadership consulting agency based in Atlanta, Georgia. Recognized by several organizations in Atlanta as a “Top Black Woman of Influence,” Juliet serves as an advisor and executive coach to C-suite and deputy leaders and speaks on national stages on the topics of servant leadership and self-maximization. She is passionate about helping leaders, especially women, who are at a professional crossroads to pursue their own self-discovery, develop their natural talents, and thrive in what they are uniquely created to do. With a professional background that includes twenty years of leadership in multi-billion dollar corporations, Juliet has presented her work to executives in government, education, healthcare, ministry, business, and non-profit. A graduate of Spelman College and the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia, Juliet has traveled to over twenty countries and enjoys cardio boxing and playing tennis.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

Chapter 1 Recognize When You've Outgrown a Situation 5

Chapter 2 Start Somewhere 21

Chapter 3 Work for a Company That Also Works for You 46

Chapter 4 Become Your Own Champion 63

Chapter 5 Broaden Your Exposure 88

Chapter 6 Be Open to New Opportunities 116

Chapter 7 Remember Your Gift 136

Chapter 8 Prepare for the Pivot 145

Chapter 9 Grieve, Then Grow 167

Chapter 10 Keep Growing 179

Author's Notes 186

Acknowledgments 205

About the Author 207

Editorial Reviews

I found two significant benefits from this book as a reader. The first benefit was as a professional striving to have a purpose-filled career centered on nurturing and using my gifts. The second benefit was as male ally in a leadership position striving to support professional women achieve excellence in corporate America. Juliet, in her own unique and authentic voice, delivers on these two benefits in this page-turning book as she shares insights on her path toward achieving excellence in her journey. She gives examples of challenges, including multiple leadership support failures, to understand and support her career path as an African-American woman. She also highlighted how, despite the environmental challenges she faced in the workplace and the trials and tribulations of life, she was destined to further hone in on her gifts and use them for the better of those around her. It’s a story bound to make you reflect and inspire where you are on your personal journey, while challenging you as a leader to create a better work environment for all.

DeWayne Griffin

Juliet will always bring light to your day. It’s a nice read when someone else can express your thoughts better than you can yourself.

George Wallace

Wow! Juliet eloquently inspires all of us to remember our gifts in the midst of our triumphs, challenges, and disappointments. Her storytelling is riveting as she illuminates her faith and personal journey of self-discovery and self-maximization. Juliet enables the reader a unique and compelling opportunity to look through the window of a Black woman’s experience in corporate America. And in a time where companies are focused on building inclusive cultures where all employees can thrive, this book is timely. Own Your Opportunities is an outstanding read, and Juliet’s inclusion of a roadmap and strategies to true success in career and life is a gift that will keep on giving.

Fran Dillard

Own Your Opportunities is an important read for any leader who is trapped in a workplace culture of marginalization. Leaders—women or men—who have the capability, capacity, and confidence that is unrecognized and/or intentionally underutilized will find wise advice and affirming assurance to seek windows offering new visions and paths charting new directions for their professional and personal lives.

Martha P. Farmer

Through magnetic storytelling, Juliet masterfully shares truth serum for your workplace toolkit. In a pertinent and poignant reveal, she frames the need-to-know reality that survival in the workplace requires more than oxygen. Inhale.

Patricia Russell-McCloud

COVID-19 ushered in a mass exodus from the workforce that has become known as the ‘Great Resignation.’ Workers around the world continue to explore their career options and life choices. While we hear a lot about the worker shortages and the economic effects of this trend, the conversation has shifted to acknowledge that people aren’t necessarily quitting, instead they are pivoting. Juliet manifested her ‘Great Pivot’ a few years before the pandemic-inspired masses and vividly shares her hard-won insights in her book Own Your Opportunities. Juliet artfully tells a personal story that is honest, vulnerable, and authentic while imparting practical advice for anyone looking to own their unique opportunities. This book also provides a glimpse into the not-so-glamourous realities that many women and African-Americans experience in corporate cultures. It is a great read for anyone interested in learning more about micro-aggressions and the impact they can have on employee engagement. Own Your Opportunities is a great book to give to professionals at all levels who may be considering a career transition, those who have made transitions already, and leaders who desire to learn more about what motivates top performers before it’s too late.

Ebony Howell

At one of her lowest career moments, Juliet heard the voice of God commanding her to write. I’m so grateful she listened. By sharing her story of achievement and disappointment in corporate America, she has laid out a path to career and personal freedom. This is the good news gospel of knowing your strengths, naming your dreams, and seizing your space in this world that we all need right now.

Nia-Malika Henderson

I remember the day Juliet told me that she couldn’t wait for me to ‘own my opportunities.’ I had just spent an hour telling her about how directionless and unfulfilled I felt. Honestly, the last thing I wanted to hear was that I needed to take ownership of my own life. What I wanted was for Juliet to console me and tell me everything was going to be alright but that’s just not Juliet. She doesn’t settle for pleasantries or mediocrity, and after reading her book you’ll know why.

Own Your Opportunities taught me to never make myself small to make others feel good. I walked away understanding that the gifts I have been uniquely given are important and that the world absolutely needs my gifts just as much as I do! If you are looking for advice or need a mentor in your life, I recommend reading Own Your Opportunities as a great place to start!

Brit Suits

Juliet Hall shares her journey of learning more about what self-regulation looks like when creating our own opportunities for success! Her details of how we can improve self-cultivating strategies are inspiring, and she provides motivating tools as a part of self-discovery for personal and professional growth.

Wendy Eley Jackson