Well, if there is a winding way of going about one’s career, mine might qualify. I’ve always wanted to be in the arts, publicity etc, and guess where I always ended up? In the heavy industry! Go figure….

Actually, I wanted to be an opera singer,

but my parents would not let me: for one thing, that is not!!! a serious profession, second, out of the question to send the daughter to a boarding school far away and let others be in charge of her upbringing, third, private schools cost more money than my parents could afford to lavish on one of 4 kids… oh well….. life is tough, right!

A VETERINARIAN
So then, I wanted to be a veterinarian, but…. all the farmers in my village laughed themselves silly and declared that the day they’d let a woman put a hand up their cow’s behind when she was calving should be the day they would give up farming alltogether.

A SPORTS TEACHER
So I decided to become a sports teacher. That was acceptable to all, and it was fun to teach for just about 2 years. That was when I figured out that as a teacher, I was not the one in control of the program, I was just the executive of the ministerial educational program. And before my mental eyes, I could visualize how the years flew by, new students coming and going, but the program repeating itself endlessly, like a prayerwheel…. so I decided to quit and search my fortunes elsewhere.

AT THE SORBONNE, FRANCE
At the Sorbonne, I threw myself into economical sciences and literature, and then I got myself hired by an engineering company which built turn-key factories, blast furnaces, water dams, airports and ship elevators. From Assistant to the Marketing Director, I moved into being the Manager of the Risk Management Department.

How I got there? Well, the head of 20 years had suddenly thrown the towel, and since that was the era of "no outside hiring if you can find a replacement internally", they came and asked me, the greenhorn, if I wanted the job. What did I know about risk management? in one word, NOTHING! So I said, well, I can give it a shot.

I traded lessons in risk management from the ex-manager against lessons for his daughter in English and German, and spent the next 6 months finding out all there is to know about this job from him and in the hundred of files in my new cabinets, every Saturday and Sunday for 4 hours, and every day of the week, til midnight, behind my new desk in the La Defense Fiat Tower. Well, it was a success and a thrilling ride to get there…

IN CHARGE OF MARKETING
Next, I found myself in a Robotics Company, and in charge of marketing our machines in the German market. A world of men (again!), to be sure, and the guys looked at me as the oddball… just to find out that skirt and high heels can be an indicator of efficiency and straight shooting! It is touching to discover that all the customers call you by your last name when facing you, but when they think you’re not around, they’ll talk about you using your first name. I’ve always considered that a mark of respect and sympathy combined.

CAN YOU DO THIS FOR US?
Ok, I know I should shorten this, I can’t afford to make wake-up calls all around this forum, so suffice it to say that in my c-v , every position began by some company coming to me and asking: Would you be willing to come to us and do this for us? Which invariably was followed by my "humming" and saying, "well, I could try and see what happens"… and it always worked out quite well, to everybody’s delight!
Now, I am running my own (2nd) business in the US of A, and I went so far as to even design our very own company builduing, its logo, down to the handles on the main entrance door… love for detail…

FROM PARIS TO VIENNA TO USA
Oh, how did I end up here in the US from Paris, with a 2nd business? Oh well, when a girl lives in Paris, it is easy to fly to Vienna for business and to meet an American there and fall in love, tell him on the first day that they’ll have to get married, make him believe it, then sell the business in France, pack it all up and start all over in the USA, voila… simple realy, isn’t it? And it has been working out quite well so far, after 15 years of this…

Cheeriooo!
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You can meet Moneva van Vooren here: https://www.xing.com/app/forum?op=showarticles;id=7509984

The original winning post is here: https://www.xing.com/app/forum?op=showarticles;id=7509984