Wonolo
Let’s Meet Shayla.
My name is Shayla and I am a Key Account Manager on the Growth and Retention team at Wonolo. I work with customers all over the country to make sure they are getting maximum value and the best experience with our platform so we can provide great jobs to our amazing community of Wonoloers.
What events in your life have brought you to your current role today?
I learned sales fundamentals from a very early age, having joined the workforce at 15 and haven’t stopped since. I started my sales career at a mission-driven retail company and as I grew through the ranks, ended up working in corporate sales for many years. I was taught to sell products to buyers who were consuming competitive brands and developed hand-to-hand combat sales techniques that I believe have made me successful in my role today.
Making the transition to tech sales was difficult. I had over a decade of valuable experience that proved to be more of a hindrance than a help. The Industry wasn’t willing to take a risk on my traditional sales background.
Over 20 applications later, I met Lori, our CRO. I knew from that moment that THIS was the company where I wanted to utilize my skills. I’m grateful for the opportunity to not only work with smart, caring people but also to be able to make a real impact in our communities around the country giving others access to work.
When you have to make a difficult decision, what do you lean on?
Regardless of the type of decision, I’ve realized that there are several ways to deal with hard decisions, but this is what works for me.
- Act with an objective. Don’t be reactive to new situations/scenarios. Sometimes you have to be slow, methodical, and clearly think through the desired outcome and work backward from there.
- Align with your values. There are certain core values that determine the steps you take to get to your objective. Having conviction will help chart your path to success, with clarity and authenticity.
- Surround yourself with mentors, personally and professionally. I don’t believe in “work-life” balance because anything you do well, will affect every aspect of your life. I don’t mind when my mentors help me professionally/personally. Whether its family, friends, or acquaintances, surrounding yourself with people who are A) smarter B) have a diverse perspective C) more experience, fundamentally makes me better, smarter, and more complete in my ability to deal with difficult situations.
What is one piece of life advice you can give to anyone?
Someone very dear to me shared a poem by William Henry Davies called “Leisure” to illustrate the importance of taking moments to appreciate the world we live in. The last stanza goes like this…
A poor life this, if full of care
we have no time to stand and stare.
It’s important to make sure that you take time to enjoy what the world has to offer, even if it’s something simple. I believe work is worship and doing this will help you stay the course.
If you really knew me, you would know that…
I’m a horrible athlete, but super competitive. It’s an interesting combination. Basically, it makes me a pretty sore loser. I think most people assume that I’m not super competitive because I can be somewhat soft-spoken. But, it’s the quiet ones you have to watch out for.
