We love hearing from our Divas! In this blog post, we sat down Elois Joseph to discuss her back to school journey as a soon-to-be mom in an MBA program. This weekend warrior inspires us to step out in faith and pursue our goals no matter what!

 

Keep reading for your own inspiration.

 

Q: What made you go back for your MBA?

A: I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I’d worked for the same company for more than a decade. I thought my patience and loyalty would put me in a position to advance. After patiently waiting for almost a decade with no advancement, I decided it was time to move on. I also realized that my skills and ideas were stale and that my confidence was low. I knew that if I wanted to compete in today’s job market, that I needed to reinvent myself.

 

Q: Did future family plans play a part in your staying in your position for so long?

A: Not at all. I had too much faith in my manager/company.

 

Q: Gotcha. What was your MBA program like?

A: I did the “Executive” format which worked for me. That meant 8 hours of class time on Saturdays.

 

Q: Was it hard being in class so long being pregnant at the same time?

A: I was being so fulfilled and having my confidence renewed with my new skills that it didn’t bother me one bit. Not to mention the school was 40 miles away so it took an hour to get there, and 2.5 hours to get home due to traffic. I also didn’t want to let my cohort down or show a sign of not being able to handle it all. But I had a great pregnancy which helped a lot.

 

 

Q: That is definitely a blessing! What about your educational journey do you think being pregnant made unique.

A: We had a capstone project for a final project, as opposed to a thesis. The company, Scot Forge, was quite a distance from home so on site meetings in my last term made me nervous only because I was carrying an 11 pound baby that I delivered about 7 days after graduation.

 

 

Q: What made you continue knowing that being pregnant would present more challenges?

A: I never thought that being pregnant would present challenges. I had a great pregnancy so I moved through the school, work, pregnancy flow rather gracefully. Another great motivator was based on statistics. Black girl from the hood-hood of Chicago, single mom, absent father— you know how the story goes. Then to be told that I could never have kids, and to work in a non-diverse sector like the financial industry for 20 years, I was in beast mode. In theory, My life was sort of set up to fail. I was driven…a real corporate go getter and very much of a “I can do anything a man can do” type personality. So to do all of these things; work, school, pregnant, I was on fire. No weapon formed against me stood a chance.

 

Q: What was your support system like?

A: Excellent support system. It was just my husband and I so he was cool and very supportive of me going to school 8 hours, every Saturday for two years. Once I was finished, he was inspired and enrolled in school.

 

Q: What tips do you have for any of our Divas either going back to school or thinking about going back to school while pregnant?

A: Do it. Even if you have to take part time hours to make it work for your life, do it. Take advantage of employers’ tuition reimbursement. It may seem like a long journey, but it goes by so quickly. If you’re not an entrepreneur, an education will increase your knowledge/skills and open up many doors. I’m very pro-education. Even if you are an entrepreneur education will make sure that your skills are never stale. NEVER allow your skills to become stale and outdated and stop fighting glass ceilings. Always invest in yourself and remain competitive with an education and trending skills.