Meet Trailblazer Jessica Dewell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Dewell.

Jessica, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Occasionally, I am told that I am the happiest person someone has known, and they ask: am I really that happy? Yes.

I do have inner contentment that I love, finding elusive answers is worth the time, and I’m comfortable amidst charged chaos. As I share this, part of me welcomes me with open arms. Another part of me doesn’t want to acknowledge it and ignores it. Looking closer, this is a dance where our perception, our feelings, and our experiences choose a safe path or an authentic path.

You know, communication is something that we rely on in every part of our life. And, communication is THE point where every problem begins and ends. When one withholds back information out of love or necessity, usually, there isn’t much thought about what will be perceived. The other person knows – at the most basic level – something was omitted.

The ability we have to feel is underrated and overlooked – we’ve been taught to rely on our thoughts, which also as important as our feelings, in our self-preservation and protection.

I come from a background where much information was omitted. I never had the whole story. It came from a place of love and projection and necessity. Those experiences strengthened my ability to detect when there is more to the story. There is always more to the story. The upside is that this skill is useful when building a strategy and shaping the space between people in an organization. The flip side is that I truly trust very few people, and not many people see all of me all the time.

Businesses are environments with ecosystems. When they are healthy, the results are highly functional teams, completing projects that make an impact and achieving more goals more often. The business landscape changes fast – it’s easier to bring prototypes to market, the barrier to entry is lower than ever, and the noise to reach customers is louder than ever. Add to that the natural tendencies, and habits, each of us bring when we interact; we create complexity.

When change doesn’t stick, when growth stagnates, and typical paths haven’t worked, when you’re burnt out but not yet done, and when it’s time to plan for what’s next yet you can only see what’s happening right now…these are signs you are in your own way.

Ecosystems are always changing; we are always changing; the business landscape is always changing. Every role I’ve ever had, I learned first hand about the need for consistency in action. The need for a clear framework that everyone can use. And, how each person fits in – they see their value, and you see their value.

These are problems that most founders and leadership think are nice to work on and can happen after a bunch of other stuff. There is always a bunch of other stuff.

When one in one hundred companies are actually in business after ten years, I disagree with this thinking. While all the other things are necessary too, without a level of care, the end result is the same. Expanding the capacity of leadership teams is what underpins the ability of their organization’s ecosystem to succeed. Growing and thriving can occur simultaneously.

The results that you get depends on what you prioritize. What you prioritize is what you value. What you value becomes the way your company works together. And the more you seek to understand each other and how to work together, the more you achieve.

Has it been a smooth road?
The best journeys are not smooth. I’ve had great luck, amazing success, terrible imposter syndrome, and incredible failure. Without each of the experiences, I would not benefit from what I know (or thought I knew). Nor would I be able to anticipate change as well.

You may be able to relate, sometimes it takes me a while to learn the value of a challenge I face, and it shows up again and again. Until I changed the way I showed up to the problem that presented itself, the outcomes were mediocre at best. Stern reactions brought more reactions that I had to be stern — allowing drama to be rampantly invited added more drama into my life. I realized what I felt and how I behaved mattered. It mattered so much: it is everything.

The clearer I am in what is important to me, the better I show up. Regardless of the chaos, the charge, or the excitement, my decisions are better.

I started out, and sometimes still find myself falling back into, acting as people wanted me too. Running a ten-person company that is acquired by a 500 person company compounded the effects because of the new and difficult situations I found myself facing. I was 21, and the rooms I found myself in considered me lucky and undeserving. Even after the dot com crash, I continued to grow my company double digits year over year. And, I was still considered to be lucky and undeserving. Even after participating in M&A to bring in more companies like mine, being put in charge of running and growing these companies, and growing them successfully, I was still considered lucky and undeserving by those around me.

That wasn’t the first time in my life, even though I thought it was, that happened to me. Really, I learned it earlier – much earlier. It was the same thing showing up in a new way. That same theme showed up in my marriage too. I wasn’t even authentic with the person I loved most and knew more about me than anyone else on the planet. It was that love that was the catalyst for me to look deeper. To own my part in the seemingly unrelated patterns that all had a common denominator… me.

Understanding myself has not removed issues of harassment, sexism, even ageism. Being more of myself, I’m seen as sweet and kind. In today’s business world – even with so many drastic changes in the way business has been done in the last 20 years – men and women automatically underestimate compassion.

It’s taken time to meet unconscious bias against compassion alone by bringing a track record of lasting change in organizations I work with. Building on each success has created more opportunities over time. Figuring this elusive combination out doesn’t make the effort easier, just clearer to be effective with my energy.

The unpredictable nature of life is where I’ve seen the biggest change. The way I show up to little problems and not make them mountains that disrupt the entire day – or week. The way I show up to big problems and that they may not be solvable at all.

Elegance is one of my personal core values. It fits nicely into honesty, which is one of the family values my husband Ryan and I have. It aligns with Red Directions value of being resourceful. From my core, I know what is important to me, and what is important to me is my true north.

We’d love to hear more about Red Direction.
I have over 20 years of experience in business, about half in technology and the rest in industries including services, retail, financial services, marketing firms, health, natural foods, and energy. I am realistic and bring a dash of humor, and this approach is what makes me different from other professionals in my field.

Red Direction works with leadership teams of small and medium-sized companies with a focus on where operations and strategy overlap.

Companies that work with me, and my team, learn to ask the right questions and think quickly on their feet. Some of the themes that I work closely with founders, executives, and boards include:
Planning and handling ambiguity;
Modeling problem-solving skills;
Facilitating strategic planning and realignment executive off-sites;
Evaluating and consulting for operational excellence and growth management;
Participating as a board member focusing on operations and culture.

An easy way to interact with Red Direction is through the BOLD Business Podcast. There are over 240 programs that explore questions and issues that businesses face today. Plus, the conversations are interesting, as the people I bring on are willing to share their experiences for us to glean insight from how and what they’ve done.

Finding a mentor and building a network are often cited in studies as a major factor impacting one’s success. Do you have any advice or lessons to share regarding finding a mentor or networking in general?
You lead your career development.

Mentors, formal or informal, are a resource. How you interact with a resource is different than how you interact with a friend. Even if your mentor is your friend, the purpose of mentor relationships is to help you take charge of your career path. You may have different mentors of time, and it is up to you to know when you’ve reached the end of the mentor relationship, and you must look for someone new.

One thing that I wish someone had spelled out for me is that every relationship is different. Each has its own value and purpose. Thinking about your network equally will lead to a misuse of time. Build and maintain a network that has value:
– you can ask for help and get it for work projects.
– you have a safety net to handle things that crop up like sick dogs, kids, parents, even you.
– you have given when asked to them and feel good that you can ask and they will give to you.

Contact Info:

• Address: 4845 Pearl East Circle, #101
  Boulder, CO 80301
• Website: https://reddirection.com/
• Phone: 720-722-4027
• Email: jess@reddirection.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RedDirectionConsulting/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jess_dewell
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicadewell/?challengeId=AQErhwpdBMtc6QAAAW454jiDq6hixUIT5zWCVfZfDUL9y00ln3BAEfKVr8-nP_68o46IJA4XxZQ_lWOBFS5P24cybYieA1P8gQ&submissionId=1b436afd-bb2a-d415-cefc-820bf6ff701a

Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.