So what finally made you go against the grain?

I've got to say, absolute and sheer frustration of beating my head up against a brick wall longer than I probably should have.

So when people sort of go, oh, you know, what's your background? Largely, I worked in big organizations, both the public sector, so federal, state, local government.

as well as some large private sector companies.

And the common thread with all of them is that there was always a frustration point of kind of wanting to do more or wanting to perform in a way that was against the norm.

And I always felt like a little bit of a square peg in a round hole and I could never figure it out.

And the feedback that I would often get would be, Melanie, you're too...

And that's the transition that I'm looking to make over the next six to 12 months is how do I start partnering up with other business owners and working on projects?

There's probably 20,000 or more people there, yeah.

Can you imagine if that was all that stood between you and invasion? Can you imagine if those were the folks that you were relying on to turn back the tide? When I was in the town of Voznesensk in Ukraine, those people turned back the Russians.

They were basically the first victory against the Russians in the Ukrainian war.

And we had gone down, we were doing, we had opened up the Odessa front because we thought they were going to try and take Odessa because it's a seaport.

And so, and then we heard this story.

People were telling us this story about this little town that had turned back the Russians.

And we thought, well, that's crazy how that can have happened.

You know what I mean? But what's wrong with them?

And look

at you.

Yeah, look, I always felt like I was a square peg in a round hole, to be honest, like we're trying to squeeze into a round hole.

And I felt that I'd say for much of my adult life that, you know, square peg trying to you know force into a round hole and it's really only been the last few years where I'm like you know what out my own gonna do my own business that's gonna be my thing this is the only time really that I've ever felt like I am who I am meant to be and I'm on the right path but prior to that I'd say for most of the time, I was always trying to fit into other different ways of working.

But look, I spent 10 years in the Air Force.

I had an absolute blast for the most part while I was there.

It taught me a lot about discipline, taught me a lot about grit.

yeah

And look

at you.

Yeah, look, I always felt like I was a square peg in a round hole, to be honest, like we're trying to squeeze into a round hole.

And I felt that I'd say for much of my adult life that, you know, square peg trying to you know force into a round hole and it's really only been the last few years where I'm like you know what out my own gonna do my own business that's gonna be my thing this is the only time really that I've ever felt like I am who I am meant to be and I'm on the right path but prior to that I'd say for most of the time, I was always trying to fit into other different ways of working.

But look, I spent 10 years in the Air Force.

I had an absolute blast for the most part while I was there.

It taught me a lot about discipline, taught me a lot about grit.

yeah

And look

at you.

Yeah, look, I always felt like I was a square peg in a round hole, to be honest, like we're trying to squeeze into a round hole.

And I felt that I'd say for much of my adult life that, you know, square peg trying to you know force into a round hole and it's really only been the last few years where I'm like you know what out my own gonna do my own business that's gonna be my thing this is the only time really that I've ever felt like I am who I am meant to be and I'm on the right path but prior to that I'd say for most of the time, I was always trying to fit into other different ways of working.

But look, I spent 10 years in the Air Force.

I had an absolute blast for the most part while I was there.

It taught me a lot about discipline, taught me a lot about grit.

yeah

Yeah.

You know, that back then the military was very much designed to break you down and then mold you into what they want you to be.

So that sort of worked to a certain degree, but then you get to a point where you go, "You know what? I don't wanna be told where I'm living.

I don't wanna be told what jobs I can and can't go for, and I don't wanna be told, you know, whether or not I can get a promotion and do something different." So yeah, I left there, became a personal trainer, then got into the public service.

I was married at the time to my daughter's dad.

Our marriage ended shortly after I left the Air Force, and then I didn't really have enough time between when I ended that relationship and then going into the next one because I was very much brought into a, you know, a Christian family of, you know, no sex before marriage.

So if you get into those sorts of relationships, well then you've really got to, you know, get into something meaningful.

Mm.