Meet Amy! As our Chief of Staff, Amy is my right and left hand when it comes to SNoWCo operations. Many of you may be familiar with her name in your work with us, but I hope today’s spotlight helps you get to know the person behind the emails a little bit better!
How did you come to be part of the SNoWCo team?
These are the times when I credit the universe for stepping in. I had followed Sarah’s work through the newsletter and a mutual friend, and when I saw SNoWCo was looking for a Chief of Staff, I thought to myself how awesome it would be to work with this team. I then proceeded to overthink whether I was a good fit, would my background in public education really be a match, could I really make this leap – all the things someone with anxiety has running through their head on the regular. I finally took a deep breath and applied, and it’s been one of the absolute best decisions I’ve ever made. I’m extremely grateful to work with this amazing team of amazing people, doing amazing work.
What does your role involve?
We jokingly refer to my role as the “backstage manager”, but that truly is a great description. I support Sarah, Teresa, and our coaches by handling scheduling, contracting, invoicing, and task management for our work with clients. (I love a good list. 😉) I also have a front-facing role in our conversations with clients, to help coordinate logistics and be an extra set of eyes and ears.
What are the best parts of your role?
There are so many things I enjoy about my work, but the best parts of my role are two-fold: 1. the WONDERFUL people I get to work with, both on our team and among our clients; and 2. witnessing “lightbulb” moments happen, whether that’s during an event or as part of a team meeting when there’s an epiphany (often personal).
What is the best career lesson you’ve learned so far?
The best lesson I’ve learned so far is one that I’ve received multiple times in work and personal relationships: trust your gut. I’m someone who really has to work to overcome the anxiety about “what if” and fundamentally getting back to listening to myself has been a powerful experience. The gut is rarely wrong. In fact, listening to my gut is what got me to apply for this role.
Who do you look up to?
My mom is a huge inspiration to me, as she literally is the sweetest and kindest person I know and tries to do everything from a place of love. I also am continually inspired by my husband, who is my model for “rolling with the punches” and building a relationship based upon compassion and respect.
What do you do when you feel you’ve hit a creative or motivational roadblock?
I’m a big fan of getting up and walking away from the desk/computer and getting a change of scenery. Often, that will involve finding our cat (Ted E. Roosevelt) and petting him to get a little mind-space. Other times, it is just sitting and staring out the window for a bit. Letting my mind wander rather than doggedly pursuing something really makes a difference. I’m not saying it’s easy to give up that dogged pursuit, but I’m getting better at it.
What are you passionate about outside of work?
This question always trips me up, because much of our work directly translates into what I’m passionate about in my personal life: improving my relationships with my husband, family, and friends, and being an advocate for talking about mental health. I also really enjoy experimenting with new recipes (not baking), many times to great success – other times, it’s a reminder to always keep frozen burritos on hand.
What is your personal motto? Why?
“Do the best you can with what you have, and it will be enough.” My dad regularly says this and as a recovering perfectionist, it hits the nail on the head for me every time.
It’s Saturday afternoon and the sun is shining – what do you do?
I’m tooling around the countryside with my husband in our convertible, with the top down. By nature, I’m a planner so randomly picking a direction and just driving until we decide to turn around is great relaxation for me. A big hat, Fleetwood Mac, and ice cream also help.
What media are you consuming right now? Books, television, movies, etc.!
I’m not a huge reader these days, but a friend recommended a book for me for my first post-COVID flight, since she guaranteed I would get sucked in and not have time to be anxious about flying; so far, Where the Crawdads Sing has lived up to her hype! I’ve also started watching Netflix’ “F1” and tuning into races whenever possible. I fully admit to living vicariously through the drivers and the sanctioned speeding. 😉
No cheating – what does your desk look like right now? Can you share a few stories behind the items in your workspace?
My space is filled with dust bunnies and tchotchkes from family and my husband. I’m not a collector, per se, but these are things that remind me of the people I love most and remind me that relationships are the most important part of the human experience. There’s also a quote I clipped from a magazine years ago, which is a good bottom-liner (credit to Teresa Peterson for that term) for me: “You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die. Or when. But you can decide how you’re going to live now.” -Joan Baez
Sarah Noll Wilson is on a mission to help leaders build and rebuild teams. She aims to empower leaders to understand and honor the beautiful complexity of the humans they serve. Through her work as an Executive Coach, an in-demand Keynote Speaker, Researcher, Contributor to Harvard Business Review, and Bestselling Author of “Don’t Feed the Elephants”, Sarah helps leaders close the gap between what they intend to do and the actual impact they make. She hosts the podcast “Conversations on Conversations”, is certified in Co-Active Coaching and Conversational Intelligence, and is a frequent guest lecturer at universities. In addition to her work with organizations, Sarah is a passionate advocate for mental health.