My mother and father separated when I was 11.  My mom went from having no job to working two jobs, and since I was the oldest child I became a young mama.

I'd help take care of the kids.  My sister was 6 and my brother was 1, so I started accepting responsibility very early.  Mama's jobs had to revolve around our school schedule, so I'd take care of them after I got home from school.

I was very aware of having to take care of my brother and sister. I didn't know how to cook, but we had to eat.  At Carver Junior High, one of my classes was home economics.  One of the specialties my teacher taught me was how to fix up a tuna casserole.  Oh, after that we just tuna'd to death.

I was 13 when I started to babysit.  I don't remember the money thing-- I was happy that they let me eat with  them.  They just gave me a free meal.

Marla, the little girl, was my playtoy.  I just loved  that little girl to death.  Now she's a pediatrician.

The very first job I had where I earned a paycheck was at J.M. Fields on Colonial.  I was as nervous as all get out.  I remember I was so happy because I got to work in this brand-new store.  And I remember the training they gave us.  They dwelled on customer service and security training, and told us that every bag had to be folded a certain way.  It had to be in a triangle, and then folded down again in a certain way, then stapled so the customers couldn't get into the bag.  It was a real big thing.

Then I had my very first customer.  Guess what?  She did not want her items in a bag!  She wanted to carry them in her hand, and the only thing she wanted was a receipt.  I was as nervous  as all get out!  I remembered all my training, and I kept thinking, "She can't get out without that bag."  But they also taught me that "the customer is always right ." So what do I do?

I explained to her, "Ma'am, we have to put everything in a bag.  You can't walk out like that."  Oh, she went wild.  She was not happy.  Then management came over and they let her walk out with the items in her hand.  They let her go out without a bag!  Up until that point, I had been thinking, "Hmmmm ... I'm pretty good with people."

I was probably getting a couple of bucks an hour, so I had my pocket money and I could go shopping and buy my own personal items.  Mama didn't have to say "Don't use too much lotion."  I had my own.

After J.M. Fields, it was Walt Disney World.  I was working in Mickey's Mart and from there I went to Tiki Tropics, which was a little gift shop.  I married early, I was 20, and then went into retail.  I worked at Kara-Lynn's selling women's and children's apparel, and my next job was at Gordon's Jewelers.  I was so excited about that.

The real estate business came about because of a bad experience buying our first home--but it was a blessing in disguise.  Today I am blessed and I am very happy.  My businesses have been very successful, but I don't place money at the top of my list.  It's reputation.  That's what gets me going.  I don't solicit clients.  I would prefer that my reputation do that for me.

If you have a goal, write it down.  Pray.  That's what I would recommend.  I believe in writing everything down.  When I was at Gordon's and I realized what I wanted to do, I pulled out this paper and figured out, "How am I going to do it?"  I wrote all of this down:  "I'm going to take a vacation.  I'm going to take a couple of days for personal time and to take the state exam."  So I was setting goals and following through.

Write it down, set your goals, and put deadlines on it.  Go back and revisit those goals and see where you are and that you're staying on track.  Pray on it and ask for guidance.

In Their Own Words is a new Orlando magazine feature.  Each month, someone who has made their mark on Orlando will tell their story.

- By Gary McKechnie and Nancy Howell