Judy Dietzel took over as president of Bee Seen Signs in Apache Flats in 2008.
"In 2008, we had the best year we ever had," she said. "We long for the days of 2008. In 2009, the economy started to tank. But this year, we've noticed a significant change that the economy is finally showing us some light. We've hired extra people. From 2009-15, that's a long time; and we cut and streamlined to make it and keep our people working."
Dietzel's husband, Junior, started the company in 1976 while Judy worked at another full-time job.
"I did that to pay the bills because it was scary then, and it's still scary now," she said.
The couple's sons, Tony and Travis, work in the company, doing everything from payroll to design work on the signs - all this while the boys are raising a child apiece as single parents.
Q. Who has invested in you and your career?
"I didn't come on board until 1990 when I quit my full-time job at Missouri Farm Bureau. I then started working part-time for one of the state representatives at the Capitol. (The year) 1990 is also when we started Bee Seen Ad Specialties, and they made me be out here more, and I got to learn more about what was going on with the signage. The business took off, so I had to quit my job at the Capitol."
Q. What choices have you made to invest in yourself and your own success?
"I have to attribute most of my success to my husband, who has always thought I could do anything or be whatever I wanted to be. I wouldn't be here without him. He's 100 percent my cheerleader."
Q. What do you think are the biggest issues still facing women in the workplace?
"I think women still get overlooked, because they think of us as fluff. If we do get tough, whereas a man can get tough, we get called the "b-word.' There's two different connotations of how men and women are seen as strong individuals. I don't know how to change that. Maybe when my granddaughter, when she's in the workforce, there might be a change. Women have come a long way. I will give you that, but it's still a problem."
Q. What drives you most in life and in your career?
"I guess I've always wanted to succeed. I've always wanted to better myself. I come from a very humble background, and we didn't look at keeping up with the Joneses. I just saw me as wanting to do more for my family. I've always worked hard. I had my first job when I was 12, and I haven't stopped working since then. You just do it, and sometimes you do a job that you don't really like, but circumstances allow you to support your husband and family so you have to. My work ethic has always been; I don't know where it came from."
Q. What advice would you give to a woman entering the workforce?
"Understand the industry that you're in. Learn everything you can. Volunteer at various places, like hospitals or the animal shelter, because all of that looks good on your resume. Yes, you do need the education, but you also need to grow in your social graces to round you out as a person. A high school and college degree, yes, it's book learning, but you also need to encompass how to deal with people and life in general."
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