She is Making History: Meet Alethea Jones
Alethea Jones is a highly experienced marketing and business development executive with over twelve years of experience.
Her expertise spans across a range of industries, including HVAC, Retail, Telecommunications, and Alcohol Industry. Alethea's educational background, which includes a bachelor's and master's degree in international business from St. George's University, supports her years of professional experience.
Driven by her passion for retail and marketing, Alethea has helped numerous businesses improve their financial position through market research, strategic advertising, brand positioning, and product placement.
Furthermore, Alethea is the founder of two businesses - Retail Circle Grenada, a retail-based business that provides a platform for other businesses to gain market access through marketing and sales initiatives and the Renaissance Business Group, a boutique business services and marketing agency.
She also enjoys traveling, spending time with family, trying new foods and exploring the off-beat tracks of the island of Grenada.
How would you describe your leadership style?
Leaders adopt different leadership styles depending on the situations they encounter.
From my experience, I have found that strategic and transformational leadership styles are the most effective. My passion is to assist and empower others in achieving their objectives, and to develop their strengths. As a strategic leader, everyone must understand what they are working towards, aiming at and hoping for. This makes it easier for everyone to determine what is required to achieve goals, and to know when we have achieved our goals.
Also, I believe that women are naturally resourceful and innovative. My mother's ability to sew clothing for my sisters and me when we had nothing to wear is a testament to that. As a leader, I strive to transform any situation into something fulfilling and meaningful.
In my leadership journey, I have always encouraged my team members to think of new ways to achieve our individual and collective goals.
What is the biggest challenge you have faced as a woman in leadership?
It's a tough question but has an easy answer: most women, especially those who are goal-oriented, are often underestimated. Having ascending into leadership at what was then considered a young age, I found that sometimes my decisions, although always based on logic and data, were sometimes questioned, challenged or unsupported. This was especially a challenge because at times, the same ideas, coming from someone else, perhaps a male counterpart, will be accepted without challenge, or skepticism. As a woman, you must defend and explain yourself several times before your ideas are accepted.
Furthermore, as a woman in leadership I have found that there is a greater pressure to maintain your composure and not show emotion. If you express yourself strongly, or show that you are displeased about something, people think you are being pushy, rude, mean, and emotional. But, if a male peer says something strongly, he is considered to be decisive and firm.
How do you deal with self-doubt and imposter syndrome if and when it arises?
I am confident in myself and do not let impostor syndrome hold me back. However, self-doubt can be a subtle enemy that undermines us if we do not stop it.
Thankfully, I am blessed with a dependable circle of family and friends who I turn to for support, ideas, and prayers. Whether it's a group chat or a glass of wine with friends, there are few things that can't be fixed with their help, and pep talks.
Also, taking care of my health helps me to deal with self-doubt. In moments when I feel strong, I think strong. My workout routines, particularly lifting, remind me of the powerful woman God created me to be. When I push myself to deadlift 200lbs, I am reminded that I serve a big God who cannot fail, which means I, too, cannot fail. On down days I push myself to go to the gym and I use my physical strength to push back against negative thoughts and remind myself of my worth and potential.
Can you discuss a time when you successfully advocated for yourself or your team? How did you celebrate that win?
I have always been proactive in advocating for myself. One of the most successful instances was when I renegotiated a contract to end earlier than originally specified. Although my job had its strengths, it was not contributing to my emotional and mental well-being. I hesitated about changing the contract and leaving prematurely, but the thought of staying was overwhelming. Eventually, I was able to leave the job gracefully and with peace of mind, integrity, and my reputation.
To celebrate, I took a short trip to the States. However, the real reward came from the boost of self-assurance I gained. I realized that I could trust myself to listen to my intuition and be intentional about my life even in the face of uncertainty.
What advice would you give other women aspiring to step into leadership positions?
The world needs smart, kind, and strategic women who can lead with intelligence and experience. But often, women find themselves stuck in a perpetual loop of victimhood, where things never seem to work out. I’ve found the bravest thing we can do to be great leaders to others is to learn how to lead ourselves.
For instance, we claim that we don't have enough money to save, yet we spend recklessly on things we like. We say we don't have time to study for a degree, yet we find time to post and comment on social media daily. We socialize with our bosses and influential people but hesitate to ask them to be our mentors and help us grow our careers.
To become leaders, women need to identify the areas they want to lead, research, read, ask questions, network, and prepare themselves. Leadership opportunities are available in homes, churches, and other community-based organizations. Aspiring leaders can thrive by building their expertise, through service to others and continuously moving forward.
