Meet Darlene Valle

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Darlene Valle. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Darlene, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I found my purpose by following my heart and the opportunities that presented themselves to me. Finding our purpose can be a very challenging thing but it became easier for me more recently when a wise person said ‘The purpose of life is to live’. Which to me means do everything with purpose because it all matters. It’s our life. It’s the story that we create. My purpose therefore is to live my life with purpose and an important part of my purpose the past years has been focused on giving back through teaching and volunteering.

A dear friend introduced me to My Friend’s Place many years ago. As a board member she invited me to many MFP events; The Gala’s, other fundraising events, serving meals at the holidays, etc. I loved MFP’s mission of serving and uplifting homeless youth so much that I told her I wanted to become a volunteer one day. So when I closed my business 9 years ago one of the first things I did was contact MFP and I’ve been volunteering ever since.

At My Friend’s Place I’ve been able to give back in many ways. I’ve worked on several projects using the skills and knowledge from my career in fashion. In my career I worked with and trained many young people so interacting with our youth comes fairly easily to me. My consistent job has been co-instructor in the sewing and design workshop. It’s the perfect fit for me because it’s an extension of what I love fashion and teaching and interacting with people. Your purpose should feel good.

So to summarize how I found my purpose. I followed my heart. I felt a connection to the mission of MFP and wanted to be a part of it. When you find your purpose it feels joyful. Although it may be hard at times it's rewarding because we’re being of service and that fills our soul. Many volunteers have said they feel they get more back than what they give. Our purpose is to give our attention, love and support to these amazing young people. To listen to them, to teach and assist them, to be a caring adult for them, to have a laugh with them. We are there for them and that feels good.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

Professionally I’ve been in the fashion industry my entire career of 36 years. I started my career at Nordstrom and transitioned to the fashion wholesale business working for a manufacturer then launched my own multi line repping firm. After closing my business I started volunteer work at My Friend’s Place and teaching Fashion Merchandising at FCI Fashion School. In both of my current positions I work primarily with young people. I teach them skills and information but I also mentor. I enjoy sharing my life and career knowledge with them. I feel it’s important to give guidance as well as knowledge.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

To me, the three most important qualities, skills and areas of knowledge are:
1. Being open to opportunities
2. The ability to set goals and plans to achieve them
3. Know how to Prioritize the work

Advice I have for developing and improving on these qualities for folks who are early in their journey would be:
1. Take the opportunities, you can always change your mind later.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or advice
3. Keep learning

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

When I feel overwhelmed I try to remember to slow down, breathe and allow myself to take just a few minutes to acknowledge. It’s a sign something is off and needs attention. By taking a bit of time to ground myself with deep breathes clarity usually comes or at least calmness that allows me think clearer. Now I can ask my higher self what’s going on, what do I need to do? Overwhelm is often feeling there is too much to do in a short amount of time or feeling insecure about whatever it is. That’s why it’s important to ask myself questions to break it down and figure it out. I figure out what needs to be done and the time sensitivity. Do I have a little time to regroup, call for advice and write out an action plan or journal about it? I ask myself more questions to itemize it.. Are there tasks to be done, a decision to be made, can I delegate some of it, am I feeling insecure and why? Then I prioritize my plan accordingly to time sensitivity. If I need more time I can ask but if it’s not possible I go with it doing the best I can, getting help if needed and reminding myself it always works out as it is supposed to.