Meet Amy Dordek Dolinsky

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amy Dordek Dolinsky a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Amy , so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

So many powerful and senior women still have imposter syndrome as did I when I was younger. It’s really a shame as we women need to trust in our abilities more. I have been an entrepreneur most of my career taking risks at an early age and going into business with partners. Early in my career I worked with two great women who didn’t seem to have imposter syndrome and I thought maybe it’s because they are experts in their field, they just know their stuff. Then I went to work for several men and I looked to them to learn and gain experience. Somewhere along the way I realized that they didn’t have all of the answers even though they were significantly older than me. I made some decisions that I might change now looking back. I did not trust myself enough. I didn’t listen to my gut and I thought they knew better. I learned they didn’t they were just figuring things out along the way too. I realized that while I might have been young and less experienced I had great gut instinct and that I should trust it more. Most of the time it’s been right on the money. A few times when I went against it and advice of others it turned out not to be such great decisions. So going forward I realized I am smart, I’m business savvy, I’m well regarded so I should trust my instincts in business and in people more. That has helped me get over feeling like an imposter. Now that I’m more seasoned shall we say, I know I’m great at what I do and most importantly people respect and trust me and my word. I want to inspire other young women to do the same earlier in their career – to trust themselves, trust their instincts and own their power.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am known for my leadership in talent acquisition and search, career development, entrepreneurship, and civic engagement. As a partner in Lucas James Talent Partners, a project based recruiting or Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) firm I get to work with a wide variety of leaders and companies which I find constantly fascinating.

I happen to love business and learning about different industries. It’s exciting to learn about what makes organizations tick, what’s compelling about them and what types of roles people perform across functions and industries. It helps me understand the market and how to identify great talent. It also gives me insights that I can share with job seekers both early and later in their careers.

My experience as an entrepreneur helps me understand risk as well as how to impact revenue and growth. I also understand how to operate at a fast pace, as well as be nimble and efficient. These are all important skills to have if you’re an entrepreneur. I have launched 2 ventures with my husband, a 13-time James Beard Award winning journalist. We have a pizza tour in Chicago and pizza festival business in Chicago, Nashville & Los Angeles. Everyone loves to talk about pizza so it gives me something interesting to share with others given my expert knowledge on the topic. I’ve also been an executive in the cannabis industry which is an emerging sector. I’ve learned a lot about what it means to operate in a highly regulated environment.

People often seek my advice about starting a small business on the side (a “side hustle”) and I advise not to do so early in your career as it can be a major distraction. Startups are much harder than people think. You really need to know what you’re getting into and most people don’t. I’m only able to support my husband with these businesses on nights and weekends now because I have many years of hands on experience, I’m excellent at time management and I no longer have kids at home, they are grown. There would have been no way to balance it all earlier in my career.

One thing a lot of people say about me as that I know everyone and that I’m a master connector. As someone who’s been generous with her time and network, I believe that my focus on building long term authentic relationships has paid dividends both personally and professionally. Through my active participation in organizations such as the International Women’s Forum (IWF), the Economic Club of Chicago, and the Executives’ Club of Chicago, I am able to give back to my beloved home town, Chicago.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Resilience, a willingness to take risks, and a keen ability to recognize patterns have been essential to my personal and professional growth. I learned early on that to be successful you have to be resilient. I started out my career in commercial real estate at a time when there were few women in the business. I had to cold call on the phone and in person, there were no databases to draw from then and I experienced high levels of rejection. I have learned not to have any fear of rejection which is truly a gift. What’s the worst that can happen? You just hear no – that’s it. I view a “no” as a potential “yes” in the future. It’s a mindset. I’m glad that I experienced these lessons early in my career as that was one of the hardest jobs I’ve ever had. I’d probably be much better at it today given my skill set!

Taking calculated risks is something a lot of women don’t do enough and they should. I’ve taken a lot of risk being an entrepreneur and startup founder. Sometimes the risk paid off and other times it did not. Experiencing both the highs and lows have been critical to my development.

I’ve also worked with some great people and great teams in my career and also some not so great people and teams. Pattern recognition is a critical skill. It helps you can spot sticky sticky situations and hopefully avoid them. I can sniff out trouble much faster than in the past.

One piece of advice I often share based on my ability to identify patterns, is that it’s important to see what “good looks like” early in your career. I do not recommend starting a business right out of college or early in your career as you have no experience, no foundation and you don’t know what good looks like yet. Joining a large consulting firm, accounting firm, Fortune 500 organization is a great place to start your career. They offer training and development and they have budgets allocated to investing in people. Startups or small companies don’t have those kind of resources. Seeing what good looks like can shape your vision and help you identify obstacles or issues in the future. You will also learn how to problem solve as well as develop good habits, attention to detail and discipline. There are important building blocks for the future.

Given my experience, I see myself caring less about what people think of me and more about what I can do to add value to my organization, my colleagues, my clients and friends. I now say what I think more freely and share my opinions more often, which I believe are grounded in years of experience, so usually I give pretty good advice. I had a young woman tell me recently that she’s been offered professional help by people in her professional sphere and in the end they weren’t actually of much help at all. However she said that the 30 minutes she spent with me where she got career and professional advice were the most valuable 3o minutes she’s ever spent with anyone. The practical advice that I shared was invaluable she said which felt very gratifying.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

I recently realized that my biggest challenge is that I don’t ask enough for what I want. I often give more of myself than ask for anything in return. Given that I’m later in my career I have no time to waste and I have to ask for more of what I want or need, I must be clearer that I’m interested in doing business with people and welcome referrals. I want to be known for or thought of as an expert in search and helping people find talent. I to be more top of mind for people so they can recommend me rather than always asking for my help. I should not give away my wisdom so freely without protecting my time and resources. After attending a professional bootcamp on how to be on boards, I am working on getting crystal clear as to what I want to be known for in the business community – project based recruiting, professional retained search and career development expertise. It struck me that people may not realize that I do need and want help, that I do want referrals, that I do want them to think of me for business and not just for professional or career advice or guidance.

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