Rosetta Carrington Lue is both a survivor and a leader. Personally, she is an ambassador and spokesperson for the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign, having suffered a heart attack herself. Professionally, she’s a pioneer in the field of Government Customer Experience Management and currently serves as CEO and Founder of RCL Customer Experience Solutions.

Prior to her current position, she served as a White House Presidential Executive Fellow and Senior Advisor to the Veterans Administration. She was responsible for leading the efforts to modernize and transform the VA enterprise contact centers. Rosetta has a heart for our country’s veterans and was able to use her expertise to help launch a 24/7 VA Hotline which targeted 1,800 contact centers and processed 140 million annual calls from 9 million Veterans.

Read on and get to know today’s #RealLifeWonderWoman…Rosetta Carrington Lue!

KR: Hi Rosetta! Would you please tell us about what brings you joy and fulfillment?

RCL: Great question.  There are three primary activities that bring me joy and fulfillment in my life:

1.  My family – I have a very large family throughout the Caribbean and the U.S.  Every opportunity to spend holidays and special occasions with them is a blast of fun.
2. Starting my own customer experience consulting business – I enjoy working with government leaders to improve the employee and customer experience using data analytics and other emerging technologies.  It also feeds my desire to strategically work on projects to resolve problems by working with multiple clients.  
3. Working as a National Spokesperson for the American Heart Association Go Red for Women campaign –cardiovascular diseases continue to be a woman’s greatest health threat and nearly 80 percent of cardiac events can be prevented.  We, as women, tend to take care of everyone’s needs first and put ourselves last.  I learned that lesson the hard way, and as a survivor, I appreciate the opportunity to speak to other women about educating themselves about the signs/symptoms of heart disease.

Learn more about the American Heart Association Go Red for Women campaign.

KR: We all have inner superpowers. What are some of yours? 

RCL: My main superpowers: 

• Courageous – I have learned to confront my fears vs. running away from them.
• Fighting Spirit – I don’t give up easily.
• Embracing and being unapologetic for being myself (embrace my superpower strengths).
• Sense of Responsibility – I am always willing to share with others my personal or career lessons learned (pay it forward). 

KR: Can you tell us about an influential woman in your life and how she inspired you?

RCL: I have met several women I have admired over my career but the most influential woman in my life is my mother.  

I was raised with eight brothers and sisters in Christiansted, St. Croix, an island of 70 sq. miles in the Caribbean and a US territory.  My mom had immigrated from another country with limited education but a strong work ethic, so she placed a high emphasis on a good education as a way to break the poverty and gender limitations.  She is a true proponent that education provides women with the ability to make better choices for a better life.  Without her personal sacrifices and guidance, I would not be where I am today.

KR: If you could have one super-human power, what would it be?

RCL: Today, my one superpower I would love to possess would be invulnerability.  When it comes to invulnerability, a person is never out of fight since you can regenerate yourself and can keep plugging away to victory.  So, no matter how many times I fall, I always have the ability to get back up and continue to fight for what I believe in.

KR: What do you do for fun? What are your hobbies?  

RCL: I love to be reading, traveling, and learning to cook/bake foods from around the world for fun.  My hobbies are meditation/yoga, wine tasting, and learning foreign languages.

KR: Knowing what you know at this stage of your life, what words of wisdom would you give to your 20-year-old self?

RCL: The wisdom I would give to my 20-year old self is  – “don’t make things too complicated and personal, since this too shall pass.”  As one door closes, please understand another door is always open so know when it’s time to move on, don’t sweat the small stuff.  Don’t stay in toxic situations (personal or career wise) longer than necessary.   You have to trust and believe you have other viable successful options, so just have faith in the process.

Most importantly, you can’t please everyone.  Seek to find people who appreciates and embrace you unconditionally because within that circle, you will flourish.