The Belleville CEO program has been the best experience! I really enjoyed the class collaboration on our badge and class business, and I think it was really cool to use everything we have learned throughout the year to establish our personal businesses. Jenn Lyke was my mentor this year, and I am very thankful for all of her guidance and support! I have grown so much as a person over this past year, and I feel extremely prepared for the future with the help of CEO. Coming into the year, I was not expecting to see a lot of similarities between all of the businesses we would visit, but now that I have visited them all, I have realized that they are all alike. They were all extremely passionate about their work, and I could tell they cared deeply about what they were doing. When thinking about what I wanted to do in the future, I always thought that jobs were going to be unbearable but it is what everyone does to provide for themselves and their families. Through the CEO program, I have learned that passion is the most important thing that goes into finding a job that does not feel like a burden, and now I have the courage to find what I am truly passionate about. I am forever grateful for this opportunity, and I would not be the same person today if I had not taken this class.

Written by Belleville CEO Student and CEO of Ashley’s Charming Trinkets Ashley Tyler