A woman who had to claw her way to the top has shared the challenges she faced on the way in an effort to help other women.
Growing up, Linda Lange – who now oversees the North American division at Stannp.com – had an eagerness to succeed but struggled to find her path in life.
She tried her hand at waitressing at a costume-themed bar and dabbled in comedy for a few years.
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But it wasn’t until she took a job at a sales firm that the mum-of-three realised her true skill.
Her natural charm and friendly demeanour soon saw her rise in the ranks, making “half the annual profits for the company”.
Despite her success, Linda noticed she wouldn’t receive the same level of praise as her male counterparts, something she has encountered again and again throughout her career.
Knowing her worth, she quit and joined a larger sales company but was left with a tough case on her hands – the business employed 300 men and just 10 women.
“My comedy background helped me secure sales – I was good at making people laugh,” said Linda, who is from Colorado, US.
“And I knew I could sell better than the men but sales is a male-dominated industry and they didn’t give me a chance to shine.
“I wanted them to respect my skills and in order to do that, I had to work twice as hard.
“Being the woman at the ‘guys table’ isn’t easy.
“I constantly had to keep a positive attitude and be careful not to appear forceful so I wouldn’t intimidate my male colleagues.
“But I knew that if I sold the most, which I did, I would prove my skill.
“I became a force to be reckoned with.”
While Linda was proud to be the “top” sales person at the company, she struggled in juggling her career with being a mum.
She and husband Mike, 60, had three kids at this point – Zachery, aged 32, Quade, 30 and Grace, 23 [note: these are their current ages].
New research, conducted by That Works For Me, an organisation with the aim of keeping women in the workplace, has found that just 24% of women go back to work full-time after having children.
Within that percentage, 79% end up leaving their roles due to not being able to maintain a full-time career alongside having a baby.
Linda, who is now 59 years old, said: “I tried so hard for the first couple of weeks but I was working all hours.
“I showed up at my children’s [sports] games, went back to work and then tried to take them to school in the morning.
“But there was no work-life balance and I eventually realised I didn’t want my family life to flash right past me.
“They could see how hard I was trying but it was tough having to choose between my career and my kids.
“I was pale, not eating, not sleeping – I had no energy to do it all.
“No one was going to save me.
“But my husband was so supportive and took on all the housework with no questions asked.
“He did the laundry, dishes, cooked, cleaned and was there for the kids when I wasn’t able to be present.
“And my kids really respected me and thought I was such a strong woman for moving forward despite everything I was dealing with.”
In Linda’s former role, there was an intern programme in place where young people and women were assigned to her in assisting and training.
She says that as a result of this, a few of those people have gone on to achieve successful careers – and Linda still champions them each step of the way.
Deciding to prioritise her family over her work – something many women struggle with due to judgement from others – Linda soon began looking around for new work.
That’s when she came across Stannp, a printer sales company across the pond, based in Devon, UK.
As fate would have it, she had already worked with the company in years prior so when the CEO, Sam Heaton, caught wind that she was available, he reached out and presented the life-changing opportunity.
During her interview, the mum made it clear that work-life balance was non-negotiable and says the company “understood her passions” and offered the flexibility she’d always wanted.
Now, she acts as the President of the North American division and helps to empower other women to become managers, businesswomen and CEOs.
She’s recently celebrated her three-year anniversary at the company and has overseen sales surpassing $10 million (USD) over the past year.
She said “I had three offers on the table at the time.
“But when I talked to Stannp, I was given the freedom of trust.
“This gave me the opportunity to grow while being a mum.
“Women are treated equal here.
“When I do end my career, I’ll be proud of knowing what I have achieved – not just for myself, but for others.”
The mum-of-three has spoken at networking events such as the future business leaders of America, Girl Scouts and the Denver journal meet and greets.
Currently, she’s focusing on coaching and building her team in the US and making them achieve their goals is her “number one goal”.
Linda added: “I always give opportunities to those who may [not] do so themselves due to their situation – whether that’s related to family, age or education.
“As an example, it’s still frowned upon in many companies to take care of kids, but it’s something that I’ve seen change.
“I’ve seen more flexibility and allowing working mums to attend school events, be present for milestones, but also knowing they’ll still take care of business.
“I hired a mum, who works all hours as hard as she can, even when picking up her child from school.
“Family always come first.
“My advice for women is to own your space.
“You’re there for a reason, keep moving forward and don’t let anybody take that away from you.
“I never let a man bully me into a situation and always ensure to state the facts.
“You can either let things destroy you or move forward.
“In work and my personal life, it took me a long time to figure out a balance.
“Owning your space and understanding to trust your opinions and instincts is key.
“You don’t need to be rude or a bully to be powerful in business – kindness goes a long way to get people to go with you and not against you.”
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