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Turlock,

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Show up, listen, be kind, and thrive together!

We stand upon the shoulders of those who came before us. One of my favorite mentors in my early professional career was Paul Curren, of Curren Consulting and one of the three original founders of Pavement Engineering, Inc. In addition to being a leading authority on asphalt and other construction materials, Paul was also a gifted communicator and teacher. Paul taught a popular class around the state for CalAPA, attended by hundreds of industry and agency professionals, titled, “Critical Changes to Caltrans Section 39 Asphalt Specifications.” In every class, he made sure to emphasize a key point that has become an informal motto for all CalAPA technical training classes since: “Do it once, do it right, go home and get paid.”

While that motto speaks to our output, namely quality construction materials, it doesn’t address how we interact with each other on our journey to our desired outcome. Now that I have well over a decade of years of experience working in this industry, I have developed my own motto that I think is fitting for these workplace interactions: “Show up, listen, be kind, and thrive together.” Let me explain. Its long been said that for a woman to survive in the asphalt pavement industry, you must have thick skin. I certainly have witnessed plenty of examples of this during my career in this business. Notably, most of that friction is related to how we treat each other in the workplace. Fortunately, there are signs all around us that things on this front are changing for the better. As more women rise to positions of prominence in our industry, we are demonstrating how concepts like listening and compassion are essential ingredients to a healthy workplace culture (which benefits both women AND men). Everywhere you look there are amazing women who are leading by example. More than surviving, we are thriving!

Eric Swenson with Geo-Engineering Solutions is another notable mentor of mine who has helped encourage me to be a better person, break out of my fear of failure, and go all in. This column is one example of that. It is my honor to introduce this special issue of CalAPA’s association magazine devoted to workforce development, with a special emphasis on the inspiring work being done by the Women of Asphalt (WofA) California Branch volunteers. By words and actions, we are putting the Women of Asphalt motto, “Lead and Inspire,” into practice.

The popularity of the activities of the WofA California Branch is a testament to the strengthening partnership between the public and private sectors of our industry. Our WofA activities are inclusive –many men have benefitted from the learning opportunities woven into our events. Our WofA volunteers are embracing the principles I mentioned in my motto above: we are showing up, we are listening, we are kind, and more importantly, we are thriving together!

The asphalt pavement industry is already a great place to work, filled with fantastic opportunities. However, together we can make it better. That includes making some positive changes in how we interact with one another. Initiating changes to our daily interactions at work will lead to a more fun and rewarding quality of life, which my current employer, MCK Services, has helped me learn and embrace over the past two years. The Women of Asphalt California Branch volunteers are a perfect example of this as well. Come join us! I am so excited and eagerly waiting to meet you at one of our next WofA events!

Mimi Le Quality Engineer MCK Services Inc.