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There was no room for her. Schools did not need any more teachers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI realized in that moment that my dream of being an art teacher would never come true,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cI knew I loved art, but I didn\u2019t think I could make a living as an artist so I had no idea where to turn next.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bailey knew one thing for sure. She would always find a way to do what she loved.<\/p>\n
At 26 years old with her fresh diploma in hand and her dreams shattered, she decided to move to Santa Barbara.<\/p>\n
Four years later she enrolled in graduate school at UCSB, majoring in communication with an emphasis in rhetoric.<\/p>\n
As she looks back at that time, Bailey said she felt some people might view all her degrees–communication, art and sociology\u2014”as seemingly useless.\u201d But she was studying what she loved.<\/p>\n
Little did she realize that years later all three would prove to be the pillars of her entire life, propelling her to achieve success in business, art and social entrepreneurism.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy master\u2019s thesis was on feminism and the women\u2019s suffrage movement,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cI had no idea where that would lead but I always studied what interested me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her degree in sociology prompted her to be interested in social justice and, as a result, she founded the award-winning Women\u2019s Economic Ventures<\/a> (WEV), a prominent nonprofit in Santa Barbara which teaches women to be successful entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n Bailey had about $150,000 in startup funds for WEV. There was no public money for the first four years. So her writing skills became important as she wrote grants, curriculum and fundraising letters.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you start something on your own you have to do everything yourself,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cWe built it bit by bit starting with an annual budget of $75,000 and one part-time employee. Thirty years later the budget was $2.5 million with 28 employees and offices in Santa Barbara and Ventura.\u201d<\/p>\n Bailey has always believed in doing what she loves. This practice led her from the feminist movement in college to working at the Rape Crisis Center<\/a>. While there she saw the women who escaped domestic violence situations often returned to their abusive husbands because they were financially vulnerable.<\/p>\n \u201cSo many of the things we were trying to do for women, they could have done for themselves if they just had more money in their pocket,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cTeaching women to do things for themselves is so much more powerful than doing it for them.\u201d<\/p>\n WEV teaches women how to do the research leading to a business plan, but they have to write it themselves. She says this approach empowers people and teaches them how to master the various elements of their life.<\/p>\n Bailey said most women coming to WEV were anxious about their ability to do math. She wanted to empower women and demystify money so they were comfortable talking about and raising money. Then they could start a business, run for office or lead a company.<\/p>\n Since its founding in 1991, WEV has served over 20,000 clients, generating $800 million in annual sales and creating 12,000 local jobs.<\/p>\n \u201cI loved raising my family and I was proud of the 30 years I had invested in creating and building WEV,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cBut I was healthy and there were lots of things I wanted to do, like travel and create art. So I decided to retire at 70.\u201d<\/p>\n Bailey gave her board of directors three year\u2019s notice of her retirement. They immediately began to think of what kind of leader they would need to take them into the next chapter of growth. Bailey said she knew that what the organization needed next was a \u201csystems thinker.\u201d<\/p>\n As WEV grew, it challenged her to develop new skillsets and it kept the job interesting. But as she approached retirement, she knew that WEV needed someone with a different skillset. WEV would need a leader who was experienced at building the systems necessary to manage a larger organization with more employees.<\/p>\n She knew that the best thing she could do was \u201cto walk away and know the organization would survive without me.\u201d<\/p>\n Kathy Odell was one of her board members. She knew Odell was a systems thinker who had initiated and developed several successful businesses. The board had already started a study on the leadership transition, so they were ready for change. One of the board members asked Odell if she would consider taking over the leadership.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I heard Kathy say she was willing to take over, I started crying,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cBecause it was such a relief and a compliment to me that she would want to take it over.\u201d<\/p>\n Odell took the reins during a long transition period and is now working with some staff inside the organization to prepare them for future leadership.<\/p>\n Odell\u2019s entrepreneurial career started in 1985 as co-founder of Medical Concepts Inc.<\/a>\u00a0Five years later she was appointed as the managing director of Karl Storz Imaging<\/a>. She became the founding CEO of\u00a0Inogen<\/a>\u00a0in 2002.<\/p>\n Bailey handed the WEV reins to Odell in 2019.<\/p>\n \u201cA new wave of entrepreneurs is starting out now with the core belief that work should be rewarding \u2013 emotionally, psychologically and financially,\u201d Odell said. \u201cWork should enable us to care for our families, spend time with them and contribute to the health and well-being of our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThankfully, I was able to afford to retire and do things I enjoy,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cI was always a hard worker and good saver.\u201d<\/p>\n Bailey recommends that young adults start saving as soon as possible and contribute to the retirement plan at work if it is offered. \u201cStart saving now because Social Security won\u2019t be enough for you to live on,\u201d she said.<\/p>\nBailey knew when it was time for her to retire.<\/h2>\n
Odell accepts WEV leadership role.<\/h2>\n
It\u2019s so important for young people to start saving for retirement early.<\/h2>\n