JUDY SMILEY: LIVING HER BIG LIFE
By: Maja Rehou

Why did Judy Smiley our current CAWEE president leave a successful career as director of business development for world markets to leap into the unknown waters of the entrepreneurial ocean? - The need to get things done, done well and done right away.

The mantra of this very successful, goal oriented woman.

A big picture thinker Judy was tired of the way things happen in the corporate world and in 1997 started one of the first virtual assistant offices in Calgary called Executive Paperworks. It was here she soon realized how much she thrived on all aspects of running a small business and had found her true calling, which led her to her second venture, Orbital Communications. There was one thing missing though, the lack of connections and the isolation that many entrepreneurs face, which is why she joined CAWEE. Although her tenure as president will be coming to an end soon, she will always remain committed to CAWEE because she strongly believes in the organization and feels women need to connect and rally around what makes them unique.

Judy doesn’t take no for an answer. Her drive and being passionate about everything she does is the cornerstone of her success. Strong partnerships whether in her business or personal life have also been instrumental in helping her achieve her goals, which is why she is so strict about her time. By investing it wisely she keeps an un-passable boundary between the two.

Judy’s drive is insatiable and after selling Orbital Communications she decided to reach even further and joined forces in 2005 with Nicole Norris in The Strange Universe - Packaging Architects. In 2007 Judy will launch her fourth business, Big Life Enterprises, an idea that blossomed from her wanting to help people live life to the fullest. By sharing what she has learned she hopes to empower people to discover what is keeping them from progressing forward and from their “big life.” She wants to be a catalyst to lighting people’s passion so that they can achieve their full potential and dreams – whatever they may be.

Once she succeeds. Not if. The hard veneer of this feisty woman will dissolve to reveal her underlying passion, which is to give animals a voice. Anything Judy takes on she strives for in mammoth proportions whether it is making Big Life a global movement or stopping animal abuse worldwide.

Has she achieved all her goals in life “absolutely not? Does she have more in store to complete her “Big Life?” Absolutely!

Maja Rehou writer, consultant and founder of WordForce Communications helps professionals prosper through words. She can be reached at [email protected].