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Ginger Walker is a Managing Principle at Sterling Commerce, an AT&T Company. In her work she directs sales for the company throughout the Eastern United States and Canada. Although she’s proved herself well in the sales arena, Ginger has also had an admirable career in the United States Air Force. She finished active duty in 1994 as the first female squadron commander for an international NATO wing. At that point, she moved to Rochester, New York to be closer to her parents while she raised her two children, Shaun and Remy, and began her civilian career! Now she resides in Celebration, Florida.
“You don’t get what you deserve in life. You get what you negotiate.” - Ginger Walker
What is your definition of success?
To me it is personal happiness and I bucket that into three categories; happiness, health, and wealth. Wealth is everything from the monetary aspect of having enough money to live a comfortable lifestyle to non-monetary personal wealth in the relationships you have in your life and the enjoyment you find in the activities you take on.
What was one of the biggest challenges you faced transitioning from active duty to civilian living?
One of the biggest challenges that I had going from active duty in the military to civilian living was the lack of camaraderie and lack of leadership I observed. I was absolutely blown away by the lack of leadership when I got into the corporate world.
The other thing that I noticed was the generally poor attitudes of people that I worked with. I remember sitting in a staff meeting and listening to all the whining and saying, “You know guys, a bad day at the office is when you sit down at the end of a mission to debrief and you don’t have the same number of people sitting around the table as you did in the beginning! That is a bad day at the office!” They all looked at me like I was crazy. But, it was my reality. At the end of the day, you’ve just got to suck it up and get the work done.
Having been on both sides of the coin, what is your opinion in terms of “supporting our troops?”
To me, it’s a bit of a political phrase or buzz word because when it comes right down to it, there is not a whole lot that we can do as civilians with the exception of a few things; we should all be hanging an American flag outside and thanking our troops for their service when we see them. I travel a lot now, so when I see a person in uniform I always make it a point to walk up to them and say, “Hey, thank you for your service.” It seems like fewer and fewer people are doing that now though.
There are some organizations you can get involved with though that do letter campaigning and things of that nature. In many cases, they’re a valuable support option as well.
What are some of your hobbies?
I enjoy reading and I’m looking to get back into golf. Now that my boys are both out on their own, I’m getting to that stage where I’m looking forward to getting involved with more things in the community here in Celebration.
Ginger can be reached by email at: GingerAnnWalker@gmail.com
“You don’t get what you deserve in life. You get what you negotiate.” - Ginger Walker
What is your definition of success?
To me it is personal happiness and I bucket that into three categories; happiness, health, and wealth. Wealth is everything from the monetary aspect of having enough money to live a comfortable lifestyle to non-monetary personal wealth in the relationships you have in your life and the enjoyment you find in the activities you take on.
What was one of the biggest challenges you faced transitioning from active duty to civilian living?
One of the biggest challenges that I had going from active duty in the military to civilian living was the lack of camaraderie and lack of leadership I observed. I was absolutely blown away by the lack of leadership when I got into the corporate world.
The other thing that I noticed was the generally poor attitudes of people that I worked with. I remember sitting in a staff meeting and listening to all the whining and saying, “You know guys, a bad day at the office is when you sit down at the end of a mission to debrief and you don’t have the same number of people sitting around the table as you did in the beginning! That is a bad day at the office!” They all looked at me like I was crazy. But, it was my reality. At the end of the day, you’ve just got to suck it up and get the work done.
Having been on both sides of the coin, what is your opinion in terms of “supporting our troops?”
To me, it’s a bit of a political phrase or buzz word because when it comes right down to it, there is not a whole lot that we can do as civilians with the exception of a few things; we should all be hanging an American flag outside and thanking our troops for their service when we see them. I travel a lot now, so when I see a person in uniform I always make it a point to walk up to them and say, “Hey, thank you for your service.” It seems like fewer and fewer people are doing that now though.
There are some organizations you can get involved with though that do letter campaigning and things of that nature. In many cases, they’re a valuable support option as well.
What are some of your hobbies?
I enjoy reading and I’m looking to get back into golf. Now that my boys are both out on their own, I’m getting to that stage where I’m looking forward to getting involved with more things in the community here in Celebration.
Ginger can be reached by email at: GingerAnnWalker@gmail.com
