Behind the Marble and Mirrors

A Woman’S Memoir of the Trials and Triumphs of Working in a Traditionally Male-Dominated Environment

One of the first lessons author Carol Farrand learned was that opportunity lurks where you least expect it. When she took her daughter to a local resort to apply for a seasonal position, she had no idea how her own life would change on that fateful day. She was over forty years old and had just sold the small resort she ran with her husband. She was looking forward to a summer of relaxation, freedom, and fun. Instead, a new path was laid before herone that would take her to top resorts all over the United States and the world. As a new project manager for an international hotel chain, she had the world at her feet.

The trouble was that not everyone would prove welcoming.

Carol quickly learned how to deal with the many challenges facing a female manager in a male-dominated industry: sexual harassment, bigotry, sexism, and more. Eventually, she adjusted to life on the road; once she dug deep enough, she found the strength to triumph over the stressful situations she encountered. But the greatest lessons she learned was that she was stronger than anyone thoughtand that life truly can begin at forty.