“LIFE is full of surprises and serendipity. Being open to unexpected turns in the road is an important part of success.” The Condoleezza Rice quote reflects the professional journey of Daika Mitchell, who joined Red Stripe as a HEART NSTA/Trust trainee and is now the communications manager. Along the way, Mitchell has been pushed outside her comfort zone, shoved into unexpected opportunities, and completely surrendered to uncertainty. While this may sound frightening to some, she believes her unexpected experiences have positioned her exactly where she needs to be.

“Throughout my high school years at the Convent of Mercy Academy “Alpha”, I was absolutely sure I had discovered my passion. I was good at accounting; I enjoyed accounting; how could it not be what I was meant to do? I successfully finished my secondary courses while also completing accounting technician certification courses. However, financial challenges hindered my efforts to pursue this field of study at the tertiary level after high school. So I decided to stay home for a year to figure out what to do next,” shared Mitchell.

A close relative of hers then encouraged her to pursue practical training with the HEART NSTA/Trust. At this time, she had all intentions of studying accounting. However, the training agency could only facilitate a general administrative role at Red Stripe. Though doubtful, Mitchell accepted the position with the ultimate goal of joining the accounting department.

“Thanks to an excellent manager, I was not limited to my administrative responsibilities and excelled in the role. I had the responsibility of strategising and executing major company projects like the Red Stripe house renovation, Big Vibes, and Strategy Day, interacting with team members across numerous departments and engaging external suppliers. All in all, my role was never mundane and I was exposed to other exciting and dynamic tasks. After a few years my manager and colleagues encouraged me to take on an available human resources (HR) role in which I had yet to gain experience.”

What happened to accounting? Well, Mitchell no longer had any interest in the accounting department. Witnessing the long and exhausting hours her finance friends had to work, she decided she had all intentions of growing professionally, “helping others, moving up the corporate ladder, but also working in a flexible role that allowed me to spend time with family”.

“After numerous discussions, ambivalent emotions, and enlightening realisations, I took on the HR role. Though full of doubt, my mindset was to embrace the experience and give it my best shot,” she said.

Realising her potential to learn and adapt, she was recruited to assist the corporate affairs team when they were short-staffed. Her interest in corporate affairs had already grown by then, especially since her mentor worked in that department, but once again, doubt swarmed her mind.

The self-doubt did not linger though; she got an epiphany right then. She had grown tremendously. Though she was taking on a role completely different from anything she had ever done, Mitchell was prepared to overcome each challenge. Of course, there would’ve been challenges, she was working with a team of high-performing professionals as a complete newcomer!

“For starters, I was not only engaging my internal team, this was an outward-facing role. I struggled with engaging external partners, interacting with the media, and displaying strong leadership skills. Though I’m not quite where I’d want to be, I am more confident and better at leading and maintaining both internal and external relationships after being exposed to countless experiences,“ Mitchell said.

Seeing how well her performance was while merely assisting the team, she was officially offered the position of communications manager last year.

“Corporate affairs has given me the best of all worlds – satisfying my strong desire to help others, learning completely new skills, and enjoying the flexibility that comes with it. I actually think all my experiences within the company prepared me for this role, and it is by far my favourite,” she said.

Though she didn’t realise it then, her passion has undoubtedly changed, but her purpose has remained the same. She got a chance to help others in different ways, and now she can do it on a much larger scale – that is her purpose.

Encouraging young people who may feel unsure of their purpose and career aspirations, Mitchell shared, “Don’t be disheartened if you haven’t yet discovered your calling professionally. Embrace unforeseen opportunities, as every experience contributes to your journey, guiding you to the right place at the right time.”