Ashley Seal grew up in Portsmouth, Ohio, a town that she describes as “rough around the edges but filled with honest and hardworking people.”
Ashley’s parents were factory workers, but one day her mom got her degree and it changed everything. Ashley was inspired to further her education after that and obtained her business degree, but finding a job wasn’t easy in the town of Portsmouth.
“I had student debt to pay and working a minimum wage job can’t cover those costs. I applied to one hundred jobs in a six month period and getting rejection after rejection started to wear down on me.”
Ashley remembers seeing a post through Ohio Means Jobs and The GRIT Project and she responded to the post, but wasn’t sure what would happen next.
“I got a response asking if I was interested in learning more and after taking some career assessments, I got an interview with the company I’m with today.”
Ashley completed a free, online career assessments through the GRIT Project and Future Plans, which led to her interview with Pearl Interactive Network, where she works remotely today. It was also through the career assessment that Ashley realized she had been living with autism and certain career paths might prove more favorable for her working preferences than others. She is grateful for the chance to work from home as it allows her to be her true self and do her best work.