Click here for Part 1 of Alba Colon’s interview.

Terrance Williams
EVP & Chief Marketing Officer, Nationwide

Nationwide, a longtime sponsor of Latina Style and NASCAR, recently brought together two great organizations for one tremendous outcome. 

On October 19, Alba Colon, one of the most powerful women in sports and a top female NASCAR engineer for Chevy Racing, joined attendees of the Latina Style Business Series event in Atlanta to talk to entrepreneurs about her life, her career, and her steadfast determination to succeed.

I recently sat down with Alba to learn more about her and the collection of life experiences that led to her successful career.

Terrance Williams: I’m sure your days are incredibly busy. What do you consider to be the best part of a typical day?

AC: Mainly working with the teams. It’s very satisfying to work on the challenges and to be able to help them get better. First thing in the morning when you enter the garage, it’s all abuzz with activity. I Love to start my interactions with the teams and begin to work on the challenges they are having. That’s what gets me going in the mornings. I seriously love the sport. Every weekend is a new challenge and I love walking into the garage and seeing all the familiar faces ready to let me know what we need to work on. That is my cup of coffee.

TW: It’s clear based on your answers that you put in a lot of time and energy which is what’s led to your success. But since life’s all about balance, what do you do for fun? For relaxation?

AC: When do we have time for that (laughs)? I spend time with my family for relaxation. There isn’t too much of that in this sport, but it’s just about quality versus quantity. Also the recruiting that I do, I know that it’s work, but to be able to help the new generation reach their dreams and goals … that for me is fun too.

TW: Perhaps you’ve seen our new ads called “Songs for All Your Sides,” where we use songwriters to convey our message through different genres of music. Do you have a favorite type of music or movies?

AC: Oh my gosh, I listen to a little bit of everything! If you go to my iPad or iPhone, you will see it has everything. I’m laughing because I was discussing this with somebody just the other day. My music includes Vivaldi – I love Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons, Winter.” That’s my favorite classical piece. I also have a lot of Maroon 5. I love Adam Levine. The other day when I was on an airplane, the Four Seasons came up in my playlist and I wasn’t even born when they were around, but I love some of the music. I heard a little bit of Frank Sinatra also. So as you can see, I listen to a little bit of everything. The last song that I heard on my playlist before getting off the plane was Charlie Puth with Selena Gomez, “We Don’t Talk Anymore.”

My favorite movie is E.T. I’m an E.T. and Star Wars freak. I love the original Star Wars. Another movie I love is Contact and I think it’s because of my love of space. All of these movies have something to do with space.

TW: We’re all motivated by different things. For me, it really is about discipline and success. That’s been instilled in me since childhood. Where do you get your inspiration?

AC: I wanted to get into this kind of career in science and math because I wanted to emulate Sally Ride (the first American woman in space). She has always been part of my inspiration and really the reason I wanted to study to be an astronaut in the first place. Many of the things that I wanted to do also came from my dad. My father has always been a huge inspiration in my life. But the energy and everything around me on a day-to-day basis comes from the teams. Even when we are all tired or struggling they are the ones that give me the motivation and encouragement to keep going and keep striving for more.

TW: What advice would you give to your 15-year-old self?

AC: I wish I would have had more fun. I was studying a lot and I love to be driven – that was never an issue. I wish I would have taken the time to have enjoyed more things, but I was so focused on my career that I think I missed some things. I don’t regret it at all, but I wish I would have been a 15-year-old and enjoyed more that a person that age should enjoy instead of being so focused on studying and performing.

TW: Obviously you have broken numerous barriers in your professional career. What do you think about people referring to you as trailblazer?

AC: I don’t really think about it, but then there is that moment when I take a minute to breathe and realize the things that I’ve done and with that comes a huge responsibility. I never got into this business because I wanted to become a “trailblazer.” That was never the deal. But now that some people have bestowed that honor on me it comes with a responsibility to do the right thing. I’m a really low-key person and I like to just keep my head down and keep working. But if what I have done has been innovating and is helping someone who is going to come after me, I take that responsibility seriously and humbly and I do the best I can to keep making a path for them.

For more exclusive behind-the-scenes Nascar content, check out part 1 and part 2 of our “Getting to Know NASCAR Pit Crew Members” series.

The post An Interview with Alba Colon, Chevrolet’s NASCAR Engineer: Part 2 appeared first on Now from Nationwide.