Meet Laura- Although she won't admit it, she is an idol too!

Back in the fall, we were in search of the Top 20 Reviewers on the Internet. We were on a mission to find 20 people that had great writing skills, online influence and an interest in helping take ratings and reviews online to the next level. We posted ads. We networked. And we dug through tons of resumes. We wanted passionate people. We wanted fun people. We wanted people who could help make our site come alive.

And, we found Laura. Laura came to us from an ad that we ran on Craigs List. (I love Craigs list!) She impressed me on our original call and continues to impress me with every interaction. I am sure she will impress you too! P.S. She is an American Idol guru. Please join me in welcoming her to our community!

A note from Laura.
As a freelance writer, I comb the ads often, whether it be Craigslist or any number of other sites out there. I'm always in search of the perfect gig.

Last fall while combing the ads, I chanced upon one that asked if I thought I was one of the best reviewers on the internet. I pondered that one for a long time. A year earlier, I wouldn't have answered the ad. I would have said, I'm trying to be. But after a summer of being tested personally and physically, as I earned my first degree black belt in tae kwon do, I had found how important confidence was to success. After earning that belt, despite failing gym class in high school, and too many years of being the last one picked for teams, I knew that if I believed I could do it, then I could.

After taking a huge deep breath, I clicked the email address to respond, sending a few paragraphs on my writing history, personal history, and mostly my reviewing history. As I wrote about how much I wanted this, I felt for the first time that I just could be one of the best.

I checked my email often, to see if there was anybody else out there that would agree I could possibly be one of the top reviewers on the Internet. When I received an email from Jolie at the company now called Viewpoints, asking to set up a phone interview, I knew that confidence was a good thing. That single email was confirmation of the past few years of trying to break into this field, and I felt a little like Sally Field at the moment, "You like me. You really, really like me."

Reading Jolie's blog every day, she writes on many topics that stir up many things inside, especially the topics of who we are and why we write. When I reflect on the topics I read every day, it takes me further into my confidence. The further I go along in this process, the more confidence I gain, and the more sure I become that this is what I've been searching for for such a long time.

Here is my bio—Viewpoints style.

The following is something I wrote after reading Jolie's blog on WHY I WRITE…