Celebrating the Woman Behind My First Career Breakthrough: Jackie Wanjiru.
I still remember walking into Golden Tulip Hotel in Nairobi Wetlands for my very first internship as a first year Hotel Management student from Kenya Utalii College. I was fresh, excited, terrified and dressed like I was reporting to the UN Headquarters instead of a hotel. My notebook was clutched to my chest like it contained national secrets and my smile was doing that thing where it tries to hide panic but fails miserably.
And then came Jackie Wanjiru.
If you are on LinkedIn, go follow her (@Jackie Wanjiru) because you will understand why she deserves an entire blog dedicated to her. She took one look at me, this nervous Utalii student who did not know where the front desk started or ended, and she smiled. Not the “oh dear, another confused intern” smile but the warm, reassuring “do not worry, I have rescued many like you” smile.
From that moment, Jackie became more than a supervisor. She became my industry mother. She held my hand, literally and professionally, like I was a small baby learning to walk and honestly, I needed it. I was the definition of clueless. If there was a wrong way to do something, trust me I found it.
There was the day I tried to carry three plates at once because I had seen someone do it on YouTube. Gravity humbled me immediately. Plates everywhere. Food everywhere. My dignity missing in action. Jackie did not shout. She just looked at me with that “bless your heart” expression and said, “Okay, maybe let us start with one.”
Or the time I confidently greeted a guest as “Mr. Patelo” instead of Mr. Patel. Jackie nearly collapsed trying not to laugh. She pulled me aside and whispered, “Just stick to sir for now.”
But behind all the funny stories, Jackie was building me. She taught me how to talk to guests, how to stay calm when things got chaotic and how to handle pressure without melting like ice cream in the sun. She did not just correct me. She explained, guided and encouraged. She made mistakes feel like lessons, not failures.
What I did not realize then was how much she was shaping the foundation of my career. Every time I handle a difficult situation with grace, every time I train someone new and every time I choose patience over frustration, I hear her voice in the back of my mind. She did not just teach me how to work. She taught me how to grow.
Looking back, I know not everyone gets a Jackie in their career. Not everyone gets a supervisor who sees your potential before you even know you have any. Not everyone gets someone who believes in you loudly, supports you consistently and laughs with you through the chaos.
So this is my special shout out to Jackie Wanjiru, the woman who raised me in the industry, who held my hand through my first steps, who turned my confusion into confidence and who made my first internship unforgettable in the best way.
Thank you Jackie. For the patience. For the guidance. For the laughter. For the lessons. For seeing something in me before I saw it in myself. You were my first supervisor and you will always be one of the most important ones.
