The NASA CIO Story No One Expected to Hear

"What happens when everything goes wrong—and you’re the first Black female CIO under national scrutiny? Linda Cureton shares how a failed project, broken trust, and unexpected tears shaped her leadership journey."

In this episode clip from The Next Level Paycheck, Linda Cureton reveals one of her most vulnerable leadership moments as the first Black female Chief Information Officer at the cabinet level.

Faced with a disastrous agency-wide help desk deployment and the weight of representation, Linda recounts how she:

• Held back tears until the breaking point—and why crying in the office became necessary

• Discovered her leadership “friends” weren’t ready to support her the way she needed

• Found resilience (and humor) through scratch-off lottery tickets on the way home

• Turned failure into an action plan that brought a massive project back on track

This story shows that leadership isn’t about never breaking—it’s about how you recover, act, and lead through failure. For mid-level professionals seeking to break the $70K–$80K ceiling, Linda’s story is a powerful reminder that setbacks can become stepping stones.

#WomenInLeadership, #CareerGrowth, #LeadershipResilience, #LindaCureton, #TheNextLevelPaycheck, #LeadershipStories, #BreakingTheCeiling, #ProfessionalGrowth, #CareerDevelopment, #EmotionalIntelligence

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career growth, emotional intelligence, women in leadership, first black female CIO, Linda Cureton, The Next Level Paycheck, leadership resilience, crying at work, professional setbacks, workplace respect, leadership challenges, breaking the income ceiling, project management crisis, career advancement strategies, professional growth tips, vulnerability in leadership, managing through failure, leadership mindset, organizational change lessons, mid-level professionals