Pam Dunn hasn't had an easy life. The oldest of seven kids, her father left when she was twelve and she naturally took on a great deal of responsibility. In fact, she says it led to her being "over-responsible."

Later in life, "If someone worked for me and was not getting their job done, I would do it for them. This wasn't good. I would over-contribute to the relationship."

In 1995, Pam had three children ages 8, 5 and 4 - and she got divorced. She had stopped working when her first child was born, but suddenly she was a single parent who needed to earn a living.

Initially Pam went back to the retail industry, where she had worked before. But "I didn't like the idea of them staying with a babysitter. I wanted to be more present to my kids. Besides, it just wasn't me anymore."

And yet, although she saw the signs that this job wasn't for her, Pam did not quit.

"I had several large signs to move on and did not listen to them until the last one as I was hesitating due to fear of where would the money come from and the fear that I could only do what I had done in the past.

"My big signs were first when my youngest son fell when with the babysitter and he had to get 20 stitches and plastic surgery between his eyes. Second, when my boss was unfair and would treat me like I was his girlfriend rather than a business colleague.

"The final sign was a phone call from the babysitter saying that my middle son, who was then five, was missing and they had called the police. I prayed on the way home to God to find him and if so I would go in the next day and quit. By the time I got home, they had found him -- he was hiding behind a bush.

"I gave my notice the next day not knowing what I would do next.

Pam then started babysitting at home; this grew into a home daycare situation.

Around this time, Pam took a course at the local office of Global Relationship Center, a personal and professional development organization. In the 30 years since its founding, GRC has delivered courses such as Generating Results Cooperatively and Understanding Yourself and Others to over 130,000 students.

When an opportunity arose to become a manager at the local Center, something she could do part time from home, she grabbed it. "I had the feeling that this environment was fluid, fun and fulfilling. That helped me know I was living on purpose for a purpose, even though I wasn't completely sure what that purpose was yet."

After about a year Pam stopped doing day care, then switched full time to GRC. In 2000, she bought out all shareholders of the local Center and became its sole owner.

It was a long, hard process. "From the moment I quit my job, the first three months were the scariest. My focus there was just don't quit. You can't fail if you don't quit. Once I began running the center, it took three years to become comfortable. Then a nice flow developed, and I was ready for another big challenge."

Pam recalls, "I created a community. I took my skills of being the oldest in the family, the one that knows how to take care of people and knows how to get along. I took my desire to have a cohesive family, and I created a place in our community that understood that family is first. Personal development is not second and career development is not third.

"So often we compartmentalize our lives, but you don't have to put a number on them. There is a way to equalize to balance out, which is to have one focus. This is an individual decision."

In Pam's case, "My focus is on bringing out people's magnificence. I'm doing this everywhere; that's why I don't just feel fulfilled at work, or just at home. It's why I don't feel torn between different aspects of my life."

Pam says this approach was very attractive to people. There was an established community supporting her Center that operated from word of mouth. As long as she kept the existing community happy, they recommended their friends. She also would do various trade shows and health fairs and bookstores, giving free workshops. People could see a glimpse of what GRC does. All of these activities generated enrollment for the Center's courses.

This year, Pam was appointed president of the entire GRC organization, which operates in over a dozen cities. She has seven upper level managers and a CEO, and has ambitious expansion plans.

"If ten years ago you would have told me I would be president, I would have said you were nuts. I couldn't see myself as the owner of the local chapter, never mind leader of the entire organization."

Today, Pam is driven by very different goals than when she first started down this road.

"Now I'm driven by humanity, by making a difference in the world versus just my family. My sons are all in their teens or older, they are doing very well, and they are happy, well-grounded men.

"I've watched over the years how light and happy people are when they are doing something that's fulfilling. If people are fulfilled, we won't have war, problems won't escalate. I can support this goal simply by focusing on my strength, which is to bring out the best in others."

As I was editing this story, Pam emailed to say: I just bought the company. I am now the proud new owner of Global Relationship Centers.

Learn more at Global Relationship Centers.