I really felt as though I could be a good leader and role model by building a company that celebrated diversity and bringing in a clientele that will… - Sheila Crump Johnson

Every time I drive to the Virginia hotel, I'm like, 'I can't believe I built this.' I'm very proud of myself, but to see faces of color coming through the door is really terrific. I want to go out of my way to meet as many guests as possible, because I want them to also feel a sense of ownership here.

These doors would open, and I said, 'Why can't I go through them?'. "And I decided I was going to go through every door that came my way."

I think I was pissed off," she says, nodding to her years "as the little woman behind the man." She adds: "There was a lot of me left on the table.