#WeAreArity Wednesday: Sandi Dunmyer

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received at work?

The best piece of advice I’ve ever gotten at work — progress, not perfection. Just always be striving to progress everyday, but don’t expect yourself to ever be perfect. There’s a lot of grace involved with how we treat ourselves.

The best piece of advice I’ve ever gotten at work — progress, not perfection. Just always be striving to progress everyday, but don’t expect yourself to ever be perfect. There’s a lot of grace involved with how we treat ourselves.

Who was your childhood celebrity crush?

My childhood celebrity crush was Shaun Cassidy. A lot of people won’t even know who that is, but he was a singer, and he was also in The Hardy Boys. But as I got older, I liked the other Hardy Boy better — Parker Stevenson.

What is an item on your bucket list that you haven’t done yet?

I’ve never gone skydiving. I don’t know if I’ve gotten too scared to do it or not, but I’m going to keep it on my bucket list. I should have done it in my twenties!

What is something interesting we would not know about you just by looking?

I have my motorcycle license and used to own a Harley. I bought it when I lived in Seattle, then I took it to Maryland, then I took it to Arizona. I’ve lived in a lot of different places, but I don’t ride it anymore.

What was your first job?

My first job was working at Dairy Queen, and I still think I can do the curly-Q on top of the ice cream cone! My favorite thing to make there were Dilly Bars — you would take an ice cream bar and dip it into butterscotch or chocolate, and it would harden right away.

What piece of advice would you share with your younger self?

Always walk into a room with your shoulders back, head held high, and look people in the eyes. And don’t believe the Facebook highlight reels!

What is a good way to give back to the community?

Pick an area you’re most passionate about, find a charity that does good work in that area, and volunteer there. When you’re volunteering with lots and lots of charities and organizations, you can spread yourself too thin, and you don’t really help anybody. So, focus in on an area you’re passionate about and find out what you can do to help.

What advice would you give to someone balancing work and home life?

Always be present when you’re with your kids and your loved ones. Turn off the phone. It’s a huge challenge for me — my son, who’s 12, calls me out on it. He’ll be like, “Mom, you’re not even watching the movie. You’re on your phone.” And he’s right. And I shut it down. I’m constantly working on that. That’s the idea of progress, not perfection.