When Alignment Meets Preparation: How Readiness Answers the Call
- Crystal Marshall
- Feb 17
- 5 min read
Sometimes alignment doesn’t announce itself loudly.
Sometimes it whispers.
In 2016, I was not looking for a job.
I was running Write to Success, taking temp roles when money was tight, and doing what many entrepreneurs do — staying afloat while staying faithful. One night, I simply wanted to watch Kelly Rowland’s dance show. I went to the BET website to find out what time it came on.
While scrolling, I heard God say, “Check Careers.”
My immediate response was resistance.
Why would I check?
I wasn’t job hunting.
I wasn’t dissatisfied.
I wasn’t searching.
But I obeyed anyway.
Obedience Often Comes Before Understanding
When I clicked on the Careers page, one listing stopped me immediately:
Executive Assistant to the President of Media Sales.
My first thought wasn’t excitement — it was curiosity.
Who is the President of Media Sales?
Why is BET hiring for this role?
And why is this job listed in Chicago?
I assumed BET’s offices were in New York or Los Angeles. I didn’t even know Chicago was in the picture.
That question sent me down a research rabbit hole.
The role supported Louis Carr, and the more I read, the clearer something became: this position aligned with my skills, my temperament, my experience, and my instincts.
So, I did what preparation requires.
I wrote my own résumé.
I wrote my own cover letter.
I tailored both specifically to the role and the man behind it.
And then I waited.
Preparation Without Announcement
Weeks passed before I received a callback for the first interview.
I didn’t tell anyone.
Not my friends.
Not my family.
Not because I wasn’t excited — but because I wanted clarity without commentary. I didn’t want well-meaning opinions, projections, or pressure to interfere with what felt divinely guided.
By the second interview, I told my mom.
By the third interview — which would be with Louis himself — I finally told my friends. One of them was my best friend, Beverly Wilcher. It turned out her sister-mom was related to Louis’ family. They offered to put in a good word.
I declined.
I didn’t want shortcuts.
I wanted alignment.
I wanted the process.
Preparation Answers the Question Before It’s Asked
Two weeks before my interview with Louis, I learned he had just released a book: Dirty Little Secrets.
I bought it immediately.
I read it in two days.
Between the book and my research, I wanted to understand who he was, not just what he did. I wanted context, not talking points.
When the interview began, the very first question he asked me was:
“What do you know about me?”
I smirked — not out of arrogance, but quiet confidence.
I was ready.
Integrity Matters More Than Perfection
During the interview, Louis told me we were going to play a game.
He would say a name or phrase, and I would say the first thing that came to mind.
He said, “Drake.”
Without hesitation, I said, “Annoying.”
Immediately, I wondered if I had just talked myself out of the job.
What I didn’t know then was that my honesty — unfiltered, respectful, and instinctive — would become one of the foundations of our working relationship over the next eight years.
Louis learned quickly that when he asked me a question, I would tell him the truth. No fluff. No performance. No politics.
That mattered.
Alignment Reveals Itself in Overlaps
Early in my time with Louis, I worked his 30th wedding anniversary event.
A bald man walked up to me and asked, “Is Debra Marshall your mom?”
I said yes — while side-eyeing how a stranger knew my mother.
He introduced himself as Kevin Newell, someone who had worked with my mom years earlier at Leo Burnett. He asked me to take a picture with him and send it to her, adding, “Tell her I had hair back then.”
My mom knew exactly who he was.
Moments like that happened often.
So many overlaps.
So many intersections.
So many reminders that nothing was random.
People talk about six degrees of separation — I lived it.
Preparation Creates Space for Purpose
Over the next eight years at BET, I did more than support an executive.
I orchestrated high-stakes moments.
I navigated pressure without panic.
I built relationships grounded in trust and discretion.
I also found myself right back where life had been nudging me all along.
Before college, I wanted to study communications and journalism. My school, Earlham College, didn’t offer that major, so I pivoted to Business and Nonprofit Management.
Yet through BET and WayMaker Culture, I became a published writer, serving as Lead Editor for WayMaker Journal and contributing articles beyond it.
The line wasn’t straight — but it was mine.
Alignment Doesn’t Remove the Work — It Gives It Meaning
Here’s the truth this season taught me:
Alignment doesn’t eliminate preparation.
It demands it.
I had to research.
I had to study.
I had to prepare emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and professionally.
But alignment made the work feel purposeful — not draining.
When something is meant for you, you still have to be ready for it.
You still have to show up prepared.
You still have to do your part.
Alignment opens the door.
Preparation determines whether you’re ready to walk through it.
Closing Reflection
Not every opportunity announces itself as destiny.
Sometimes it looks like obedience in a quiet moment.
Sometimes it looks like preparation without applause.
Sometimes it looks like trusting a nudge you don’t fully understand yet.
But when alignment and preparation meet, execution becomes possible.
Do your part.
Be ready.
The rest will unfold.