After four years of great success as an influential innovator and director of national sales for Facebook, Dallas resident Kim Z. Garrett retired from the company in 2011, and has written "Roll With It" - a book about living, working, and parenting by the seat of your pants.
Now, Garrett brings her book to Southlake's Barnes & Noble, where she will be signing copies on Saturday, Nov. 15, from 1 to 3 p.m. Growing up in Fort Worth, Garrett said Southlake is her second stop on her tour (she signed in Dallas first), and she hopes to see a lot of old friends.
"I’m really excited to be out there," she said. "It’s notbrthat far from Dallas geographically, but I think mentally it is. We sold a lot of books [in Dallas]. It was nice. It was a good crowd."
In her book, Garrett shares lessons learned in Silicon Valley boardrooms and Texas beer gardens. The writing is her "guide to pursuing your passion, building a fiercely resilient family, and discovering unexpected heroes. Written to remind us that adversity is a good thing and that it’s OK to tilt parenting norms, the book is inspired by Kim’s search for the answers to daunting questions."
Garrett's unorthodox upbringing led to a decidedly unusual education. She began working at age 15 and retired as a multimillionaire from Facebook at 40. She is the pioneer of the Electra Zane project, which is on a mission to serve children and adults affected by substance and domestic abuse. The project helps provide protection, shelter, and healing for at-risk families by raising funds for critical charities and organizations.
"You know her as Kim Garrett, but the brave author behind 'Roll With It' was originally named Electra Zane," according to her website. "Born to 'hippie' parents, her moniker illustrated their troubled definition of "normal" and underscored their 'fuzzy, messy' grasp on reality. With an absent, addicted mother, Electra became Kimberly when she was taken in by her no-nonsense grandmother, a rough and tumble Texas bartender whose eccentricities and nonconformist wisdom left a lasting impression on her granddaughter."
Sales from the book support the cause. Garrett said some of the ideas and thoughts in her book come from her grandmother, as well as growing up in Texas.
"Just really simple things like respecting your elders,brpolitical figures and people with authority," she said of the things she learned growing up in Texas. "I'm always shocked by thebrpolitical rants that happen. Even if you dislike an authoritative figure, Ibrgrew up that you still respect them, agree with them or not.
"Throwing trash outbrthe window, my grandmother would have kicked my butt. There's a lot ofbrdisconnect with the Earth and animals. I think we've lost a lot of respect withbrthe simple things."
Garrett said writing the book started out more as a therapeutic outlet, and that most of what she started out writing didn't even make the final cut.
"It's great therapy for anybody - cheap therapy - to just startbrwriting," she shared. "I started writing and most of what I wrote is not in the book because itbrbecame very dark. I wanted it to be a light, whimsical read. It's an uncomfortable thing when you'rebrsharing so much. But it's amazing how awesome it feels to give back [to charity] and see so many goodbrpeople left in the world."
Garrett never lived in California during her Facebook days, but she did travel there a lot. She calls Dallas home with her husband and 9- and 13-year-old sons, who have been a great support system for her and her career path.
"My immediate family, my husband and two boys havebrbeen amazing," she said. "My husband is the best thing that's ever happened to me. He's the solid rock inbrour family. I talk about in the book that it's one of the most important decisions you'll ever make make: who you spend rest of your life with."
Without great support, you cannot have great success, Garrett explained.
Currently, she is serving as CEO of startup company Drip That, while she promotes her book. Her future signing stops include Austin, Texas, and San Francisco. For now, she's looking forward to visiting Southlake.
"I'm really excited to go out that way," she said. "When I go out tobrSouthlake it feels like Fort Worth - like home - because there's so many people outbrthere that I grew up with. I'm excited to see many strangers from my past walk in to hang out."