Gina DeLapa
TOPIC-
Changing Back To School Stress into Success
About Gina DeLapa
Gina DeLapa grew up in a small Midwestern town, as the youngest of four kids. She
credits her work ethic to her entrepreneurial parents and her love for classic rock to
her three older brothers. Her Midwest family raised a few eyebrows as she headed to
Southern California in 2001to pursue a Masters degree in counseling. But she brought
her new skills home and became a full-time career counselor at Grand Valley State
University in Allendale, Michigan.
Bitten by the writing bug, Gina served as the editor of two national newsletters, Loose
Change and Four Bits, a money columnist for Grand Rapids Magazine, and a career
columnist for RelevantMagazine.com and CollegeJournal.com, now part of The Wall
Street Journal.
In 2001, following the release of her first book, 401(k) Success Stories, Gina figured out
she was not put on Earth to write about retirement plans. As a business writer, she was
always interviewing experts—now it was time to become one.
Five years later, she transitioned back to San Diego and began a five-year adjunct
faculty role at her alma mater, while traveling the country to teach business etiquette to
new college grads. Her clients included Deutsche Bank, Moss Adams, and Grand Valley
State University.
Permanently set in Southern California, Gina, contends she will reach either success
or oblivion as creator of the Stuff You Already Know series. The series started as
random notes in a red leather notebook with words of wisdom she wanted to record for
her nephew, Adam. The journal soon turned into a manuscript, the manuscript became
a book, the book turned into a series, and the series became Gina’s full-time career. She
has never been happier.
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