Hometown: Boston, MA
Occupation: PR Consultant

Dawn, 33, currently heads up Red Wagon Communications, a marketing and PR agency, and is founder of The Secret Socialite, an organization that coordinates special events for philanthropic young professionals. She is an active freelance writer and a contributing editor for "Boston magazine." Dawn teaches writing and copyediting at Emerson College, where she completed graduate study in publishing and writing, earning an MFA degree and a nomination for Best Master's Thesis for her book-length collection of non-fiction vignettes. She earned her bachelor's degree in public relations from Syracuse's Newhouse School. Dawn is a Mensa member and a volunteer for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

When will you consider yourself "a success"?
I don't always find a lot of satisfaction in what people typically define as being successful, so I strive for it in other ways that are more meaningful to me. My definition of success is being able to identify what's important to me and then putting myself in a position to enjoy and appreciate those things. For me, that includes maintaining a healthy work-life balance, being able to spend enough quality time with the people I care about, and recognizing when my body is telling me to slow down. My measure of success depends on what my goals are and how often those goals change, but by my definition, it's safe to say I feel successful at something at any given point, whether it's work-related or personal.

How would you describe your leadership style?
I try to be a participative leader, rather than authoritative. Although I think it's important for a leader to provide structure to the group and maintain the final decision-making authority, it can beneficial to include others in the decision-making process, especially in situations where the leader and the group members each hold some-but not all-knowledge required to complete the job. When I can help the group feel like part of a team, provide support and concern for their individual needs, and empower them to engage in the decision-making process, I usually see consistently positive results and group members are more satisfied with their job - a win-win situation.

How do you deal with personal and professional challenges?
Every challenge is different, so it's important to assess each situation and determine the appropriate course of action.

What, in your opinion, is the most important quality to have in order to succeed in life and why?
To succeed in life, you can't be paralyzed by fear of failure. If you're afraid to assume some level of risk because you're unsure of the outcome, you'll never know how things could have turned out. Failure is one of life's greatest teachers.

What's more important: College Education or Real World Experience?
There are brilliant people who never went to college, either because they didn't have the means, or because maybe at age 17 or 18 they couldn't be convinced of its value. On the other hand, there are plenty of educated people with no common sense, so it really is a crapshoot. I suppose it's not so much where you get your education, but what you make of it.

Have any previous Apprentice winners motivated or inspired you?
The one thing I remember most from any episode of The Apprentice is when Tana referred to her team as The Three Stooges. It was difficult for me to not root for Kendra based on the fact that Tana didn't respect and appreciate every speck of effort her team made for her and for no personal gain of their own.

How do you combine your creativity with your business savvy?
If I do things just like everyone else does, the work gets boring and predictable. Too often people skimp on the brainstorming part of projects. In my work, it's the foundation, so putting as much thought as possible into coming up with a good, creative plan before hitting the ground running is critical. Having a plan is an essential element of business, but having a plan that is well thought out, organized, and creative sets you apart from the competition.

Faves;
Music: I can't discriminate here. I have a huge and diverse musical collection spanning many genres. Different types of music speak to me at different times.
Books: The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien; Jesus' Son, by Denis Johnson
TV: Too many to list.
Movies: The Shawshank Redemption, The Game, Old School, American Psycho

Another MENSA member? Miss Martha sure does like them... anyways, Dawn seems to have the same smarmy attitude that Martha embodies, but I'm not sure that the skills that she has are what Miss Martha will need.