I’ve
seen many rules for successful women that fall flat (…be confident!
ignore naysayers! wear red!...) But Tara Mohr created several concepts
that resonated more deeply. Perhaps it’s the different angle of bringing
out personal brilliance (our unique, exceptional talent) compared with
being successful (accomplishment of an aim.) The rules below are hers,
comments are mine.
1. Imagine it. What does a
knock-the-ball-out-of-the-park life look like for you? What is the
career that seems so incredible you think it’s almost criminal to have
it? What is the dream you don’t allow yourself to even consider because
it seems too unrealistic, frivolous, or insane? Start envisioning it.
That’s the beginning of having it.
- HLS comment: Expressing our brilliance means living authentically.
Part of this expression may be repressed through habitually making safe
choices. Tim Ferriss, author of The 4 Hour Workweek, offers
another take on this. He writes that answering “what do you want” or
“what are your goals” is too imprecise to produce a meaningful and
actionable answer. A more effective question is “what would excite me.”
Check out his Dreamlining exercises to dig in – “the harder it is, the more you need it.”
2. Gasp. Start doing things that make you gasp
and get the adrenalin flowing. Ask yourself, “What’s the gasp-level
action here?” Your fears and a tough inner critic will chatter in your
head. That’s normal, and just fine. When you hear that repetitive,
irrational, mean inner critic, name it for what it is, and remember,
it’s just a fearful liar, trying to protect you from any real or seeming
risks. Go for the gasps and learn how false your inner critic’s
narrative really is, and how conquerable your fears.
- HLS comment: One way to kick start this is through sports or
physical activities, where the exertion can truly get the adrenaline
flowing while training the mind. I ride horses and have worked through
dealing with major mental fear in the ring and hunt field. The problems
are usually in my head and working it out physically (sweat!) as well as
mentally reinforces the lesson learned.
3. Be an arrogant idiot. Of
course I know you won’t, because you never could. But please, just be a
little more of an arrogant idiot. You know those guys around the office
who share their opinions without thinking, who rally everyone around
their big, (often unformed) ideas? Be more like them. Even if just a
bit. You can afford to move a few inches in that direction.
- HLS comment: Think of it as passionately sharing your ideas simply
because you believe in them. The bigger the better: "Ask for everything,
because nothing less is worth having. People are drawn to big ideas and
big adventures more passionately than to small ones." - The Princessa: Machiavelli for Women by Harriet Rubin
4. Question the voice that says “I’m not ready yet.”
I know, I know. Because you are so brilliant and have such high
standards, you see every way that you could be more qualified. You
notice every part of your idea that is not perfected yet. While you are
waiting to be ready, gathering more experience, sitting on your ideas,
our friend are being anointed industry visionaries, getting raises, and
seeing their ideas come to life in the world. They are no more ready
than you, and perhaps less. Jump in the sandbox now, and start playing
full out. Find out just how ready you are.
- HLS comment: Key phrase is ‘playing full out’ – one of my favorite
terms. Once you have a direction, commitment and are in action you
realize that you create the readiness through doing.
5. Don’t wait for your Oscar. Don’t wait to be
praised, anointed, or validated. Don’t wait for someone to give you
permission to lead. Don’t wait for someone to invite you to share your
voice. No one is going to discover you. (Well, actually, they will, but
paradoxically, only after you’ve started boldly and consistently
stepping into leadership, sharing your voice, and doing things that
scare the hell out of you.)
- HLS comment: Wherever you are is the perfect starting place for this
attitude. I've also found working in early stage companies is a great
incubator of this behavior. Many have cultures that expect and support
this level of stepping up.
Written by
Jenna Goudreau, Forbes
Today I had the great pleasure of speaking at The Innovation Enterprises’ 2013 Women in Strategy Summit,
which brings together 75 high-level women in marketing and strategy,
about the leadership secrets of the world’s most powerful women. With
women comprising just 4% of corporate CEOs, 14% of executive officers
and 20% of America’s government officials, we’re facing a persistent
leadership gap at the highest echelons. To move forward, we must first
take stock of what is working. The following eight leadership lessons, synthesized and updated from a keynote I gave last year, come directly from the women who know what it takes to get to the top.
Stay Determined
The world’s most successful women really want it–and remain
determined even in the face of obstacles. They have the skills, and they
put the time in. But more importantly, they have the desire to do
something great. Beth Brooke, global vice chair of Ernst & Young,
was diagnosed with a degenerative hip disease at age 13 and was told by
doctors she may never walk again. Before going into surgery she
promised herself she would walk—no, she would run—and aspired to become
one of the best young athletes the world had seen. Not only did she
walk, she went on to play several varsity sports at her high school,
earned multiple MVP awards, and later played Division I
basketball in college. She made up her mind, and she didn’t quit. She
brought that same determination to her career and today ranks among the 100 most powerful women in the world.
Be Courageous
Women at the top aren’t fearless. They move toward their fear to continually challenge themselves. That takes courage. In 2011, Beth Mooney, CEO of KeyCorp, became the first woman ever to lead a top-20 bank in the U.S. Mooney began her career as a secretary at a local Texas bank,
making just $10,000 a year, but soon realized she wanted something
more. In 1979, she knocked on the door of every big bank in Dallas and
asked for a spot in their management training programs. At the Republic
Bank of Dallas, she refused to leave the manager’s office until he
offered her a job. After waiting for three hours, he finally agreed to
give her a chance if she earned an MBA by night.
That was a turning point in her career, one of many, powered by a
courageous call to action—to champion herself and what she knew she was
capable of. Later, she had the courage to move into roles she’d never
done before, to pick up and move across the country, and to stick with
it for three decades. If you’re not a little bit scared every day,
you’re not learning. And when you’re not learning, you’re done.
In order to achieve big success, you have to have big impact. When Michelle Gass,
who is now leading 33 countries for Starbucks, started at the coffee
chain, she was asked to architect a growth strategy for a just-launched
drink called the Frappuccino. Her mantra: “Let’s think of how big this
can be.” After countless hours testing ideas, she decided to position it
as an escapist treat and added ice cream parlor fixings and new
flavors. What began as a two-flavor side item is now a $2 billion
platform with tens of thousands of possible combinations. Gass repeated
her go-big-or-go-home strategy when she took over Seattle’s Best Coffee.
She decided to take the sleepy little-sister brand to new heights by
partnering with Burger King, Delta, Subway, convenience stores and
supermarkets. In one year, the brand exploded from 3,000 distribution
points to over 50,000.
Take Calculated Risks
As CEO of Kraft Foods and now Mondelez International, Irene Rosenfeld is very familiar with
this one. A couple years ago she completed a hostile takeover of
British candy company Cadbury. Not long after, she surprised the
business community again with a plan to split Kraft into two separate
companies, a North American foods company and a global snacks company.
To move the needle, you have to make a big bets—but never rash—always
based on a careful study of the outcomes. You have to know what you have
to gain, and if you can afford to take the hit if it doesn’t go your
way.
Remain Disciplined
It takes discipline to achieve and maintain success. You simply can’t
do everything, and the world’s most powerful women stay focused on the
areas that will have the biggest impact—from both a leadership
perspective and a career management perspective. Sheri McCoy, the new
CEO of struggling Avon Products,
is currently implementing a huge turnaround at the century-old beauty
company. Interestingly, when I asked what the biggest challenge would
be, she said:
“Making sure people stay focused on what’s important and what matters
most.” It is very easy to get distracted by new trends, new markets, new
projects—but when you extend yourself too far, the quality of your work
suffers across the board.
Hire Smart
Over and over again women at the top say their best strategy for
success is to hire people who are diverse, passionate and smarter than
themselves–and then listen closely to their perspectives. Hala Moddelmog,
president of Arby’s Restaurant Group, believes surrounding yourself
with people of different backgrounds—including gender, race, geography,
socio-economic and personality types—will help round out your
conclusions. “You really don’t need another you,” she says. Similarly,
staying open to different viewpoints keeps you ahead of the curve. Claire Watts,
the CEO of retail and media company QVC, schedules open door times
every Tuesday, so that anyone in the company who wants to come talk to
her, ask her a question or share something they’ve noticed can do it
then.
Manage Your Career
Denise Morrison, the CEO of Campbell’s Soup, knew from a very young age she wanted to eventually run a company,
so she asked herself what are the kinds of things I need to do to
prepare for that? That might mean management experience, global exposure
or revenue responsibility. She always looked at her career as: Where
have I been? Where am I now? Where am I going, and what are the right
assignments to get there? If her current company would work with her to
deliver those assignments, she was all-in. But if it didn’t, she knew
she needed to move on. “We apply these skills in business, and yet when
it comes to ourselves we rarely apply them,” she said.
Delegate At Work And At Home
The most successful women have learned that they have to have help,
and they have to have faith in the people around them—at work and at
home. It’s not easy, but it’s critical over the long-term. Katie Taylor,
the CEO of hotel brand Four Seasons, admitted to
me that she is a bit of control freak, but for the good of her and
everyone around her, she tries to delegate. “Sit on your hands, if you
have to,” she said. “Get yourself to that place.”
