Lead like a lady.
“The reality is that the only way change comes is when you Lead by example.”- Anna Wojcicki
What exactly does the world lead mean to you? It implies clarity in every letter of the word! A leader is someone one turns to regardless of age or title. Leaders unapologetically stand up for what they believe in, even if their views aren’t accepted or really popular. They believe in what they stand for. It is important for us as female leaders to recognize the women who have achieved something in their lives. It needn’t be the names I’ve listed in this writing. It could simply be the neighbor next door or the girl behind the cash counter in a mall. It could be the waitress in a restaurant or the homemaker who contributes to an NGO for each of them believe in doing something beyond their identity to express themselves. They embrace the strength that comes from their femininity. Leaders help other women to celebrate their success, rather than trying to push them down. From that space, Lead for me means the following:
Learn-Learn everything you have to about your role, your team, your audience/clients, your people, your field and equip yourself to be the best possible in whatever you do. That will get you the leverage you want and you will not have to prove yourself as woman then, as the Learning would be your leverage/leap into where you want to go. I can proudly say, I have learnt a lot in my 25 years of career that I had. Lots of valuable lessons as both a human being and a woman too! What are you learning at this point in life?
Empower/Evolve-Empower others and you will become a leader as you will then evolve in the being of a leader, rather than the doing of a leader! Empowerment leads to evolution long term. Empower your team gets them ready when you move up the value chain; it earns you respect as your people grow along with you. In my last two roles, of my corporate stint, my success was a result of me empowering my team, sometimes giving them a free hand to learn their lessons, other times mentoring them to evolve as managers/leaders themselves.
Ambition/Accountability-It’s good to be ambitious and as women we are allowed to be that too. Ambition implies that you got the desire to do what it takes in the world to realize your dreams. However, remember it comes with accountability. Which means if you fail, you take complete responsibility for what you do. I’ve always been the ambitious kind who wanted to make it big. My ambition has been to be a successful woman who reflects the best qualities that are a blend of likes of Mother Theresa, Indra Nooyi, Marcia Reynolds, Kamala Harris, Melinda Gates, Mary Barra to name a few. When I die, I will be known as Parineeta who was compassionate, kind, fiery , go getter and a strong woman who never gave up till she reached her destination and walked the talk to ‘live her purpose’ of being in service of empowering others and igniting the fire within! What about you? What’s your ambition?
Destination-The end goal post should be clear in your mind. Where is this going to take you at the end and is it what you want? The journey is of course, more important than the final destination. However, if the destination is not clear, then the road will be full of learning and delays that may cost you your dream. Dreams lead to the destination. You must stay on track and use the gifts of balance, courage, grit, compassion, determination, integrity and strong mind that you are gifted by virtue of being a woman. Use them as your compass to drive you to your north star and be an
individual who ‘leads by example.’ Lady, you got what it takes so lead ahead and share your story here for the world to know you too!!
About the Author
Parineeta Mehra
PURPOSE COACH: I enable and support Individuals & Teams to identify and work with their purpose. I explore, engage, empower others| PCC-Deep Coaching & Hogan Certified.
