Most importantly, high-achieving women should not follow their tendencies to always tough things out on their own. They need their coaches, mentors and communities of practice to provide sounding boards and critical eyes to help them be successful leaders. The time spent with these people is as important as the time they spend on their work. Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. If they are truly committed to creating the amazing results that impact the workplace and beyond, then they need to know how to access and use the wisdom of others.
In his book, Managing People is Like Herding Cats, Warren Bennis (1997) said,
“We all face the great challenge to discover our native abilities and to invent and reinvent ourselves throughout life. To be authentic is literally to be your own author, to discover your native energies and desires, and then to find your own way of acting on them. When you’ve done that, you do not exist simply to live to an image posited by the culture, family tradition, or some other authority. When you write your own life, you play the game that is natural for you to play. You keep covenant with your own promise.”
And as JE said in her interview,
“I know now what drives me is leading the life that I know I’m meant to lead, which includes my spirituality, how I am as a wife, how I am as a mother and how I am as a leader. I want to stand true and know that I’m good enough, and that I provide value whether or not somebody sees it. Success for me is not having to prove myself anymore.”
