Late last year and earlier this year, I conducted nearly 70 in-depth interviews and talked to over 100 professionals about where they are and where they want to go. One of the most common threads I heard was this: people feel stuck because of the background noise. The quiet things they say to themselves. The limiting beliefs they tie to their identity.
Yesterday, I had a meaningful conversation with an executive I deeply respect. We reflected on advice he gave me two decades ago—advice rooted in his time and experience. He told me, back then, that if I wanted to grow, be accepted, be acknowledged, and excel, I needed to conform. I’ve never forgotten that moment, and I’ve never followed that advice.
Even back then, I told him: “I’m going to do me. I’m going to show up in a way that honors God, and I’ll accept the consequences of that choice.”
And I’ve done just that. Not to be disruptive for disruption’s sake. Not to reject structure, but to bring my full self into it. I believe leadership isn’t about shrinking to fit in—it’s about expanding the frame so others can grow with you.
The more comfortable you get with your own voice—your strengths, your flaws, your values—the more powerfully you can show up in the world. So many leaders tell themselves the wrong stories about who they have to be in order to be successful. I’ve just always chosen to do it my way.