5 Years, 5 Lessons

I recently passed my five-year anniversary as CEO at Girl Scouts of Central Texas. It’s been a sometimes-challenging (thanks, COVID) and a remarkably rewarding five years (thanks, Girl Scouts, who serve as a constant reminder of why I’m here). I'm marking my first five years by reflecting on the top five things I've learned.

#1 If you feel stuck in your career, it takes work to get unstuck.

I had a mostly happy and successful career as a management consultant. I was a partner in the firm where I worked. I could help our clients and my colleagues with some amount of ease. I adored my coworkers—they were smart, fun, driven people. But in my last couple of years, I recognized that I no longer had the same energy and excitement about the work as I had when I started. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do next. I was stuck.

Two things helped me get unstuck: a little bit of therapy and the book Designing Your Life . Therapy helped me identify the barriers I had put up for myself (which weren’t all that real when examined), and it helped me clarify my priorities. Designing Your Life helped me name what I liked and was good at and instructed me on how to build these things into a new career.

#2 We rise by lifting others. AKA purpose eats profit for breakfast.

As a management consultant, I loved helping young consultants develop into problem-solving, client-serving leaders and I loved helping my clients. But I became weary helping young consultants feel a broad sense of purpose in their work. I told them to focus on the differences we were making for our clients, but it was often tough to see a through line to making the world a better place.

At Girl Scouts, our purpose is clear, it is important, and it is shared. Our mission is to build girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. We know and believe in this mission. When your work team is aligned on its purpose, it makes the strategy, planning, and culture work easier. I am grateful to have a worthy purpose where I can apply my superpowers.

#3 People-first leadership works (x 2).

In Good to Great, Jim Collins stresses the importance of who before what. Getting the right people in the right seats on the bus is the most important task a leader can tackle to improve the likelihood of success.

This is true at Girl Scouts X 2. It takes our staff and our thousands of volunteers to deliver on our mission. When I came to Girl Scouts, I underestimated the complexity of working with so many constituents. I’ve learned that the same people-first leadership style I have employed for staff works for volunteers, too. A few principles that apply regardless of whether you have role power (can hire and fire) someone:

• Assume positive intent. When conflicts arise, consider that all parties are likely pursing what’s best based on their own understanding, and are likely not out to get you.
• Seek to understand. Don’t jump to conclusions. Be curious. Ask questions.
• People who feel connection and belonging perform better.
• We’re a team, not a family. Unconditional love does not apply. In the case where there’s someone who’s bringing everyone down around them, they don’t get to stay.
• Relationships are key. Get to know the whole person. Be interested in what interests them.

#4. Learning fuels me, and I still have lots to learn.

I consumed more content through articles, books, podcasts, and webinars in the last five years than I did in the first twenty of my career. I also met and talked with more people outside of my bubble than ever before.

While I was able to consume lots of short bits of content, I realized that I didn’t have as much time for deep learning. Inspired by Bill Gates’ Think Week , I adopted a practice of a twice-yearly, two-night thinking and reading retreat with a friend and fellow nonprofit CEO. In one of the first retreats, I brought 15 books. I keep a list in Goodreads of books I hear about and do targeted research to find books on the topic I’m interested in.

I check out most books from the library, and start by reading the intro, table of contents, and conclusions of each book. If the book sparks my interest, I read it, taking notes as I go. With the dedicated focus of the retreat, I usually make it through about 10 books each time. My friend and I meet up for meals, discussing and exploring what we learned. Regardless of how quickly I can apply the material, I have learned that there’s always room to learn and do better.

#5. Why. What. How.

As management consultant, I thought I understood the importance of change management. I studied and applied frameworks, created change management plans, and helped clients communicate about transformation initiatives. And yet, I underestimated the need for change management in an organization as large as Girl Scouts of Central Texas.

After my first goof when I announced a change and got mountains of pushback, a coach I was working with reminded me of the importance of starting with “why.” Since then, I’ve had a post-It note on my monitor that says “Why. What. How.” One of the most important parts of my role is leading the organization through transformation. I have learned to talk about the “why” we’re doing something long before talking about “what” the change is.

Five years at Girl Scouts of Central Texas has flown by, and it’s the people around me who have made these five years meaningful and fun. Shout outs to my team at GSCTX who are the best collaborators, the Girl Scouts (including those in my house) who live the mission, our Board of Directors who are the best supporters, the troop leaders and volunteers who do the hard work and keep me honest (especially my sister the troop leader), my executive assistant who keeps the trains running, my peers at other Girl Scout councils and GSUSA who are always willing to help, Amy who is the best masterminder, Jes DeShields and Crescent Leadership for onboarding and continued leadership excellence, and my husband to whom I owe millions of dollars in consulting fees.