GUTS or TITLE?... What it takes to be a GREAT LEADER

As a successful woman in business, I get asked about my secret to success a lot. Usually by someone that's around 20 years old and fresh out of college or someone that wants to know how I did it twice.

This time it was a young woman working in IT.

"First you founded, ran, built, grew, and sold for a pretty penny an international business intelligence company in a male dominated field and retired before you were 40. Now you've started the Platform Experts and you're speaking around the world. I'll have whatever you're drinking" she chuckled.

In two sentences she summed up my career and then asked me the question that gave me pause.

"So, What's the BIG SECRET to your success?"

Wow! One BIG SECRET is pretty tough and I had to think about it. But if I really really had to come up with one big secret it would be this: create contrast.

So many people go with the flow, do what is everyone else does, become a corporate culture lemming, and dare not ask "WHY?" or "WHY NOT!"

The funny thing is that they expect something that they are not willing to do. They demand great customer service but forget to be amazing customers. They expect their emails to answered immediately, but they don't respond immediately and honestly to every email. They want honest feedback but lack the courage to give it. They make promises to get something done, and then have to be reminded 10 times to do it. They trust everyone else's opinion and give their own little weight.

It's really not a big change. Just small curious and courageous baby steps.

One great example of creating contrast was when my friend Doug, a Fortune 5 executive, had to write an article for the newsletter about his views on leadership and his leadership style. He asked me to take a look at his article, provide some feedback, and help with the direction. Doug basically delivered a book report about leadership.

I asked him, "Why are you writing this article?"

He said, "Because its an assignment".

"OH! In that case you are fine. By the way, who is going to read this article?" I asked.

Doug said, "It will go out to all the XCo employees world wide. It's kind of a big deal."

Now I was pissed. "And your response to a big deal is to deliver a bullshit book report? Not stand out from the crowd, not show who you are, but to squander this opportunity by delivering a book report? Is your goal to let everyone know that you can read?"

He said, "That is why I called you. Perspective, truth, and fire under my ass."

Doug told me a story about how afraid he was when he first became a leader and how he desperately wanted to do well. He continued to tell me that his driving force was that he wanted to be able to go home everyday and tell his son something that he did to be a great leader. He wanted to be a good example.

My first thought was, "Well don't ever let your son read that bullshit book report article".

I said, "Doug, that is your story. Not some book report. It is your fears, your flaws, your successes, and your reasons for being a great leader everyday that people want to know about. Something that you can show your son when he gets older,"

He said, "But that is not what everyone else did so I'm scared."

I said, "Which is the perfect reason to include that fear in your article".

Doug got the point. If you are going to do the work the make sure that it matters.

Although he was terrified he wrote the article. Actually he wrote two; one that went with the flow and the one I suggested. They chose the personal article. Doug said that three senior executives have that article framed on their wall. People still ask him about it regularly and it has been mentioned in leadership conferences at his company.

Doug told me that his colleagues still joke that he set the bar high and they're having a hard time matching his work.

Doug is a prime example that when you have the courage and confidence to go against the flow you will stand out from the rest - you will create contrast.

What you can do right now.

You have done great work. When that great work doesn't get you the amazing results that you deserve it is because your great work lacks contrast. If you really want to stand out - look at what everyone else is doing and have the guts to distinguish yourself, to take the risks that reap the big rewards, and create contrast.

Who's Dawnna?

Check out Doug's before and after article here.