What is Guiding You?

Young Amani in the Big Apple

Many of you know my journey as a young college graduate. I decided not to go to law school and instead interned at a hip-hop label Def Jam Recordings . Eventually, I secured an entry-level job after interning for three months, and I wanted to be “where the action was,” which, in my mind, was the New York office. After persistently reaching out (aka relentlessly bugging him) to Kevin Liles or months, he finally called me on a Friday afternoon and told me to pack my bags because he had a job for me in the New York office. I was on a redeye flight to JFK that Sunday.

I didn’t know anyone in New York other than Kevin, and I was scared. Before the move, I had never spent any time in New York, so I was really a “foreigner in foreign lands.” I vividly remember one day after a particularly challenging day at the office, I came back to my hotel (where I stayed for months until I finally found an apartment) feeling completely defeated. I stared at myself in the mirror, questioning my decision to come to New York. After many tears, I pulled myself together and said, “Amani, you are going to be all right. Dig deep, ignore what people may say about you, continue to work hard, and build your reputation because people rarely fire success.” I drew deeply on the firm foundation my amazing parents had grounded me upon, my faith, and sheer luck. Reading this quote by motivational speaker and author John Rohn reminds me of those early years:

“Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.”

That sad and raw conversation with “young Amani” was the first of many conversations I had with myself over the years. With each one, it became clear to me that I needed to define the things I was going to hold myself accountable to in order not to “lose myself” to the “glitz” and “false glamour” of the industry I was working in. I realized that these things would evolve into my Guiding Principles.

Guiding Principles

I recently had a conversation with someone about creating their guiding principles, and I shared mine. The person said to me, “Wow, it’s so impressive that you can state your guiding principles so quickly.” I never thought about it in that way because my guiding principles have become simply who I am. They are the characteristics that I hold myself accountable to as a human being, as a wife, as a professional, and as a woman of faith. I’ve spent countless hours defining and identifying what my guiding principles are, and over the years, I’ve refined them because, as you grow, your principles evolve.

So you might be wondering, what are my guiding principles? Here they are:

Amani’s Guiding Principles:

• Transparency
• Authenticity
• Integrity
• Humility
• Grace

Lead with Humility

I make it a practice to check in every quarter to ensure I’m living up to my guiding principles. When I do something I’m not proud of, I go back to my firm foundation, which is my guiding principles, and hold myself accountable. There have been times when I stumbled often, situations where I did not act with integrity or authenticity. I’ve come to learn that humility is really important. I believe humility is not thinking less of yourself but rather thinking of yourself less. As leaders, imagine how strong your team will become if you lead with humility.

So my Muse, I ask you, what are your guiding principles? Do you see the value in creating them if you don’t already have them established? It could be an illuminating exercise, and you may uncover things about yourself that you want to strengthen or even eliminate from your leadership style.

Go forth and be great. I’ll be rooting for you, always. And as always, if you would like to connect 1:1, you can find me at The NORTH by Female Founder Collective . Book a session with me today.

Musically yours,

Amani D.