Leadership is how to be, not just how to do

- What type of leader does the world really need you to be today? So I've been studying leaderships since the earliest ages. I read Dale Carnegie, Tony Robbins, anything I could get my hands on at the library. And it wasn't until I went to college at the University of Pittsburgh and ran for my first formal leadership role, student government president, that an advisor gave me the first leadership book that had a woman's face on it's cover. And that woman was Frances Hesselbein. She was the former CEO of the Girl's Scouts of the United States of America. She also is the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. That's the highest honor you can have as a civilian in our country. And she was awarded it because of being a pioneer for women, for diversity, and for volunteerism. So for me, that spoke to the leadership values that I so desperately wanted to embody, but didn't really have a role model that was in arms length to really look up to. And here's Frances, someone that graduated from the same school I'd gone to, also grew up in Pennsylvania, and it had such deep meaning to me. The other reason why it meant so much to me and why it's so important as you think about your leadership journey is that you don't need to have a title to be a leader. It really is about the values that you embody. So I grew up in Pennsylvania and for a chunk of my childhood it was just my mom and I, and I had big dreams. I wanted to live in New York City and be this business professional. Well my mom had gone from being an inner city school teacher to holding down a number of different secretarial jobs. Ultimately logging miles, earning her pilot's license, and breaking into the air traffic industry just to really launch us into a brighter future and start this new chapter in our lives. This was a completely male dominated and traditional industry. So she does this and again, she has this daughter who has all these big dreams, but my mom didn't know anybody that lived in New York City or wore business suits. So she enrolled me in after school leadership programs like the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., Hugh O'Brian Youth Foundation. And that's where I met professionals like you! Working men and women that could open up the door for me. Tell me how to get into college. How to break into whatever industry I was interested in. And so, Frances really being that tie and her leadership values that anybody can show up and offer that kind of inspiration and be that resonant for others really meant so much to me. And so it's been a part of my journey all of my life is really serving and being a part of these organizations. So what I also discovered in the world of work is that today, more than ever, we're working with a lot of different people. We have more generations living and working than ever before. Three dominate the workplace. Baby boomers, millennials, and gen x. And we have more diversity, race, ethnicity. The millennial generation almost half identify with a race or ethnicity that's non white. All these points of difference give us the opportunity to unlock innovation. But to be the type of leader that builds trust that truly inspires, but also drives results. That is one of the most challenging and one of the most rewarding journeys you can ever embark on. And so, I want this course to really give you the tools to dig your heels in, and be that courageous leader. Not just for yourself so that you can get what you deserve, but that you can open up the doors for others.