A little more from the PA Women’s Conference:
After the opening keynotes, I attended a talk given by Betsy Myers titled, “Take the Lead: Motivate, Inspire, and Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Everyone Around You.” Myers, known for her work with the Clinton and Obama administrations, founded the Center for Women and Business at Bentley University and has just published a book under the same title as her talk at the conference.
Myers illustrated the components of being an effective leader in the workplace. The number one reason why people are not happy in the workplace is because of their relationship with their immediate boss. Myers wondered what was going wrong. How was it that some leaders commanded respect and still got work done, while others were hated? She shared with us the three key beliefs of leadership:
- Be rigorous in your pursuit of knowledge. Honest self-reflection and reliable “truth tellers” in your life will help you learn.
- Be willing to ask the questions. Leaders can’t have all the answers.
- Leaders bring out the productive feeling in themselves and their people. We are human beings first, and our feelings determine our motivation, engagement, and how we connect. When people feel valued, supported, appreciated, and understood, they do their best work.
Other components of success as a leader include the following principles: authenticity, connection, respect, learning, clarity, connection, and most of all, courage. She left us with the idea that these principles are the “road map to getting yourself to feel the feelings and those around you. Leadership is messy. There’s no exact way to do it… that’s what kinda makes it fun. Get in there and enjoy the process. Sometimes if we skin our knees, that’s okay. That’s how we learn.”
Though I wasn’t sure if I would get much out of this talk (initially, I thought it would be too career/in-the-office-focused), I was pleasantly surprised by how applicable these principles are to everyday life. I would consider myself a leader in my Women’s Studies class, by being brave enough to be authentic, speaking up for what I believe in. I’m a leader in my role as Assistant Director for Great Valley Middle School’s annual musicals, not only to the children I teach, but hopefully to my colleagues as well. I’m a leader at my part-time retail job, connecting with others, making sure to ask questions, taking initiative, being real. It was a valuable session to sit in on, and I’m so grateful I had the chance to hear the charismatic and intelligent Ms. Myers speak.
Keep questioning,
Sara
P.S. Excuse the horrible iPhone picture… it’s only one I have of Betsy!
