Inspiring Lives Magazine Spring 2017: Issue 4 | Page 31
I
f I believed anyone who told me it
was impossible to go from being a
single mother of four children under
seven years old while on welfare to
getting hired as a CEO, it might
have dragged me down. So I didn’t
ask anybody if they thought I'd suc-
ceed. I just went about my work and
goals as if I could not fail.
Over the last 20 years I have led organiza-
tions with up to $26 million in assets. I in-
creased trade show attendance 150% my first
year as executive director of a trade association.
I led a campaign to add a patient pavilion and
healing garden when people said, “That will
never happen.” And I led a $10.4 million cap-
ital campaign for a heart center, new ER, and
Women’s and Infants’ Center on
the heels of the largest hospital
bankruptcy in U.S. history.
“Impossible” is just a lofty word
thrown around by people who
play it safe. It is a notion to believe
that just because something isn’t
mainstream or the norm it cannot
be done. More significantly, it is
a trigger message laid down from
previous experience by well-mean-
ing people who wanted to protect
you from disappointment. “Don’t
take this risk because you will fail
and be hurt.” Impossible is not a fact. It is an
opinion. It's nothing.
All the leaders I coach want the same thing:
to encourage their teams, clients, and customers
to take action. An engaging presence happens
when you align your intention with your atten-
tion and emotions. This results in the balance
of fear and hope. But how do you take yourself
to the edge of where your comfort zone meets
revolution to have that balanced presence? Ev-
erybody likes to feel comfortable. You want to
grow, innovate, and soar with eagles, but some-
times when you do, your comfort zone clips your
wings right at takeoff.
You know the feeling of imminent success:
it’s when you sense that adrenaline thrill and a
twinge of fear at exactly the same moment. You
are excited to see what happens next. You have
the confidence to jump off the cliff of security
and know that you will fly and not descend to
the ground like Wile E. Coyote. You have a
clear line of sight to the horizon even though
you are not sure what is there. The destination
need not be in vivid view. You just know you
will get there.
I never saw being successful as impossible. I
didn’t even see it as a dare. I saw it as inevitable.
I was mindful of my goal, which was to be suc-
cessful in the shortest time possible. I had four
children who were hungry and needed an edu-
cation. Failure was not an option.
The path to centered leadership
is not linear. Leaders zig-zag ev-
ery day. Lean in to the questions
that arise along the way. Squeeze
into that space between “I’m not
sure” and “I am really excited” to
uncover opportunity. Allow your
questions to lead you down the
path. Don’t seek answers. Just
listen. Solutions will come into
view when you are completely
open and vulnerable to them. You
need not have it all figured out.
Self-awareness is your guide, not anxiety. Al-
low discomfort to be part of the process. Don’t
run from it, or it will run your life.
Pause, and be curious about the journey.
Who is there? What is important? Meaning
is right in front of you. When you play it safe,
meaning has no one to soar with.
Disappointment is the result of unmet ex-
pectations. I focus on goals and outcomes in
my work because that is how we measure and
retool. I do not expect to control the process of
how I get there. I do plan—then allow innova-
tion to unfold and trust the process along the
way. I need not control everything.
“Impossible”
is just a lofty
word thrown
around by
people who
play it safe.”