4 bad habits that highly successful female leaders avoid

Photo credit: Benjamin Child

After graduation from college, I had the opportunity to begin working in sales. It wasn’t glamorous, but it paid the bills. I quickly realized that the best way to improve my performance (and my commissions) was by carefully learning from our most successful sales people. I focused on building meaningful relationships with clients and coworkers.

Between my growing sales and strong relationships, I was considered a prime candidate for promotion to a mid-level, supervisory role. I was shocked when I was called into our Executive Vice-President’s office one day and offered the opportunity to oversee our entire sales operation.

I became the first woman to ever hold the position of Vice President of Sales and Business Development in our company. Along the way, I learned a ton of incredible lessons, and I oftentimes referenced the stories of other successful female pioneers of industry for added guidance.

1. Quitting when times are tough

I look up to Beth Brooke-Marciniak, Global Vice Chair of Public Policy at Ernst & Young. She is a living legend, currently ranked number 94 in Forbes’ list of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women. Whenever I feel like I am facing an insurmountable obstacle, or feel my determination to thrive in my role begin to dim, I would think back to the fact that my struggles are incredibly small compared to what she has overcome.

At 13, Beth was told by her doctors that she would never walk again due to a degenerative hip disease. After corrective surgeries, she had to relearn how to walk. She did much more than just walk. She went on to achieve a strong athletic career, playing Division I basketball in college, according to a recent article in Forbes.

2. Worrying about what others might think

Strength and determination are so incredibly important to long-term success. I was raised in a family with parents that pushed us to be true to ourselves. They encouraged me to try new things and find what inspired me. They never criticized my ambitions; my journey to become the next pop music star is still a work in progress.

By trying new things and meeting new people, I learned about myself and who I am. I still have to remind myself to stay true who I am and forget what others might think. As a leader, I need to be able to confidently make decisions without giving in to self-doubt.

3. Only taking advice and input from certain people

My strategy for overcoming doubt involves an open-door policy that encourages my sales team to come in and speak to me when they disagree with my decisions. I value their respectful, honest feedback. I’ve seen other managers fail after refusing to take advice from those they disagreed with.

Information from a diverse set of sources results in the best decisions. Just make sure the team understands that a final decision, even if they disagree with it, needs to be respected; just as their opinions were respected during the decision-making process.

4. Failing to prioritize the needs of your team over administrative tasks

Due to downsizing and budget cuts, leaders around the country are struggling to keep up with an ever-increasing workload. It’s easy to try and fill your plate with more than you can handle, and then fail to prioritize those items in a way that yields the best possible results. Failing to prioritize and understand the value of your work leads to career-damaging performance.

For me, I find inspiration in a quote from author Sheri L. De: “True leaders understand that leadership is not about them, but about those they serve. It is not about exalting themselves but about lifting others up.” I reflect back on this simple, but powerful quote and prioritize the things on my plate that will help my team reach their full potential. The rest is background noise that can be handled once my team has everything they need to be successful and outperform the competition. I lead best when I am effectively serving them.

Tenacity, strength of character, open-mindedness and prioritization are keys to becoming a strong leader

Leadership isn’t about barking orders and demanding respect. It’s about helping others achieve greatness, thereby earning their respect and loyalty. To lead, you need to be upfront, overcome obstacles and exhibit the behaviors you want your team to emulate. Remain open to outside voices and respect the opinions of your team. Demand the same respect for your decisions.

As women are still woefully under-represented in the top echelons of our society, I feel that my role as a female executive in her late 20s is one that needs to be held to an even higher standard than my colleagues. I feel the weight of the legacy left behind by the incredible women that have come before me, and have proven that it’s possible to succeed in a man’s world. I only hope that I can live up to their incredible standards.