Women In Leadership

Sree Menon

Take Care of Yourself

• Physically, Emotionally and Mentally

• People around you count on you and your energy levels

• Live in the moment

Because if you don’t then who will?

Get Rid of Guilt – A woman’s curse‘Show me a Woman with no guilt and I will show you a man’- Madeline Albright

• Perfection is in its imperfection

• Be present – whether at home, or at work

• You can achieve it all- But not all at once

Build Relationships

• Network, Network, Network

• Ask what you can do for others as they can do for you

• Have a Non-transactional view on relationships & networking

We are in the people business

Be Direct

• Differentiate between action, impact and your emotions about it

• It’s ok to be emotional and vulnerable – but a healthy mix with logic and data is advisable

• Stand up for yourself and be heard

Make sure to communicate – Don’t hold back

Learn Constantly

• If you have stopped learning you must be dead

• Learn about your field, related fields, unrelated fields – always expanding your horizon

• Watch leaders, people you admire and those you don’t -learn from their actions and inactions

Even if it’s what not to do

Authenticity with self control

• Authenticity is the most important, leadership & life , quality characteristic

• Fine balance between being authentic and cultural relevance

• Combine with relatability and approachability

People can smell fake from a mile away

Self awareness

• You are changing, so should your understanding of yourself

• Only you know you… don’t let anyone tell you otherwise

• Understand your Development areas, acknowledge and work on them

Play to your strengths & understand your Achilles heel

Know where you want to go

• Starting destination & ending destination- Maps vs Waze

• Enjoy the journey along the way, learn and take in the sights

• Understand the conditions of the roads, the prep you need to do for the trip & pace yourself

And allow flexibility in the path

Take risks

• Its about the experience you gain, not always about success

• If you don’t try, you will never succeed…

• What is the worst outcome of failure?

Failure is a badge

Big Picture

• Inculcate Strategic thinking- It is a differentiator

• Pick the right battles

• Right balance of navigating ‘being in the weeds and looking at things holistically’

Don’t sweat the small stuff

Thank You

Sree Menon