Perspective on…Executive Presence
Those women who “command” executive presence don’t actually “command” or “demand” anything in life. They walk, talk, and work gracefully, but with authority. That’s what makes them special!
Woman of the Week: Hope M. Sharett
Hope M. Sharett, Esq.
My Current Job/Company:
Executive Director of the Law and Leadership Institute, LLC
My Birthdate:
05.11.77
My Work:
I direct a statewide nonprofit that encourages and prepares high school students for careers in law.
My Passion:
Living life to the fullest and helping others to do the same
My Family:
Anthony (Husband), Ava (5)
My Hero:
Harriet Tubman, at just 30 years old she risked her life to secure freedom for others and eventually led at least 19 trips along the Underground Railroad to rescue over 100 people from slavery. I find her bravery, passion for justice and love for others inspiring.
My Escape:
Sewing. I love to craft!
My Pet Peeve:
Traffic jams when it “suddenly” rains or snows.
My Indulgence:
Sleeping in on the weekend.
My Roots:
Midwestern middle class where there’s great pride in earning a living wage.
My Future:
Enjoying the journey
My Love:
My family and my faith.
My Movie:
Dumb and Dumber. It delivers the funny!
My Quote on Life:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” (Margaret Mead)
My Accessory:
Vintage silver watch
My Advice to Young Women:
Determine the plan you want for your life, allow for changes, but be true to your personal “blueprint”. Otherwise, you will find yourself unwittingly following someone else’s plans for your life.
How I Balance it All:
Prioritize. There are enough hours in the day to complete the things that should get done if you are intentional about deciding what MUST get done. I try not to be too hard on myself when my priorities get out of order. Instead, I search for the lesson in the mistake and give it another try.
Manage your Time, Manage your Life!
Life is busy and it isn’t slowing down anytime soon! As women, we get the luxury of balancing it all and doing it gracefully…..in heels! There are so many challenges to time management, I could write about this topic every week and not run out of ideas. I’ve condensed my top 10 tips into a list for you. I’d love to hear yours as well!
Top 10 Tips on Time Management for Busy Ladies:
1. Start Sunday. Look at your schedule and get organized on Sunday night, otherwise you’ll be a wreck on Monday morning.
2. Thinking Time. Set aside specific time to think. Otherwise, everything in your life is reactionary and nothing is thoughtful.
3. Prioritize Family. Schedule time with your family and consider it as important (actually more important) than keeping any work-related appointment. And do not work during family time. It’s not fair to your family. Put another way, would you take personal calls and draw pictures with your kids during a work meeting?
4. Disciplined Meetings. Start on Time. Stop on Time. It sounds simple but it can be difficult. Try practicing it for one week, though, and you will see a huge difference.
5. Plan Vacations. On January 1, block your vacation time for the year. People who don’t use vacation time simply don’t recharge. You don’t get an award for not taking vacation!
6. Fun Last. Do the fun work things last. Knock out what you hate first and I promise, your day will go better! Putting the dreaded “I hate this type of work” at the bottom of the list basically insures it will never get done.
7. Date Night. If you don’t plan for a “date night” with your significant other or with your friends, and think it will magically happen, guess what? It won’t. Plan at least one a month and if you are feeling crazy, block two nights.
8.Turn off Email. Shut down email for 2 hours out of your day. Stop reacting to everything coming in and actually get some work done.
9. Meet Someone New. If you don’t block time for it, when will you ever do it?
10. Prioritize. Use a simple A/B/C system and throw everything into a pile. Don’t go to the B pile until all the A’s are addressed.
It’s so easy to list these and so hard to actually implement these every day. I get it. Plus, the very phrase “time management” itself can overwhelm even the best of us. So, look at it another way….instead of thinking of it as managing your time, think of it as having the discipline to focus on the most important activities, work and people in your life.
Does that change how you feel about it? I think it will!
On Time Management
You will never “find” time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.
-Charles Bruxton
Time Management: What’s Your Motive?
Many successful women, no matter what level they are in the organization, wish they had better time management skills.
The demands of leadership are tough, and getting the most out of every minute requires a discipline that many people lack.
In his blog post, Develop Excellent Time Management Skills, Brian Tracy reminds us that time management, like anything, requires motivation. Seems pretty basic, right? But when you dig a little deeper, you’ll find what separates those with great time management skills and those who wish they had them.
Ask your leaders what specific motive they have for getting more out of every minute. The answer may be slightly different for everyone.
Some women want to spend more time with their family. Some women are focused on doing more in the workplace. Some women have hobbies and interests that require more time than they have.
Help your leaders pinpoint why they want more time and then help them keep that in mind as they work on developing the discipline it takes to be truly efficient with the amount of hours we have available to us every day.
Motivation is a powerful tool – use it!
Perspective on….Time Management
As managers, one of the most common things we hear from our rising stars is, “I don’t have enough hours in the day!” Or, “I wish I had more time.” or, “Can you help me with my time management skills?”
Here’s one simple tip you can give any employee and especially those with the motivation and skills to rise to the top of your organization:
Start and end meetings on time.
When practiced consistently, this one thing makes all the difference. Tell your leaders to be tough on this topic and don’t let other people take advantage of their time.
In fact, we should all try this. Imagine what our work days would look like!
Woman of the Week – Hilary Corna
Hilary Corna
My Current Job/Company:
Author of One White Face, National Speaker, & Kaizen Leader; On a Nationwide High School & College Speaking Tour sponsored by Toyota Motor USA.
My Birthdate:
05.01.85
My Work:
I inspire courage and possibilities in students and young professionals to better prepare them for the global work environment.
My Passion:
Japan, Yoga, my family
My Family:
Renee (mom), Joey (twin brother), Emily (28), Adrienne (31), Johnny (33)
My Hero:
My mom.
My Escape:
Rawa Island, Malaysia
My Pet Peeve:
Having to repeat or redo something.
My Indulgence:
Sweets: Creme brulee and/or Tiramisu.
My Roots:
Family oriented; 5 acres; Outskirts of city
My Future:
City; In the hustle; Spreading love
My Love:
Having silly dialogue with International Students. The daily surprises of living abroad. The final few moments of yoga practice. Hugging my best friends. Walking my mom’s dogs with her.
My Movie:
Pretty Woman.
My Quote on Life:
“Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller
My Accessory:
Titanium Skagen watch
My Advice to Young Women:
Respect your elders
How I Balance it All:
I say no, a lot.
On Mentors
“Mentor: Someone whose hindsight can become your foresight”
Finding a Sponsor at Work
This week we’re talking about helping key employees find advocates and build a network of people looking out for their best interests. One of the best pieces of advice you can give one of your emerging leaders is, “get a sponsor.”
Yesterday we talked about the difference between a sponsor and a mentor. The next big question your employees may have is “so, how exactly do I go about finding a sponsor?” It seems like a daunting task but doesn’t have to be.
Here’s a terrific article from Working Mother that provides tips for women looking for sponsors at work. Pass it along to your up-and-comers and then offer your guidance to help them find the right fit.
Do you have suggestions you give your emerging leaders for how to go about finding a sponsor at work? We’d love to hear them!
Perspective on: Sponsors vs. Mentors
As you manage or coach your best and brightest, make sure to help them connect with different types of people who can help them throughout their careers: sponsors and mentors.
What is the difference? A mentor is someone who has experience with the company and can offer career strategies and day-to-day advice. This is someone trustworthy who will share information, answer questions, offer guidance, give the inside “scoop” and help their mentee avoid political missteps.
Sponsors, on the other hand, do what the word says. They “sponsor” their protegees. This means that the sponsor looks out for their protegee, will likely put in a good word for her when an opportunity arises that the protegee may not know about, inform others about this emerging leader’s talents and “sell” her abilities to others in the organization.
Every rising star can benefit from having both of these types of people on their “team.” And, you as their manager can benefit as well because the more people who help develop your emerging leader, the more support she will have as she rises through the ranks of the organization.
Do you have a system in place to help your emerging leaders tap into the wisdom and guidance of a mentor or sponsor?