CREW Leadership Panel

On August 28, 2007 I had the pleasure of serving as the Moderator of “Women at the Top: Leadership Panel”  presented by Kirsten Lino, President of CREW Greater Akron (Commercial Real Estate Women). CREW  brought together four women leaders of the community to share their keys to success. Panelists included:

• Cynthia Capers, Interim Dean, College of Education, University of Akron
• Laura Culp, CPA, MT, Director of Tax, Brockman, Coats, Gedelian & Co.
• Pat McKay, Owner, McKay Insurance Agency, Inc.
• Regina Shaw, John Dellagnese & Associates

These leaders openly shared with us the beliefs and path that molded their lives. As diverse as their backgrounds are, it is not surprising that they share a common outlook for achieving success. Each woman has chosen to:

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Ladder of Success

Is your ladder of success leaning on the right wall?

Stephen Covey, internationally respected leader and author of the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, wrote,

“Many people are climbing the ladder of success every day, only to find that it is leaning against the wrong wall!”

Unfortunately that “aha” moment often arrives when the ladder has just been pulled out from under you in a blinding moment of clarity. You are exchanging your life’s energy for a life you don’t want to live.

Overwhelmed and living a life of quiet desperation, you realize you have spent years building a life that doesn’t work. Getting out of bed to go to work each day has become a chore.  Exhaustion has transformed previous pleasures into another item on the dreaded to-do-list. You would rather just cocoon at home, licking your wounds from the previous week. It doesn’t have to be this way!

Life is too precious and too short to waste another minute. You can take control today and create a life you love. It begins with the awareness and understanding of your personal definition of success.

Imagine … You are living a life that feeds your soul. If you had all the money, time and energy to create a life you love, what would success look like for you? Who would you spend time with? What would you be doing? Where would you live?  Describe your perfect work environment. Don’t underestimate the power of this exercise. Make this description come alive and be so real you can feel it.

Reach for the Stars

Climbing your personal ladder of success is an exercise in empowerment and brings you closer to what really matters. Don’t wait until the ladder is pulled out from under you by circumstances you cannot control.  Small choices, made daily, will shape your future. Align your values to your life.

You have the power of choice. Your future begins today.

Resources:

Blink audio book: Blink is an eye-opening book about how we think without really thinking … about choices that seem to be made in an instant – in the blink of an eye – that aren’t as simple as they seem.