The key to being a great actor is to be yourself.  Acting is not about impersonation, it is about originality.  The same concept holds true in the business world.  As a leader, the most important attribute you can bring to your job is your authenticity.  There is no one else like you in the world and that is what makes each of us special and different.  Too many people spend their working lives trying to be like someone else or adjusting their personality and approach to “fit in”. 

"Life might be finite, but one's legacy can be eternal".  Dr. Fromme, or “grammpa” to me, was a psychologist, teacher and writer.  He taught at City College of New York, Sara Lawrence and Columbia University, wrote seven books and practiced psychology for over fifty years. He is also remembered for his popular lecture series at New York’s 92nd Street Y. A graduate of the City College of New York and Columbia University, Dr. Fromme was a life-long learner.  He firmly believed in the never-ending quest for knowledge, which is one of the most important leadership lessons he taught me. 

Rather than seeing the top leadership role as being the person to provide the answers, he saw his responsibility as asking the right questions.  Too many leaders today think that leadership is about having the right answer and showing how smart you are, when in fact leadership is about bringing out the best in others.  

Not only was Oscar de la Renta a progressive fashion designer, he was also an insightful leader who recognized the importance of creating a succession plan.  Too many creatives allow their egos and sense of self worth stand in the way of creating an organization that can carry on in their absence.  Oscar de la Renta was unique in this regard.  We can all learn a lesson about just how fashionable succession planning can be from Oscar.

Our best learnings occur when we push ourselves or we are pushed outside of our comfort zone.

3 Keys to executive coaching success.  How to create a coaching relationship that drives results.