To cheer, or not to cheer?
Empowering others and cheering out loud.
I am the mother of two beautiful, smart, funny, loving, kind, and compassionate young women. The list gets quite exhaustive when I try to describe their many qualities, and yes, I am biased. However, as a leader, I admire certain attributes in others, and I want to nurture and encourage these attitudes and behaviors in everyone, including my daughters, teammates, and peers.
One of those qualities I am referring to today is being a cheerleader. And I don’t mean wearing the uniform, throwing people in the air, and running around with pom poms (apologies to anyone who was, is, and dreams of being an actual real-life cheerleader- the American cheerleader culture is still very foreign to me). What I mean is being someone who raises up the people around them, encourages them in all they do, shows up, lifts up, and cheers the loudest person, even when they are sitting on the sideline.
Empowered women, empower women.
I was recently interviewed by a soon-to-be marketing college graduate, and they posed a question, “What are some things that contributed to your career success?”
First, I was very impressed by this young person's sense of ambition and curiosity. I also appreciated the on-demand reflection of my career and the people, moments, and milestones that helped shape and amplify it.
As most come to understand when they interact with me, I rarely play by the rules, and I never answer a question with one answer. So, I reflected and responded with two key areas that were top of my mind.
First, I have always worked for companies and leaders, particularly early on in my career, that opened doors and took a chance on me, and quite proudly, I will say that I think their bet paid off. I was rarely the most qualified (and I have lost jobs and opportunities, too, I want to be clear) or the most decorated, but I did have a whole serving of ambition and drive that was clearly communicated and understood.
The second, and which I am so unbelievably grateful for, is that throughout my career, I have been surrounded by people, personally and professionally, that sincerely, unabashedly, unapologetically gave a shit about me. They cared about whether I succeeded or failed, the chances I took, and the decisions I made. People, bosses, peers, friends, and colleagues were in my corner, being my therapist, confidante, and cheerleader.
Ingredients to success.
Sure, there are many ingredients in the “formula for success,” and so much of it starts with you, the individual. Still, you need to invest in and be mindful of two key ingredients:
Who and where you choose to work (one bad employer can ruin your desire to ever join the workforce again!)
Who you are recruiting to join your own personal fan club.
When considering an employer:
Will they root for you to grow? Even if that growth means leaving one day. Will they create opportunities for you, even when they don’t exist today? Will they place a bet on you when uncertainty is the only certainty?
When building your tribe:
Who is in your corner and who will bat for you? Who is going to pick you up when you fall down? Who is going to share, invite, encourage, and celebrate you? Who is going to be your loudest cheerleader?
I read an article that stayed with me years ago, and I refer to it a lot. The article read (totally paraphrasing), “Women by numbers are historically over-mentored and under-sponsored.” I interpreted this to mean that we don’t have enough folks cheering for us, taking bets on us, throwing our hat in the ring, or saying our name in a room full of people when we are not in it.
📸 Some random person’s TikTok.
Find a Taylor in your Selena moment.
I encourage you to reach out to peers on LinkedIn, ask that person if you can sit next to them at a conference, meet with an executive at your organization, and ask the question- “Can you sponsor and advocate for me?”
Cheer louder so the people in the back can hear.
If you want someone to cheer for you, advocate for you, and sponsor you, you better also be willing to give back and show up for others. And sometimes that means showing up first. Be the advocate for change.
Cheer for and celebrate those you have only observed; cheer and celebrate those in your industry; cheer and celebrate those less fortunate, experiencing more hurdles and blockers than most; cheer and celebrate so you have a voice, find your voice, and so your voice can be heard in that back of that room.
I dedicate this blog to all the women in my career who have taken chances on me, saw something in me I didn’t know I had, and continue to cheer for me.
Please follow along at @amusebouchelife on Instagram for more bite-sized positive content.