Part 2 of 2
SAN DIEGO—When asked about mistakes made, a panel of CREW members at its leadership event here Wednesday night were honest and candid. Lindsey Back, CFO of J Public Relations, who worked with a money management firm until 2008, made the choice to leave during what was obviously a very difficult time and it wasn't taken very well. “It backfired,” she said. “But it was something I had to do for myself.”
Because of the reaction she received, Back reconsidered everything she was doing. “I took time to myself to reevaluate myself, and what direction I was headed.”
But it was the right decision for Back. And success is about taking risks and making difficult choices, agreed panelists. For Carisa Wisniewski, office managing partner with Moss Adams, the crossroads came at about eight years in, when she decided she no longer wanted to be an accountant, but instead, wanted to be in HR. “I had lost myself, and really wanted to impact people.”
When presenting the idea, she was told she wasn't qualified and instead, was asked if she wanted to impact people for a longer period of time, move to Connecticut and be on tract to be a partner. “I put myself out there and although the answer is sometimes 'no,' you have to try. It helped me get back on a path that helped me develop people and see them succeed.”
Lauree Sahba, COO San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp., once took a job that doubled her salary. “But three months into the job, I couldn't sell what I was hired to sell to save my soul. But I refused to quit as bad as I was at it. And they fired me. We don't work for money. We aren't ditch diggers, we have choices. If you are here tonight, you have choices. Many successful people have been fired.”
The conversation then shifted to introverts and extroverts and moderator Anne Benge, president of Unisource Solutions, asked what types of things you need to be good at to be successful. Gonul Velicelebi, CEO Camino Pharma, said that you have to be a good speaker and know how to communicate in ways that get the job done. “You have to manage the board. It can range from babysitting to psychoanalysis.” That, she said, requires skills.
She also mentioned the importance of experience and being trustworthy. “It takes a certain degree of reading inbetween the lines and making sure to try to understand where these people are coming from. If you are senior, you have to be more sensitive to it.”
Whether you are an introvert of extrovert doesn't really matter, said Sahba. “You just have to be more self aware. A self aware manager is a more effective leader.”
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Natalie Dolce
Natalie Dolce, editor-in-chief of GlobeSt.com and GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum, is responsible for working with editorial staff, freelancers and senior management to help plan the overarching vision that encompasses GlobeSt.com, including short-term and long-term goals for the website, how content integrates through the company’s other product lines and the overall quality of content. Previously she served as national executive editor and editor of the West Coast region for GlobeSt.com and Real Estate Forum, and was responsible for coverage of news and information pertaining to that vital real estate region. Prior to moving out to the Southern California office, she was Northeast bureau chief, covering New York City for GlobeSt.com. Her background includes a stint at InStyle Magazine, and as managing editor with New York Press, an alternative weekly New York City paper. In her career, she has also covered a variety of beats for M magazine, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, FashionLedge.com, and Co-Ed magazine. Dolce has also freelanced for a number of publications, including MSNBC.com and Museums New York magazine.
