Rita McGrath
Thought Sparks
7WaysToTakeSmart CareerRisks:Lessons
FromSharonPriceJohn, CEOOfBuild-A-Bear Workshop
Fearisoneofthegreat barrierstocareer advancement.Sharon
PriceJohn’sfabulous careerisfulloflessons onhowtogetpastthose fearsandgetoutofyour ownway.
Being afraid to ask for that next job.
Being afraid to take credit. Being afraid to speak up. These are all ways in which fear gets in the way of making progress in your career. But as Sharon Price John’s career suggests, the fears of what could go wrong are often wildly overexaggerated, and the upside of what could go right are under-estimated.
Setchallenginggoals,writethem down,anditmightbeawesome #1
In her forthcoming book and podcast “Stories and Heart,” Sharon recounts an early episode in her life of ambitiously determining to climb a huge beech tree. She made it to the branch she wanted to climb, and then realized that despite weeks of planning to get up the tree, she had somehow neglected to figure out how to get back down! As she reflected on the experience, she consciously noted that setting challenging goals could be labelled scary (it might be bad) or exciting (it might be awesome).
Sometimesyouhavetoexperience whatyoudon’twanttolearnwhatyou dowant #2
Sharon’s first try at attending a large university didn’t go so well – she ended up returning home to take a break, worked at a blue jean pick-and-pack facility and could easily have given up. But when her co-workers asked her to slow down because she was making them look bad, she realized that settling for the mediocre wasn’t what she wanted in life. She went back to school, changed her major to advertising and created a personal rubric for making decisions based on her last name, Price. Perseverance. Respect. Intelligence.Creativity. Excellence.
What’stheworstthingthat couldhappen? #3
Sharon was a guest speaker in our inaugural Women in Leadership class at Columbia Executive Education when a participants asked her whether she would advise women to ask for a raise or promotion. She sort of blinked, and then said,
“Of course – what’s the worst that could happen? They might say no, but now they know you are interested and can give you suggestions about what might allow you to qualify for that role.”
Don’toverthinkeverything #4
As someone from a small town in rural Tennessee working at a fancy advertising agency in New York, the clash of backgrounds with co-workers could be tough to navigate. And yet, as Sharon points out, it would be a mistake to take every mismatch of expectations as an insult or put-down – sometimes, it’s just funny!
As Eleanor Roosevelt famously said, “no one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
Thetwothingsyoulearnin businessschool #5
Making a huge leap of faith to attend Columbia Business School, Sharon had to face down a lot of self-doubt. A rather cynical colleague said that you learn two things in business school. The first is that more money is better than less money. The second is that money now is better than money later. This was in the day when Columbia was very finance-focused (things have changed since then). Seen through that lens, it was a dumb decision to give up her income and go into debt.
Failureisn’tfatal,butfailureto changemightbe #6
After doing everything right to launch a new, entrepreneurial product (relaunching Dawn dolls), 9/11 and the subsequent snarling of global supply chains doomed the nascent venture. A move to the toy company Hasbro offered the chance to re-imagine what a corporate career might look like, and Sharon enjoyed considerable success with then-iconic products such as Furby and the Butterscotch pony.
StopDoingStupidStuff/Start
DoingSmartStuff #7
Over time, organizations accumulate habits. These habits make sense for the moment the organization is in, but over time many no longer make sense. One of Sharon’s key precepts is to encourage people, with humor, to consider everything they are working on as to whether it is adding value or not. She says, think of it like Groundhog day, in which you don’t get past the day you’re in until you get it right!
Newbook–StoriesandHeart
I was delighted to join Sharon at her New York City book signing. What a thrill to see the CEO of the company hugging my new friend, Nora!We discussed about a new model of leadership which – like the Gumby character she used to emphasize flexibility in the face of uncertainty – is flexible in approach, empowering to people and deeply human.
https://thoughtsparks.substack.com/
