Astrid Greve-Spencer

The best career advice I've ever received came from a manager who told me 'you can say anything you want, as long as you know how to say it.' That was brilliant and so true. She was also the first one who explicitly gave me permission to trust my gut instinct. She told me 'I trust your gut, you know, you have such great insights, and you tend to read the room the right way. So you have to go with that.' That was the first time where somebody did not tell me to just go a different direction. It was such a validation that my opinion does matter, and my expertise is real, and my experience does come into play. She was truly in my corner and taught me that at some point, you just need to let go and know that you tried everything, and let others come to their own conclusions. Those lessons were incredibly important and key to me.

I would say never stop learning and looking for opportunities to learn. I'm huge into self-help books and articles, reading a lot, subscribing to newsletters, always staying on top of things. Look for honest feedback and constructive feedback. Find people who actually have your back and are in your corner, and ask them for constructive feedback that helps you. We get a lot of feedback that actually tears us down, and I've gone through that where I thought I'm constantly doing something wrong. But later on, I met mentors who gave me similar feedback but in a positive way, showing me how I can improve. So definitely look for the people who have your back and who are honest with you, but with the best intentions in mind for you to grow. Never stop asking and looking for ways to improve. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself, but definitely learn how to do it. I wish I had known better ways to express myself earlier in my career. Now I know more constructive ways of communicating my opinions and perspectives. Back then, a lot of times it didn't land anywhere because I didn't know how to express myself in a way that others would receive the message. So I encourage young professional women to look into how you can voice your opinion and share your perspective in a way that actually lands and where people actually listen to you. That makes a huge difference. Also, trust your gut instinct and keep developing it, because a lot of times we know what's right and what's wrong, but then our head kicks in and outside influences kick in, and we just dismiss it.