Sharon Williams

I think innate knowledge - facts really matter. I also attribute my success to grit. Because I don't take things personally, I call it a learning experience, there's no failures, right? But if I have a negative experience, I ask what can I learn from this, dust myself off and keep moving. In addition to knowledge, I would also say just being empathetic. When I'm talking to people, whether I agree with you or not, I'm trying to understand where you're coming from and what kind of perspective you have.

Don't take things personally. It may feel personal, it may actually be personal, but you just have to assume positive intent and don't take things personally. You know, life's not fair, right? And you see certain people getting the opportunity to fail forward, and we keep asking ourselves, why not me? And we go out and get all the degrees and credentials and try to do everything right, and we still don't get the opportunities. For so long, I looked at myself deeply, and I'm not perfect - I'm a CQI person, I'm always trying to continually improve. But at a certain point, I can't take responsibility for how other people see the world. And if you're not gonna give me a chance, I'm gonna make my own opportunity. It requires a lot of resilience and the ability to have a sense of humor about things.

In addition to not taking things personally, which I think is universal advice, be kind to yourself and be kind to others. Just because somebody treats you poorly, you have to be your own true north - don't treat others poorly. I've had a lot of young female executives say to me I'm the best manager they've ever had, or I have changed their mind about what it means to be a female manager. I am really proud of, especially the younger women who are bold. I never want to dim anybody's light. I've been told to get that woman under control, and I'm like, she's fabulous and I don't want her to change. So I really try to support other women, I take the calls, I try to do what I can to support them and elevate them.

I am looking to serve on a public board, and I find that a lot of these companies keep going to the same wells of the same people. So I'm networking - it's a challenge and it's an opportunity for me to serve on more paid boards and public boards. I think the challenge sometimes I deal with is people who want my services for free or don't want to pay my fee schedule. So I've learned my fees are my fees, I'm worth it, I deliver results, and if you can't afford me, move on.