What I’ve Learned
At the 2018 KPMG Women's Leadership Summit, we caught up with some of the Summit speakers—that included Olympians, CEO’s and bestselling authors—about the words of wisdom that have stuck with them throughout their careers. Here are their answers.
Be Twice as Good
“I grew up in segregated Birmingham, Alabama, and I had parents who were educators. And I remember my parents had a kind of mantra, and it went something like this: You have to be twice as good. Now, they meant in response to segregation and prejudice. But I tell my students: ‘If you think of trying to be twice as good, you'll work twice as hard. And then you'll be confident. So never take anything for granted.’” – 66th U.S. Secretary of State, Dr. Condoleezza Rice
Join the People Business
“Brenda Barnes, who in the early '90s was probably one of the most successful females in my business, really taught me the lesson that no matter what industry you're in, whatever type of product or service you're selling—at the end of the day, you're in the people business. And if you're in the people business, you need to develop a real passion for people, particularly the people on the front lines out there making, moving and marketing your products. That was a really, really relevant lesson for me as a leader.”
– Eric Foss, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aramark
“My mom is blind, and I think the most important thing I've learned from that is empathy and that knowledge that everybody's different. Realizing and seeing what other people are feeling, being aware is just so important so that we can support each other as people. There are times when my mom feels really bad for herself, like, ‘I wish I could see my daughter's face. I wish I could see my grandchild's face now.’ Like these little things I take for granted are so frustrating for her. It can be very, very frustrating. And it’s taught me the importance of empathy.”
— Nancy Kerrigan, Olympic Medalist, U.S. Figure Skating
“I would say that the best advice I've ever received is: Just be you. You can take on different roles and pursue many things. But the thing that makes you uniquely you is what got you there. And hold onto it. And don't ever think you have to change, because you should hold onto those hidden things that make you special.”
– Lynne Doughtie, U.S. Chairman and CEO of KPMG
“Finding advocates for your career is really smart because you're going to need people to make the case for you, outside of your presence, to other people and people you might not even know. And I think that the way to do that is: do great work and be a good generous person. As gooey as that sounds, I think that those are generally the two best ingredients: Do great work, be a generous person.”
– Dan Pink, Best-selling author and motivational speaker
