How to Lead Early 

While most leadership roles come to individuals after decades of experience, some are thrust into high impact leadership roles earlier than expected, like I was. If this is you, read my 5 tips below that come from my personal experience of being thrust into leadership roles earlier than expected.

My Experience 

By the age of 30, I was promoted to General Counsel of a national architecture, engineering, and construction firm. By the age of 31, I was appointed to a leadership role in the ABA’s Business Law Section. Neither of these roles were my plan. In fact, I get to the General Counsel role by way of failure if you can believe it (that’s a story for another day). So, believe me, I know what it feels like to be thrust into a high impact, high responsibility role earlier than expected. And while your friends and family will want to celebrate you, I know the emotion you will truly feel after you post the job or position update is FEAR. You will also feel a hint of the belief that you don’t deserve it. Neither emotion is fun, or useful. So, I’m sharing these 5 tips that helped me power through the initial panic and push through to rolling up my sleeves to take advantage of the opportunity. 

  1. Do not pretend you know what you are doing. Ask your questions, strategically. Make asking the obvious, good, question your brand.  Choose trusted individuals inside and outside your organization who can help walk you through the technical and political knowledge you lack. Remember, this feeling is temporary but can be an advantage. One of the reasons I succeeded in my leadership roles, was because I assumed I knew nothing and read the latest books and listened to the most up to date experts on how to succeed in roles similar to mine. Often people with decades of experience assume how they have been performing a task or function for the last few decades is still the best way to perform that task or function. That mindset rarely works. You won’t fall into that trap because you don’t have a few decades of experience to pull from any way. You will attack the needed skills and knowledge gaps head on. This will increase your performance, and tool you with the most up to date best practices to excel in your new role.  
  2. Network, network, network. Meet people and ask questions. One truth I learned early, is that most of the challenges you face in professional roles are not novel. This means that many people have already faced the challenge you are facing, and have come up with best practices, or at least lessons learned. The only way you can take advantage of this candid wisdom, is to meet people with the purpose asking them questions. Also, don’t let thinking you are bothering busy people hold you back from reaching out. I found that asking for help was mostly received as a complement to the person I was asking. The fact that I was coming to them acknowledged that they are an expert in their field. The worst thing they can say, is no.  
  3. Choose your media efficiently. Here is the advice that was the difference maker for me that you won’t read in business books. Control your media environment. The tv you watch, the podcasts you listen to, and the books you read all need give you insights to help you in your new role. You do not have a lot of time.  Driving to work, walking, working out, and reading at night should all be filled with advice from reputable sources. Do this consistently (not constantly), and you will get caught up to speed much faster than if you fill free time with mind numbing streaming binges. If you think you don’t have time to read or listen to podcasts, look up your social media screen time report, and replace it accordingly.  
  4. Plan time to act your age. This means plan intentional time where you are free to go out with your friends, tailgate, have a movie night, play video games, etc. Carve out time for activities that give you joy where you get to hang out with people your age or in your affinities. Leading early often means sitting in board rooms listening to more seasoned professionals talk about the joys and challenges of experiencing life events you have not gotten to yet. This can feel extremely lonely and isolating. Staying connected to your community will help mitigate the loneliness of not being able to fully understand your colleagues.  
    • Pro tip for young adults: Do not tell any of your colleagues they are like your mom or dad. It is rude.  
  5. Practice Confidence. What you will learn is that many experienced professionals are just guessing. If you follow tips 1 through 3, you most notably are not guessing. You are on a consistent path filled with learning and asking questions. So, when you have an answer, practice saying it confidently. Eventually, it won’t be practice, it will be how you feel.  

Final Thoughts

Leading early is a rare opportunity to gain invaluable experience. Focusing on the fear this opportunity brings will do you no favors, but addressing why the challenge is scary will help you move forward to thriving in the role for which you were chosen. As stated above, I became General Counsel and Co-Chair of an ABA Business Law Section committee earlier than usual. The media I consumed and groups I joined during this time were incredibly helpful to keeping me up to date. I will list some of the books, podcasts, and associations. Mostly to thank the authors, hosts, and organizations for being a vital part of my success. I hope this was helpful. Feel free to reach out for more insights. Remember, the worst thing I can say is no.  

RESOURCE LIST

10 Key Books: 

  1. Radical Candor by Kim Scott 
  1. More Sticks and Bricks by the ABA Construction Law Forum 
  1. Infrastructure from the Ground Up by the ABA Construction Law Forum 
  1. Managing Closely Held Corporations by the ABA Business Law Section 
  1. The Leader’s Guide to Unconscious Bias by Pamela Fuller & Mark Murphy with Anne Chow 
  1. 101 Things I learned in Architecture School by Matthew Frederick 
  1. Showing the Value of the Legal Department by the ABA Business Law Section 
  1. Getting Things Done by David Allen 
  1. Atomic Habits by James Clear 
  1. Expect to Win by Carla A. Harris 

10 Key Podcasts: 

  1. Construction Law Today 
  1. ENR Critical Path 
  1. Future Construct  
  1. HBR IdeaCast 
  1. How I Built This 
  1. Wisdom from the Top 
  1. Marketplace 
  1. Negotiate Anything 
  1. To the Extent that…  
  1. Cloc Talk 

3 Key Subscriptions 

  1. Harvard Business Review subscription 
  1. Engineering News Record subscription 
  1. New York Times subscription  

6 Key Networking Associations 

  1. American Bar Association 
  1. Business Law Section 
  1. Construction Law Forum 
  1. Black Excellence Society 
  1. Pennsylvania Bar Association 
  1. Philadelphia Bar Association 
  1. Wharton Executive Development Program 
  1. Pyramid Club