40-Day Series Wrap-Up

WOW! Those 40 days went by fast.....super fast. I had a great time sharing with you just some of the fantastic people I have had the pleasure and honor of working with the last 20 years. I hope you learned something along the way as I know I learned a ton! I need to thank three more people as I wrap-up the series...my parents Tom and Rita Nicholson and my husband Jackie Qualls. My parents instilled in me a serious work ethic to keep going, do what it takes to get the job done and don't quit. They have provided an endless amount of support throughout my career. My ever patient husband taught me how to let go of the tough days and to celebrate the good ones. He also taught me the power of loving the difficult as there have been many days I have been difficult at best and he loved me anyway. I am truly grateful for having their love that inspires me each and every day.

Many people have asked me if I planned out who I was going to write about. I did write a list of about 40 people when I got the idea for the series but I didn't plan on when I would write about them or what I would write about. I also had names and memories that came to me while writing the series. Before I would write a post I would ask God for guidance and it never failed the name would come through loud and clear. Many times I would hear from the person that they had no idea they made such an impact and that I couldn't have had better timing...God works in mysterious ways. Once I figured out who I would write about the story would flow pretty easily. I found it interesting that every post would take a life of its own. What I thought I had learned from the person often times would be something different by the time I got to writing the golden nugget. Ultimately, the experience left me feeling blessed, thankful and in awe of the amazing people who have touched my life.

40-Day Series Review:

Annette Loos Golden Nugget: Don't assume people know when they do good work or are making a difference because more than likely they don't. Taking a few minutes to share a note of your observations can inspire a lifetime of confidence.
Linda Chappell Golden Nugget: Don't be afraid to give the rookie a chance to make a difference. Simply believe in them, encourage them, help them find their way from time to time and then watch them grow as they take your company to new heights.
Tony Painton Golden Nugget: 1) Take care of your team, even if it means breaking the rules from time to time. 2) Laugh the tension away
Victor Alba Golden Nugget: Share your passion and hobbies with your co-workers, you may find a connection that transcends business and leads you to new possibilities in life.
Shushan Aleaqui Golden Nugget: Take the time, show the patience and have the courage to be authentic when coaching others.
Kathy Walker Golden Nugget: Don't forget where you came from and be willing to lead as your authentic self
Claudio Lima Golden Nugget: Don't be afraid to ask the smart guys for help and if you are the smart guy help the student feel smart too. Be kind to those who are on assignment and/or new to the group.
Sharon Williams Golden Nugget: Be a listening ear and know when to tell a joke
Steve Coker Golden Nugget: Find someone who you trust enough to call you a chicken and appreciate it when they do
Linda Sherlock Golden Nugget: If it isn't good do what you have to do to fix it and make it great.
Tim Lunsford Golden Nugget: Foster an environment of debate, challenge the status quo and be wary of the Yes man
Jean Matkovich Golden Nugget: Embrace learning and share what you know with others.
Simon Kuo Golden Nugget: Stay in touch with old colleagues and be open to new opportunities they offer
Craig Cowden Golden Nugget: Ask the tough questions and have your voice be heard
Rebecca Caldwell Golden Nugget: Embrace community service and let others help you to achieve the "impossible"
Tricia Howe Golden Nugget: Energy creates energy..giving 100% is infectious!
George Porta Golden Nugget: Appreciate people for who they are and focus on their strengths
Glen Boney Golden Nugget: Give unconditional help and support
Laurie Halfert Golden Nugget: Listen without judgment
Fong Johnson Golden Nugget: Being a mentor is more about learning than teaching
Francine Ray Golden Nugget: Keep the small stuff small by taking care of the details.
Tony Krueck Golden Nugget: Create a culture of quality and trust by encouraging and accepting candid discussion
Clay Holyfield Golden Nugget: Know what your customer wants and give it to them
Jay Bluhm Golden Nugget: Appreciate the time spent with your siblings
Amy Mahalovich Golden Nugget: Be compassionate with others
Jo Blagovich Golden Nugget: Give people second chances
Fred Harris Golden Nugget: Think twice about how you treat your co-workers
Susan Morgan Golden Nugget: Learn, stand-up, reach-out and lead
Tom Hoskins Golden Nugget: Family First
Jerry Leeper Golden Nugget: Being the best you can be requires practice, discipline & dedication
Lori Ames Golden Nugget: Trust someone to catch you when you fall, they'll push you back up.
Sally Harding Funk Golden Nugget: Provide meaningful training to employees
Tom and Rita Nicholson Golden Nugget: Keep going, do what it takes to get the job done and don't quit
Jackie Qualls Golden Nugget: Let go of the tough days, celebrate the good ones and love the difficult people as they need it the most

If this series taught you something please leave a comment as it may teach us all a golden nugget. Thank you for stopping by and check back again soon.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Sally Harding Funk

Sally developed and taught me how a long distance telephone call works. Your phone to the end office to the central office to the PoP to the PoP to the central office to the end office to the phone you are calling. There is a bit more to it than that but that is how we started. The diagram is called a call flow. She would teach me the fundamental knowledge I would lean on throughout my entire telecom career.

I didn't realize it then but I was so very fortunate to get such training. Most of my colleagues didn't get an overview let alone a two-week, sit down, white board, deep dive crash course in all things telecom. Sally walked me through a ton of call flows, network diagrams, and telecom definitions. When I started that job I thought ATM was a place where you pulled money...Sally would teach me a whole new ATM, Asynchronous Transfer Mode network. Voice, data, T-1's, OC-3's, and PVC's...a world I never knew existed would become the world I would live and breathe the next 10 years.

I would be exhausted at the end of our sessions from brain overload but she had a way of making it fun and exciting. She was patient with all my questions. She would become a trusted supervisor and team mate who would provide valuable advice through some pretty challenging career events. She helped me establish a foundation of knowledge that was critical to both my personal and professional growth.

Golden Nugget: Provide meaningful training to employees

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Lori Ames

Lori and I love the MU tigers, love Springfield, MO and love golf. We had an instant connection when we met (which happened to be during a business interview). Our team had all intentions of hiring someone else and then we met her and changed our mind. She had this aura of confidence, calm and intelligence.

Little did I know during that interview just how much fun Lori was going to be. We shared college stories, happy hour stories and made new stories of our own. Lori wasn't just a good time, she was a true friend and confidant. She helped me get through political turmoil, new bosses, and adjust to jobs I thought were over my head. She would stop me cold when I was whining, tell me to get over it and jump back in the fight. She could challenge me like none other and I didn't want to disappoint.

Lori is one of the most courageous people I know. She manages personal challenges that requires the strongest of faith and intestinal fortitude. She knows who she is, gets stronger every day and is full of love, love, and love. We have many great memories that I reflect on often. A born leader, true professional and amazing friend, that's my Lori.

Golden Nugget: Trust someone to catch you when you fall, they'll push you back up.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Jerry Leeper

A bit of a different twist with this entry..I am going to talk about someone from my junior high/high school days. You may think this is a stretch to connect this experience to making business personal. Bear with me, I'm optimistic you'll understand the connection.

Jerry Leeper was my band and orchestra teacher in 8th grade. We had heard horror stories in the 7th grade which was in a completely different building miles away from the junior high. With the way the first few weeks of 8th grade band started I had no doubt why the stories existed. Mr. Leeper was loud, demanding, and had no tolerance for excuses. He was the first teacher for all of us that set expectations and made sure at you met them. As you can imagine the attrition rate was high that first quarter but if you held on and stuck with it you wouldn't be disappointed.

The junior high band ALWAYS sounded better than the high school band. We would win top awards, get invited to cool places, and would work our butt off to be better than any other band in the area. Mr. Leeper would push and drive us to improve our musical ability with challenging scores and intense practice sessions. He would tell us we only shortchange ourselves if we cut corners. He demanded we be the best we could be as trying to be anything else was simply being lazy.

It may sound like he was this tough mean old guy, and I would be lying if I didn't say there wasn't days when we thought he was a bit scary but I can tell you he really was one of the nicest caring teachers in the district. He pushed because he cared. He challenged us because he knew we had it in us. He was demanding because he wanted us to know the accomplishment that comes from giving it everything we had.

A true testament to the respect we had for him was years later when Mr. Holland's Opus came out and everyone one of us who kept in touch thought of Mr. Leeper immediately when we watched the movie. He was our Mr. Holland, he made his business of teaching personal. He would spend countless hours staying late helping us practice both as a class and individually. He would become a private instructor teaching me the oboe. He taught me that to become great was only possible through practice, discipline and dedication. To respect yourself was to respect your craft...take it seriously, reach for the high bar and be the best you can be..no more no less.

Golden Nugget: Being the best you can be requires practice, discipline & dedication

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Tom Hoskins

A true gentleman. Have you ever had the opportunity to meet one? I not only had the pleasure to meet one but the honor to work with one side by side every day for almost 3 years. Tom Hoskins was a retired Air Force Colonel and Vietnam War veteran. I remember him telling me about one of his most exciting days when he was invited to fly in a Stealth plane...pretty cool huh? He had quite a few interesting stories and I loved to hear him tell them. I always learned something new and he never got irritated with all my questions (at least that I knew of, I'm sure he had to get tired of them from time to time :) )

Tom was always calm, cool and collected. I on the other hand was the opposite. He was my zen master. He could just give me a look and I knew it was time to take it down a level. We spent countless hours talking. We would talk about meetings, bosses, and colleagues and what we could learn from them. I know I learned something from just about every conversation I had with him.

Not only would we talk about work but also our families, friends and home life. He encouraged me to be a better mother and wife. He would push me to leave the office on time. He would remind me that children grow fast and you don't get a second time around to do it better. My only regret is I didn't heed his advice and wisdom as often I should have. My wish for you...to have an opportunity to have a Tom Hoskins in your life...it will make you a better person.

Golden Nugget: Family first

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Susan Morgan

I honestly don’t have any idea what kind of career I would have had if I had not met Susan when I was assigned to work network migrations. Here I was this 20-something, high-energy, over eager kid not knowing a damn thing about technology, network or project management. I know there were times she had to just shake her head wondering what in the hell she was going to do with me. She had incredible patience and always took the time to answer my endless amount of questions. She would teach me just about everything I would ever know about managing projects, reporting on projects and dealing with project politics.

She taught me to understand the big picture. Always start with the big picture. If you didn’t understand the why and what you couldn’t develop the when, where, and how.

She taught me the importance of understanding the various team members and their why and what. Always respect your team members. You needed to know where your team members were coming from, what their role and responsibility was and why they may push back (typically because their boss was telling them to, which you could figure out if you knew the big picture).

She taught me the power of the project sponsor. Always treat your sponsor like the customer. Without a project sponsor you don’t have a project.

Finally, she taught me to be a project manager meant you were the leader. The buck stopped with you. If there was an issue, a delay, a quality issue you took the blame…you never ever threw a project member under the bus. You took responsibility; you fixed the problem and ultimately led the team to deliver the project per plan.

She also taught me the importance of continuing your education. Susan was always working on a new degree of some kind. She also taught me to enjoy hobbies and appreciate being good at more than one thing. Most important, she taught me to be kind to the rookies, embrace the challenges and be a real leader who stands up without fear.

Golden Nugget: Learn, stand-up, reach-out and lead

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Fred Harris

Fred was one of the best human beings I ever had the pleasure to work for. He was so much more than his title. He had lost his son to leukemia, the kind that doesn’t give you very much notice. He helped start the Heart of America Bone Marrow registry to honor him. The lives he has touched are many and I feel honored to have had the privilege to learn from him.

Fred and I shared a passion for quality…we believed company performance was directly tied to the quality of an organization’s strategy, processes and measurements. Sprint at the time was a big proponent of the Malcolm Baldridge Chairman Quality Award. Fred sponsored me to become a certified CQA examiner so I could bring the lessons back to his organization. What an amazing experience! As if that wasn’t enough he then accepted my proposal to create a CQA task force within his organization. He didn’t just ask one of his directors to participate; he requested that they all become involved. Some of my ideas weren’t very corporate…like the toy horns and hats I had the team wear at a milestone meeting but there was Fred wearing the hat and tooting the horn.

His guidance, never-ending support, and encouragement were somewhat rare for a man at his level to give to a junior level employee. But that was Fred, he didn’t try to fit the corporate norm…he was his own man, with his own idear’s, and wasn’t afraid to speak out on what he thought was important. There was one time he even brought up heaven at an all organization conference. His point was to get us to think about how we might be measured at the end of our life. He asked that if we were spending the majority of our life at work shouldn’t we be mindful of how we act to others as well as perform? That moment alone told me what an incredible man he was. I had the pleasure to witness his words in action and I’m a better person because of it.

Golden Nugget: Think twice about how you treat your co-workers

Be who you are and learn to be better,

Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Tony Krueck

Tony was a key contributor to my project management skills. I learned how to give bad news, communicate program risks, and escalate issues that with some executives may not have been well received. Not that Tony didn't appreciate good news, I can assure you he did. In fact, he would often give public praise to those who kept their projects within control. Unfortunately, I had a very complex program that faced numerous obstacles. Without Tony's support I am confident that the program would have never seen the light of day.

After years of watching others manage difficult programs while leading a few myself, I could understand the fear many project manager's had when reporting issues. Executives could make it downright painful to tell them the truth. So much so in some cases that some PM's would outright lie or water down issues to the point where no action was taken. Delays, quality issues and budget overruns were commonplace as a result.

The culture of fear changed when Tony took the helm. Not that project's stopped having issues but Tony understood facts were a necessity to making quality decisions. He encouraged his PM's to identify risks early, communicate often and share bad news when necessary. He helped teams by removing obstacles, encouraging his peers to get engaged and escalating to his superiors if needed. He applauded truth. He removed the air of fear by creating a forum that welcomed open and candid conversation. In turn, quality decisions were made, risks mitigated and issues minimized.

Golden Nugget: Create a culture of quality and trust by encouraging and accepting candid discussion.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Laurie Halfert

I had the great pleasure to watch Laurie begin her career as a secretary (which she was way over qualified for) and through pure determination move all the way up to a technical program manager. Throughout it all she was always willing to lend a helping hand, would take advantage of every learning opportunity, and instilled a positive energy with any team she worked with. She volunteered often for community service efforts and many times served in a leadership capacity. I think what I found most impressive about Laurie was her amazing skill of active listening.

Laurie and I worked together for many years...we shared bosses, teammates, and cocktails. We experienced career and personal challenges together. We knew how to pick each other up, make each other laugh, and be honest with one another...real honest. She saw me grow from a Jr. level employee to her manager. Through it all she never faltered to listen, regardless of the conversation.

I remember our first performance review. I felt awkward as we had been friends for such a long time and now I was responsible for evaluating and coaching her. She made it so very easy and listened intently on what I had to say. She was a great example of how actively listening can make for great conversation. Actively listening allows you the opportunity to speak intelligently and meaningfully and nobody did it better than Laurie.

Golden Nugget: Listen without judgment.

40-Day Series: Thank You Glen Boney

The first time I met Glen was when I was part of a team interviewing him. He was so impressive and we didn't hesitate to vote to have him join our group. Glen is from Mississippi, loves fried squid (which has the most "unique" smell), and is one of the kindest men I have ever known. He is also a retired Army Lt. Colonel, smart as hell and can tell a joke better than any stand-up comedian on the circuit. Oh, did I say he is one of the kindest men I have ever known?

Glen would leave our team following a promotion to manager. He could have moved to the executive branch but didn't want to deal with the bullshit. He would end up being instrumental in helping me not get just one job but two. His first effort was helping me get an interview with Tim Lunsford. He really went to bat for me as Tim already had his pick in mind. His second effort was getting my dream job working for Kathy Walker. Glen was working on her presentations and I was always dropping by trying to learn about what he was doing. He would transition the presentation responsibility over to me which ultimately led me to getting the staff manager gig. I never understood why he was always so willing to help me but I am forever grateful for his support.

Not only did he help me get the two gigs but he always provided a listening ear, valuable advice and even a hug now and then to raise my spirit. He had the best stories and wasn't afraid to laugh at himself. He encouraged me to embrace the value of the meeting before the meeting. He knew how to really truly help people in the most unconditional way. He taught me the power of selflessness and how to kill em' with kindness. Did I tell you he was the one of the kindest man I have never known?

Golden Nugget: Give help and support unconditionally

40-Day Series: Thank You George Porta

George and I worked together first back in the late 90's. We were on the same project that was demanding, revolutionary and fun believe it or not. Even though we worked on different teams I found myself at his desk quite often asking one of my million questions trying to figure out the product and technology we were deploying. George always made time to answer my questions and provide explanations in layman terms. His patience was incredible.

A few years later George would give me a call that led to me working directly for him. Not only did I get to work for him and on a great team but it was finally the job that pushed my overall compensation up to being equal with my peers. I would learn all about sales and have the pleasure of supporting the Northeast division which was a blast. The best part of the job though was working with George...I can't possibly explain all that I learned from him. We had an interesting communication style in our working relationship and if you were to walk in the room you would have thought we were fighting.

George and I were two passionate people which came through loud and clear in our conversations. It sounds weird I know but it worked for us. It was a huge relief to work who could appreciate my passion and learning process. I didn't have to be "careful" with what I was saying or asking...I could be all me and he took it in stride. He knew how to coach me to get the best from me and would challenge me to reach for more. He knew how to take my knee jerk reactions when I made mistakes and would provide the hug of support when I was down. He was the ultimate role model of making business personal and his teaching left me with knowledge that I use everyday.

Golden Nugget: Appreciate people for who they are and focus on their strengths

40-Day Series: Thank You Tricia Howe

Oh where do I start with my good friend and sister in spirit Tricia? I met her at Western Illinois when I was teaching a cheer camp and she was a coach with one of the participating squads. We immediately hit off...myself, along with the rest of the staff, agreed she was one of us and needed to be on staff. So, we called the owner, Linda Chappell who then came out to the camp on our request to meet with Tricia and agreed with our assessment and hired her on the spot. Tricia was on staff and teaching a camp the very next week.

I would be fortunate and blessed to have Tricia on my staff the following year when I was camp director. I would have never made it that summer had it not been for Tricia and her constant support and laughter. She knew when to pick me up, when to push me ahead and when to tell me to shut the hell up. She was an incredible leader and role model for the campers, the staff and for me. She experienced some pretty significant personal issues that summer and yet you would have never known it as she was always upbeat, positive and full of endless energy.

Tricia now lives in Chicago, is a business professional, has a great family and is still involved in the cheerleading world. I just spoke with her today and was reminded of the powerful impact she has made on my heart, my spirit, and my mind. She juggles what one can only call an insane schedule and continues to live life to the fullest. She continues to teach me that life is about making it happen, giving no less than 100%, and to be an active participant not simply a bystander. My energy level is replenished just by thinking about her!

Golden Nugget: Energy creates energy..giving 100% is infectious!

40-Day Series: Thank You Rebecca Caldwell

I always admired the job Rebecca had....she was responsible for leading the national community service initiatives at Sprint. Her big time programs were the United Way, Harvesters and March of Dimes. It was the March of Dimes program that would bring us together. My boss happened to be the Corporate Executive Sponsor so I was on point to make sure the effort was a total success and surpassed the company goals. Easier said than done and without Ms. Caldwell leadership we wouldn't have come even close to the goal.

Rebecca had an uphill battle with the campaign. We were coming off a down year with the previous year's campaign missing the goal. We were in the midst of a company lay-off so the environment wasn't necessarily in the mood to give what they didn't have. All this and my boss was adamant that we find a way to help the babies and meet the goal she set which was even more than the previous year. Many would have not accepted the challenge but Rebecca not only accepted it, she embraced it with arms wide open.

We knew we had to find new ways to encourage participation to generate donations. Rebecca was completely open to suggestions, changes in process, and sharing others creative ideas to get the whole company on the same page. She displayed the rare skill of accepting help which is a true character of leadership. She knew the power of appreciation and was constantly sharing her thanks which made people want to do even more to help the campaign. The ultimate proof of her skill and more importantly her heart was the company raising 6X the funds from the previous year and blowing out the company goal.

Golden Nugget: Embrace community service and let others help you to achieve the "impossible"

40-Day Series: Thank You Craig Cowden

Craig was a big bad director when I met him back in 2003 in Reston, VA. He ran the managed services network team and was kind of an intimidating character. He knew what he wanted and he didn't waste time letting you know if you weren't meeting his expectation. I wasn't sure what to think of him at the time but had a feeling he was a guy that was going places.

Fast forward to 2007 and I would have the opportunity to work with Craig again in a new capacity. I was responsible for coordinating executive staff which Craig had become since the last time we worked together. I began to get to know him much better this second time around and realized he wasn't intimidating...he was just incredibly passionate and sincere about making the business as efficient and effective as possible. He would ask insightful questions, challenge the status quo and wouldn't back down until he got an acceptable answer. This was somewhat uncommon and would make some uncomfortable but that wouldn't stop him as he was determined to help the team evaluate all the facts and assumptions.

Craig would become a mentor to me. He took time out of his very busy and demanding schedule to meet with me monthly. He was open, honest and willing to answer any question I had. He taught me the important lesson that first and foremost you must be yourself at the table and not be afraid to have your voice be heard. He encouraged me to be confident without apology or compromise. He inspired me to reach for more and I appreciate the time he took in doing so.

Golden Nugget: Ask the tough questions and have your voice be heard

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Simon Kuo

I love telling the story of when I first worked with Simon. It was back in 1996 in the training department at Sprint. He was a Kelly temp helping the training schedulers with overflow work. I should say he was a bio-chem PhD holder who was a Kelly temp. The man was just brilliant and I couldn't freaking believe he was a Kelly temp. Come to find out, he had recently left his academia lab rat gig to try something new. As you can imagine, he quickly moved from temp to leader and would end up becoming a VP in Strategy.

I kept in touch with Simon over the years and we re-connected in person last summer. We wanted to catch-up on life as we both had left telecom and ended up sharing our new found insights and assessments of the world. We would go on to meet again and started to discuss the possibility of working together on a start-up. He was already connected in with a group of people and thought I may be a good fit to help the team. I never thought that our "catch-up lunch" would be the first step towards achieving my entrepreneurial dream.

I officially became co-owner and Chief Development Officer of LightThread late last fall. With Simon's leadership and guidance we are on track to formally launch by the end of this month. We plan on being in our new office space next week. We already have a growing customer pipeline with two beta customers currently enjoying our services. I am still amazed that a "re-connection" lunch ultimately led to my dream gig...I owe it all to Simon and am so thankful!

Golden Nugget: Stay in touch with old colleagues and be open to new opportunities they offer.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Jean Matkovich

I met Jean 2 years ago at my first Aji conference. Aji offers a Business Professional Certification program that is the equivalent to an Executive MBA. Jean and I are both students in the program. There were 80+ people at that 1st conference so there was a lot of hand shaking and introductory conversations. Jean shined as someone I would want to keep in touch with and get to know...the law of attraction works in mysterious ways.

Jean is an amazing woman and an incredible teacher. I would end-up participating in a study group with her that would be instrumental in helping me get to graduation. She would share these powerful insights that brought instant clarity to the most complex topics. Her calming demeanor helped the team focus and manage their moods. She would share knowledge that made us all smarter by just joining her on the phone 1 hour a week.

I have met many a smart person in my life but I have never seen anyone who had such passion and joy to share with others like Jean does. She studies, reads, and observes the world around her like no other person I know. She relishes the opportunity to engage in new situations so she can continue to expand her thinking. My ability to accomplish new achievement in life is directly related to my knowing and learning from Jean. I am blessed to have met her, know her, and be friends with her.

Golden Nugget: Embrace learning and share what you know with others.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Thank You Tim Lunsford

I first met Tim when I interviewed with him for a manager gig. He didn't have me on his top 3 list but a mutual contact (Glen Boney who I will be talking about later on in the series) encouraged him to give me an interview. I thought he was just doing Glen a favor and figured there was no way in hell I would get the job so I went in to the meeting with a nothing to lose attitude. Tim and I seemed to hit it off from the start and that interview was probably the best one I have ever had. I'm always amazed at how much better we do when we aren't trying so damn hard.

I learned all I needed to know about Tim as we were walking together after the interview was completed. We were engaging in your normal small talk chit chat when he stopped and told me he forgot to ask me something. He asked, "are you a yes man?" I said no and if that was what he was looking for then he needed to find someone else and if he didn't believe me he could just ask around. He said he couldn't stand yes people and wanted people who would challenge him. He wanted his team strong, confident and to have voices that wanted to be heard.

He lived up to that philosophy and often encouraged his team to challenge each other and debate the topic to get to a better answer. He accepted different points of view and not only would he acknowledge he learned something new he would actually show appreciation. He knew how to have a good time while getting real business done. He didn't get caught up in politics but knew how to manage within them. He led by example and encouraged his managers to lead too. He was truly one of the best bosses I have ever had.

Golden Nugget Foster an environment of debate, challenge the status quo and be wary of the Yes man.

40-Day Series: Thank You Linda Sherlock

The pressure of a big time customer pitch can be pretty intense when it is your first time. I remember the night before a $60M pitch to NASDAQ like it was yesterday. We had executives in town and conducted a presentation walk-through to ensure everyone was comfortable with their part. As we got about half-way done it became clear our story was not clear and there was much work to be done with the presentation. We had a delayed start with the rehearsal so by the time we were done and could start the editing it was already pretty late in to the evening. It looked like it was going to be an all-nighter.

Thank God I had Linda Sherlock by my side. The executives left to get their beauty sleep and the rest of the account team assumed Linda and I were good to go with the "edits." Linda and I were on the same page that the presentation needed a lot more than "edits" and basically needed an entire re-write. We weren't sure where to start so we ordered a bottle of wine and began with slide 1. We would proceed to restructure the entire presentation and finally wrapped up about 5 a.m. with a wake-up call scheduled for 7 a.m.

I can't imagine what I would have done that night without Linda. She was amazing, brilliant, patient and knew when to let us take moment to laugh and decompress. Her strategic insight was critical in weaving a compelling story. The lack of sleep paid off as NASDAQ called the pitch a "homerun" with several members following us out to our car to tell us how well we did. Her experience with big-time accounts would be invaluable to me beyond that one night and had a huge impact on my custom sales success. She taught me how to build a narrative that customers wanted to hear and would find valuable. She also taught me that you do whatever it takes to impress a customer (even if it means little to no sleep), that the story is everything and when your not sure what to do next that a bottle of wine can bring clarity.

Golden Nugget: If it isn't good do what you have to do to fix it and make it great.

40-Day Series: Thank You Steve Coker

Steve challenged me to make my biggest career decision at Sprint...he challenged me to quit. He challenged me by getting me to admit that the only reason I didn't want to quit was because of fear. Calling me a chicken definitely triggers a button with me and his challenged work...I put in for my volunteer package the very next day.

I knew of Steve Coker years earlier as the projects we worked on would intertwine from time to time but I never really got to know him. Then 2 years ago we both started the business professional certification program with Aji. Steve and I quickly realized that we had a lot in common with our overachiever tendencies being our strongest connection. Aji was teaching us how we were creating our own obstacles most of the time and that we needed networks of help to truly achieve success. Steve and I realized that we would need to let go of our lone ranger behavior (this being one of a ton of things we would learn at Aji) if we were to take our career to the next level.

Steve quickly became a confidant and an important part of my network of help. He would take time out of his busy schedule to meet with me, listen and help me ground my observations and assessments. Most important, he would be honest with me, push me, call me on my bullshit and in turn helped me become a bonafide adult and professional. He allowed me to do the same with him which allowed us to build trust...the kind of trust that you need to have with a colleague if you are going to excel. I am so fortunate to have Steve in my network of help and blessed to call him my friend.

Golden Nuggett: Find someone who you trust enough to call you a chicken and appreciate it when they do

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa

40-Day Series: Sharon Williams

Did you ever have a co-worker that was just an absolute joy to work with? Someone who helped make work something fun to look forward to? This person for me was Sharon Williams. I can't help but have a big huge grin just thinking about her. We worked together for years and even after we went down different career paths, we would hang out from time to time at our local watering hole. She was always a great source of support for me and helped me through some critical points in my career.

One such point was after my interview for the Executive Staff Manager job. I was giddy, excited and nervous as hell. I went outside and low and behold who should I run into? Well, Ms. Williams of course. I told her about the interview and shared my fears about both getting and not getting the position. I wasn't sure if I was ready for the "big time" and if I was a fool for thinking I had a serious shot at being selected. Sharon listened, nodded her head and then in Sharon style said something freaking hilarious that almost made me forget about the interview all together.

I'll never forget that moment and how I was glad that of all the people to run into that it was her. She had this way of making you completely comfortable, confident, and optimistic that all is good with the world. She also had a way of making you feel as if you could tell her anything as you knew she would hold it in utmost confidence. Sharon was raised in a small town called Marshall, MO which I think is why she was so good at making you feel right at home, even if it was only in her cube. In addition to all the personal ways she supported you, she also was one hell of a business colleague doing whatever the team needed to be successful. Business was personal to her and I'm blessed to have shared so much of my career with her by my side.

Goldent Nuggett: Be a listening ear and know when to tell a joke.

Be who you are and learn to be better,
Lisa