Jennifer Davis was a mentor at Portland Business Journal's 2016 Mentoring Monday event.
Viewing entries tagged
Mentoring
In the world of racing, there is something called a pace car. It is out in front, setting the pace and demonstrating the angles to the curves of the course. Especially in amateur racing or in educational driving experiences that people might do on race courses, the pace car is especially critical.
In our professional careers, we have pace cars as well. Leaders at your company who mentor you in the ways of the business and model the pace of decision making. Journalists, bloggers, authors, or TED talk speakers who are inspiring you with new ideas to propel you forward. Admired business leaders about whom those authors write and who blaze new trails.
And in the other ways we are the pace car for others to follow. We are setting the trajectory of the curve that will avoid risk and launch us into the straightaway.
As a woman in a male-dominated industry, I have often had to be my own pace car. I couldn’t look around and see mentors or role models that were helping me navigate or modeling things for me who were like me or who had blazed the trail in front of me. From tactical issues like how to dress for a board meeting or larger issues like finding my unique position as a leader were left for me to figure out. This is probably why I became a self-professed professional development junkie. This is probably why I never had a job that wasn’t created for me to a large extent. Why I wanted to work with and for smart and capable people (generally men) who would tell the truth and I have been blessed by their advocacy. Why I feel a responsibility to mentor women at my company (and there are so many talented and capable women at Planar) and the industry (through groups like Women of InfoComm Network, Women in CE, and others).
So, I have come to peace being the pace car. It no longer fazes me. In fact, I do some of my best work quickly and under pressure. I don’t mind the visibility and attention that comes with that position. I don’t fear failure as much as many do (which is both a blessing and a curse, let me assure you). I highly value feedback from those who mean it for my good. And I am constantly trying to improve my times and those who are following in my tracks.
We should be constantly asking ourselves, “who is your pace car? How can you be a pace car to others?” and using the results of that question to drive to new results.
See you on the track!
This quote is from a powerful article by Jean Batthany, the executive vice president and creative director at DDB Chicago in her article in Advertising Age entitled "The Touch Reality Facing an Advertising Mother of the Year" (May 2014).
In my career in technology, I have helped many customers create wayfinding systems—the touchscreen-enabled systems that allow people to chart where they are and where they are going as they navigate a shopping center or college campus. Wayfinding is a lot like the lifelong effort of shaping a career.
The first step is to identify where the “You Are Here” pin might be and to determine what direction might be a good next step. Unlike the touchscreen map in the shopping mall, however, one’s entire career landscape typically isn’t visible. This is because people create their careers as they go, and the total career map is only available in hindsight.
Wayfinding your career is more like this sign (below) I saw posted at a hotel in which I recently stayed which mistakenly read "You are Her." I liked the misspelling. It isn't about being "here". Wayfinding is about self-discovery. About being "her."
As my own career extends two decades (and spans two millennia), I have been reflecting on the things I wish I better understood in the early years of my career. My article entitled "Top 5 Things I Wish I Knew in the First 5 Years of My Career" was just published with Women on Business. Read article.
The other night I watched the talented actor, Kevin Spacey, on David Letterman and he quoted his late friend and mentor, Jack Lemmon, who said that once you acquire a level of success in your field it is is your duty and privilege to "send the elevator back down" for others who could benefit from your mentoring or support.
I would say that it is necessary, not only for those in the top of their fields, but everyone along the way. Generosity is a value that is worth cultivating throughout your life. If you want to be mentored, be a mentor.
Photo courtesy of Gideon Tsang.
This was a quote from a Star Wars book which is very fitting to a number of situations that people face in life and business. In my experience, it is best to have both: a plan and an attitude of abandon that makes the results possible.