Pressure is a Privilege
'Pressure is a privilege, and champions adjust.' - Bill Jean King
Do you ever have times when you hear a quote... that you may or may not have heard before... that follows you everywhere you go once you have heard it? Lately that is "Pressure is a Privilege" for me.
So.... I did a little digging and I now know it is credited to Billie Jean King and she has written a book on the subject. The quote also greets players as they head onto the court at Arthur Ashe Stadium for the US Open... and numerous articles have been written in support of this topic.
A Confession
In full transparency... I have been avoiding blogging on this one even though it has been ever present on my mind... because I'm not sure I have anything new to add. My self imposed pressure...which is a privilege... has prompted me to put a few thoughts together...not that I have revelations that have not ever been shared before...but more that I think a lot of us are experiencing "Pressure" of all kinds and this simple phrase may help put it into perspective like it has been for me.
Compelling Career Stories
The other serendipitous moment this week was our Group Mentoring Program where the topic was Career Story Telling and we had the honor of hearing from Hewlett Packard Enterprise CFO Marie Myers .
I'm going to make a bold assumption... that with all that is going on right now... you could not have found a person in HPE that is under more pressure than her... yet she generously made the time for our small but mighty group. She was authentic... transparent... relatable and inspiring. She also came across as grateful for the privileges she has worked so hard to achieve.
Lessons Learned
So what did I take away from Marie that builds on my thoughts on "Pressure is a Privilege" Here is my top 5!
Lean into YOUR Grit. She talked about her childhood and growing up on a sugar cane farm and how tough that was and how strong that made her based on her lessons learned from her family business. The word GRIT immediately came to my mind as she spoke. Champions have GRIT and they adjust to find a way to get through every challenge they face. They may not always win but they pick themselves and keep going where others lay down or walk away.
Prove Them Wrong. A common theme that seemed to define her career was "doing a job no one else wanted to do". She got questioned multiple times over the years on why would she run towards the fire and do hard things... that's crazy. That way of looking at things was a call to action for her... I'm up for this... I can make it happen... I will prove you wrong. This also means a lot of pressure... yet another example of how a champion prevails.
Leaders Grow Other Leaders. I LOVED that she said this and this is a topic I embrace and have written about before. A key for her journey was having fabulous people take her under her wing along the way. What is amazing... is that she recognized how important & meaningful their mentorship was going to be to her. She continued to follow up and keep that connection as she rose in her career. This now has pivoted to her giving back and mentoring others. With great pride... she talked about how several people she has mentored have gone on to be C-Suite execs. A great reminder that no matter how much pressure we are under... it is a privilege to give to others as the gift was given to us.
Do The Right Thing. As you rise in your career... and IF you find yourself in that privileged position to be in the spotlight or in the C-Suite... the decisions... the pressure... the stakes are a lot higher. It's not until YOU find yourself in the spot you have yearned to have that YOU understand what that means. Marie's advice for that moment or any of the moments WE might find ourselves in (big or small) is Do the Right Thing. This may not be popular... it may not be what you want to do... but it may be what has to be done. At the end of the day... if you can lay your head on the pillow at night and know you did what was best... that is all we can do. We also have to accept all the pressure and consequences that come with it.
Fail Fast & Learn. As with all Champions... there are failures along the way... we don't win every match. Marie talked about moving her family to Romania with a start up and how that did not work out as expected for numerous reasons. She learned from that and it helped her to solidify the type of culture she wanted to work in and where she best thrived. It also plays into something else she said which is embracing the idea of "chapters of our lives". All the ups and downs we go through shape us and prepare us for the next chapter.
In Closing...
Hardly any of us are meant to be... or will find ourselves at Center Court at the US Open. Nor will we all (or should we be)... C-Suite Execs. What I can be sure of is that WE ALL experience pressure in our careers and our personal lives. I believe the lessons learned from Marie's career journey are applicable to all of us... no matter what our career path will be.
If we take a moment to pause and think about our younger self who dreamed of being where we are now with all that we have... we would salivate at the thought of having the privilege to be where we are... with the people we are with... with all that has gotten us here.
Take a deep breath in the pressure filled moments and find a way to leverage it to your advantage. The more experience we get... the more we push ourselves out of our own comfort zone and it will not surprisingly result in more situations we have not been faced with before. If you can pivot to problem solving mode and find a way forward it will take you to levels you never dreamed possible... AND it will help you to better navigate the pressure next time.
Leadership Questions of the Week for YOU:
How do you currently perceive pressure in your life—do you see it as something to avoid, or as a privilege that signals growth and opportunity?
Have you ever leaned into a challenge or “run toward the fire” when others hesitated?
Who are the mentors or leaders that have impacted your life, and what lessons have they taught you?
If YOU were telling YOUR career story and relating lessons learned... what are YOUR top 5 that YOU would share?
Thanks for reading….and remember…YOU make a difference!
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