When I came right out of college I remember someone pulling me aside and telling me how to exactly fit in. How to wear my hair, what clothes I should wear, even how I should talk and wave or not wave or hold my hands. I wish I never had that conversation. It held me back for like two years and it took me a while to learn this myself, but the idea that you are your own brand, and you are your own person.
Alexis MaybankEventually that's where you want to be really scrappy as an entrepreneur when you're first getting your business up and running: hiring the right people, partnering the right way, getting feedback on what you're doing.
Alexis MaybankI always have to add to a team someone who is a highly tactile, list-oriented person who keeps us on track. And call them a COO or executive all-star, or whatever. I need to balance myself with people around this table who are much better at organizing, which is certainly a blind spot of mine.
Alexis MaybankWhen it comes to asking for raise, you just have to do it in the right way. You may get a no, and that's fine, but ask and make sure you know when you can come back and ask again.
Alexis MaybankIf you recognize how you are most effective - whether it's how you present yourself or whether it's how you speak, how you convey enthusiasm - when you realize what makes you feel like your most confident self, that's when you are going to be your best. You just have to figure out what makes you effective in your environment. As long as you get that right, they are always going to remember you a lot more!
Alexis MaybankWith resilience you are learning to be flexible and take feedback on how people are experiencing what you are building, you're listening to what your customers are saying, you're building these relationships, and making better decisions over time. That all really starts with that resilience and that willingness not to be perfect.
Alexis Maybank