My dad was an editor and a writer, and that's actually what I aspired to be.

Get face time with the customers.

Employees who believe that management is concerned about them as a whole person - not just an employee - are more productive, more satisfied, more fulfilled. Satisfied employees mean satisfied customers, which leads to profitability.

When you have that window of opportunity called a crisis, move as quickly as you can, get as much done as you can. There's a momentum for change that's very compelling.

You should be accumulating really great relationships throughout your career.

Not everybody is created equal, and it's important for companies to identify those high potentials and treat them differently, accelerate their development and pay them more. That process is so incredibly important to developing first-class leadership in a company.

Boards without women - blacklist those suckers. It's 2011. They've had the time - it's significant that they don't have women.