LeaderLounge – Rising Strong

Date: July 28, 2016

Name: LeaderLounge – Rising Strong

Presenters: Catherine Ducharme and Bailey Heckel

Every successful leader need to go through their transformational change to get to where they are. Moreover, every time they go through the cycle, they become stronger than before. LeaderLounge, presented by Smart, Savvy and Associates, invites Bailey Heckel, the former Vice President of Operations Product at Lululemon Athletica, to discuss her entrepreneurship journey. The event is moderated by Catherine Ducharme, the Co-Founder of Outsidein Communications. In this presentation, Bailey Heckel will reveal her emotional triggers in her career struggles. Leaders will learn the impact of the stories they tell themselves during the transformational change. The concept in this presentation is based on the book, “Rising Strong”, by Brene Brown.

Bailey Heckel is the former Vice President of Operations Product at Lululemon Athletica. With over 20 years of retail experience, she managed to rise her career to yoga industry. The transformation career experience took her to a level she never expected. Her leadership with her team created many outstanding milestones in the yoga industry. Her success came from hard work and dedication. Moreover, Bailey Heckel is considered a young leadership model for many young generations. She is the Vice President of Brand Operations for Coldwater Creek.

All successful leaders face vulnerability. It is not about winning; in fact, it is about having the courage to show up when leaders do not know the outcome. In this current society, people believe vulnerability is a sign of weakness, but they never realize vulnerability is the birth of innovation and creativity.

Leaders must develop the understanding that people admire others who take risks.

“Vulnerability is not weakness; it is our greatest measure of courage”

In Brene Brown’s book, “Rising Strong”, she defines the word “shame” as the most powerful master emotion and it is the fear that leaders are not good enough. In reality, leaders need to have whole –hearted living in order to get to their end goals. This means they will need to understand their emotions. Leaders need to engage love in their lives. Whole-hearted living will make leaders more satisfied and it will revolutionize in the new generation.

Bailey Heckel shares she had struggle with numbers. In Lululemon, she faced her fear by asking people for help. She revealed her vulnerability to her team and asked for support. Furthermore, this built a strong relationship on trust with her team. Heckel believed this is growth. She breaks down into 3 simple steps.

• Open
• Recognize the problem
• Action

Many leaders believe they should not reveal their emotions in workplace. Most of them are taught that feelings do not belong in business discussion. In reality, they need to be brave because when they fall, they can rise up again.

“People who wade into discomfort and vulnerability and tell the truth about their stories are the real badasses”

In the book, Brown uses the term called The Arena. It is a metaphor for where leaders show up, where they see, and where they put themselves out there. The credit belongs to the leader who is actually in the arena. If they fail, they fail greatly, but in every arena, they will see a tunnel. This tunnel can be unknown and uncomfortable. The end of the tunnel is the reward. Leaders can choose comfort. Leaders can also choose courage. However, they cannot choose both.

“If you are not in the arena getting your ass kicked – then I am not interested in your feedback”

Heckel shares the story in her arena. 5 years ago, Heckel was facing a mid-career crisis. She was not brave enough to get out of the retail industry. She took the step to make the list and Lululemon was at the top. Heckel believed Lululemon was the company that could develop leaders. Heckel pursued them and made on the shortlist of an IT job. Heckel took the job even though she had no experience in IT. She was not afraid because she knew Lululemon was not looking for IT experts, yet Lululemon was looking for leaders who are willing to work in IT. This new career change allowed her to figure out her passion in operation. Heckel started to build her team and established team management. She moved to Canada with the support from husband. Her life was now appointed to the right career and she believed she can change the world.

“If we are brave enough, often enough, we will fall”

In the book, Brown explains even gladiators fall. Fail is painful and death of expectation can be beyond measure. As leaders, they need the embrace all different emotions because there is no learning without failing.

Heckel explains in every chapter, leaders need to go through something called “The balancing act”. Two months ago, Heckel lost her opinion in Lululemon. Her position was eliminated. Change management is not uncommon in this age. In fact, Heckel noticed there were signs of changing before the decision was made. The organization was going to a different direction. Heckel believed he let her husband down.

Heckel moved directly to action. She wanted others to know she was ok, but deep down, she was hurt. She forced herself to be busy. Three weeks later, she realized she was still in the fall.

In every leader’s journey, there are three important acts.

Act 1) Inciting incident

Act 2) Leader struggle to solve problem

Act 3) Learn the lesson and redemption

Act 2 is messy for many leaders, yet it is the most important act because it is where the magic happens. Within act 2, there are 3 steps.

Step #1: The reckoning

Leaders walk into their own story. They need to integrate all experience. Leaders can recognize their emotions by developing self-awareness, opening up line of inquiry, being brave enough to want to know more, and allowing them to come to the key moments.

“We own our stories so we do not spend our lives being defined by them or denying them”

Step #2: The rumble

Leaders must be honest and challenge their assumptions. Instead of going or certainty, leaders should go with uncertain. Leaders must confront the story they are making up.

“In the absence of data, we will always make up stories”

Step 3: The revolution

Leaders own the truth and integrate the learning.

Heckel noticed her behaviors had changed significantly. She started to hide herself and avoid herself. She could not let her ego down because she did not want the spectators to see the ugly side of her. Heckel realized she was a failure, but she was afraid to admit the truth because she lost her confidence, something she was proud of. She began to be vulnerable to her husband and realized her husband was supporting her the whole time. She has now found her new direction.

Heckel suggests leaders should stop using work and life balance as excuse. Everything has relationship with everything. Leaders need to start be generous of themselves. All revolution starts with a new vision of what is possible.

“More generosity, less judgement, your life will be different”