Page 69 - Leadership Secrets of Hillary Clinton

LEADERSHIP SECRETS OF HILLARY CLINTON

I remember attending a dinner with Hillary in George-
town right around the time she announced her candidacy for
the Democratic nomination for U.S. president. As we spoke
in small groups, a prominent business leader asked Hillary
why she wanted to run for the presidency after all the badg-
ering she had received from the press. He asked, “Do you
really want to go through this again?” Hillary answered,
“There is nothing more to dig up about me. I have been beat
up as much as anyone. I am less about changing people’s
minds now and more interested in being myself.”
Having a deeper knowledge of who you are and what’s
important to you as a leader is only half of being authentic.
The other critical half is accepting who you are. You have
to recognize and accept your flaws along with your
strengths. One prime example is when Hillary was first
lady and was leading the health-care reform initiative.
While she was dedicated to improving health care for all
Americans, she later learned and admitted that how she
went about it created conflict in perceptions of her own
intentions and leadership, She learned that taking a more
360-degree view of the world rather than working and
leading in a vacuum was important for getting things done
and winning the hearts and minds of others. Hence, she
not only admitted her mistakes but shifted her own lead-
ership style to one that was more collaborative and inclu-
sive, which in many ways helped her to be a good senator

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