Empowering Emerging Leaders: Leadership Begins with Being Seen
Photo Credit: M. Jardine
Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence—and making sure that impact lasts in your absence. — Frances Frei
I had done things a bit backwards. I graduated from high school, started community college, dropped out of community college, traveled by myself, had a baby, and then decided it was time to finish college.
During that time, I focused on designing programs for teenage moms and finding my way as a mom. I was wrapping up my final projects for graduation and needed an advisor.
Dede Henley, whom I’d known well as an acquaintance for many years, stepped in enthusiastically and said, “I would love to review your work.”
So, I passed my work off, full of nerves and doubt. I wasn’t sure how my made-from-scratch work would resonate with an MSOD Pepperdine graduate who had a thriving leadership career for close to 20 years.
A week passed, and she sent me a quick note: “I read all your work on my flight home. I was moved, I cried, and you so inspire me. I think you should come work with me.”
I had immediate doubt. How could my social-service-oriented heart and soul work in corporate America? I didn’t have credentials. I had zero experience. Having come from a long line of self-employed entrepreneurs, I had no exposure to corporate America.
But she saw potential, and she held steady. I ended up saying yes to the bold invitation.
She Tended to My Future Self
For the next twenty years, Dede taught me a few key things that empowered me as an emerging leader:
She related to me as my future self, not who I was in the moment.
She envisioned what was possible and kept sharing it out loud. Not only with me but with others.
She assured me I had what mattered most; the rest could be learned by doing.
She told me I embody the skills that are hard to teach. I cause safety. I bring curiosity. I have presence and a healthy lack of attention to doing it the “right” way.
She listened deeply to my ideas and took action on them.
She created spaces for me to show up through co-leading, speaking, and partnership.
She made sure I won, even when I wasn’t winning.
She empowered me to be better than her.
She related to me as someone who had something to teach her.
All of this created a world for me to step into. She didn’t do the work for me—she made the opportunity. It was on me to say yes. To learn. To fumble. To lead. To fail. To return, over and over again, to what was possible. It was my job to match her power.
The Role of a Champion
When I think about emerging leaders, I wish they had at least one champion in their lives.
A person who sees the core of who they are and invites them into a larger world. A champion who stays steady with them and leads one step behind. Makes room for their natural genius while providing the extra stuff that makes it all work.
I wouldn’t be here if Dede Henley hadn’t seen the future I couldn’t see. And I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t said yes, taken the leap, and stepped into a possibility she created.
Now, as COO, I am dedicated to fulfilling her vision while tending to the emerging future. Dedicated to creating workplaces where all people thrive - with a lot of heart and soul.
Are you someone’s champion—or becoming one?
Leadership begins with seeing potential and creating space for it to rise. If you're ready to grow your own leadership or support others on their journey, explore our leadership development programs for practical tools, connection, and courageous next steps.
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