My favorite "traditionalist" is...

An inspirational leader who is honest, competent and forward-thinking; and it has been my very good fortune to work with her.

Oh, there have been other "traditionalist" leaders along the way that have made a difference--ranging from the boss that required everything to be written in black ink and allowed only one staple in any size stack of papers to the boss whose management style was "intimidate by walking around." A discussion of those memories is best left to another time.

In contrast to those individuals, my favorite "traditionalist" not only let me FLY, she gave me wings. To that, she would say, "Hah!" And, she would tell you that I've always had wings and all that she did is step out of the way. She's very generous with praise, but, truth is, like the Wright brothers' attempts at flying--it has taken some false starts, but eventually the "craft" started getting off the ground. She has shown such confidence in me that I feel confident.

Although she (and I) know that any level of scrutiny would easily reveal all of my imperfections, she sees beyond them and focuses on the best in me. She reaches out for my contributions and makes me feel valuable. She always makes me feel that I bring something important and special to the table. Again, I can hear her saying, "Hah!" She would say that it would be hard to keep me away from the table and that I approach her.

She has taught me much about getting the best from the people that surround and support the leader. She cares about people. She notices and acknowledges my successes--and, to keep it real, she also knows when I'm not at my best. But, she creates an environment in which I feel comfortable taking risks.

She disagrees as often as she agrees with me, which has kept me grounded.

She shares tidbits of wisdom from time-to-time. My personal favorite is, "you're likely to meet the same people you passed on your way up if you find yourself winding your way back down--so be careful how you move up. "


The best thing about my favorite "traditionalist" is that she treats everyone this way!