professional development
ROLE MODELS AND LEADERSHIP by Gabrielle Battiste
My dad is a great leader. He cares deeply about the people with whom he works. He started out as an English teacher. He leveraged that into ever-increasing roles of responsibility and public scrutiny within governments. He was a CEO, a COO, a Deputy Minister of Economic Development, a Founding President of Nova Scotia Innovation Corporation and so much more. When things got tough, he created his own companies and became a consultant. Above all, he is the most honest person I’ve ever met and has always acted with integrity. That’s a lot to live up to. When I was young, he was away a lot. All I really remember is the smell of cigarettes and chewing gum. It’s amazing how smells can stick with you when other memories fade. What I knew, was that dad always had important jobs. He travelled a lot. He wore suits. He made a difference. He was my hero. When I got older, I understood that it wasn’t all sunshine and roses – corporate dinners and jets. I was able to see the toll it took on him and how much constant stress he experienced. He always seemed on edge. As a teenager, I didn’t internalize that well. It made me angry – and defensive - but that was par for the course. Despite how angry I was that dad seemed angry – he was my idol. I looked up to him as the most brilliant person I knew. He was witty, bright and knowledgeable about everything. I wanted more than anything to be like my dad – but would rather have died than admit that. I had no idea I was exactly like my dad.
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As a leader, you need to do and say the hard things. You need to be a voice for the people who depend on you and for the principles that demand transparency, honesty and respect for all
Over the years, I’ve learned a lot from examining my relationship with my dad – the first leader I knew – and the leadership role model that had the most impact on my personal style. I learned that no matter what is happening at work, family comes first. That is one of the most important things I learned from dad as I got older. I think all the travelling and stress helped him to prioritize family later on. I would hear him telling that to others and, as I got more involved in leadership positions, he would re-iterate that to me. The second thing I learned is that being a leader is stressful. It’s a lonely job determining who gets fired or demoted or what resources are cut in order to realize efficiencies. At the end of the day, there’s a separation that needs to happen, no matter how much you care about the people who depend on you. If you don’t have
