Become the Person You Want to Be

A previous boss once taught me that "it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission." Having just finished Herminia Ibarra's Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader made me realize how truly valuable this lesson was.

It is up to us to become the person—and leader—we want to be. To do so, we need to act as if we already were in that role so that others can envision us in that role. It seems contrarian, but is unfortunately true. And by acting that way, we also expand our own image of who we are and who we can become.

This is equally true for other aspects of our life. Fake it until you make it. Just start doing the thing you wanted to make time for and it will become easier to prioritize it. Just act the way you wish you could and over time you will internalize it.

As Nike says, just do it.

The worst that can happen is that what you wanted is not what you thought it to be or that you have evolved past that goal; you can then further iterate and move on. But at least you will know and be acting upon your dreams.

What have you wanted to become? What can you do right now to make it real?

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Karina is VP of Operations and HR at 24/7 Teach.

This was originally posted on Business Common Sense blog.

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