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By Julie Parrish, NetApp CMO
You can build the life you want. Doors will open for you if you’re persistent.
I learned at a young age that I could define my own destiny—by assuming doors were always open and having the courage to walk through them. I also learned to carefully consider whether I really wanted what was behind those doors, and whether I could handle it.
Those lessons have stayed with me. They’ve helped define my approach to my career.
I’ve written and spoken about them before when giving advice to young women, but the lessons are universal. They’re appropriate for anyone who wants to rise up the ranks.
Can I Carry the Cross?
When I was young, I was an “altar girl” at my church.
The best-behaved altar boy or girl each week was allowed to carry the cross in the processional the next Sunday. It was a big deal: You got to walk at the head of the whole group, leading the other altar boys—I was the only girl—and the priests and the choir into the sanctuary, down the main aisle, and up to the front of the church. Meanwhile, the whole congregation stood and sang.
Yes, I wanted to do that. But no matter how well behaved I was each week, I was never selected to carry the cross.
So I went to Father Frank, and told him I wanted to carry the cross.
“I would love for you to carry the cross,” he said, “But it's really big and heavy. I don’t think you can do it.”
I was not to be denied that challenge: “I can carry it, sir,” I told him. So, we worked on it, but it was really, really big and heavy—and you have to keep it up in the air on the end of a long pole. I had to carry it in a special way just to be able to lift it—but carry it, I did.
I remember the entire scene. As I’m walking down that aisle, I'm sweating, and the giant brass cross is waving all over the place on the end of the pole. My spindly arms are struggling, and I thought I was going to drop it on someone.
I was never so glad to be done with anything as I was when I put down that cross.
But I learned that if you want something, and you ask for it, you’d better be sure you really can carry the cross.
Can We Have a Girls’ Football Team?
A few years later, in fourth grade, I wanted to play football.
I was the classic tomboy, and I loved the game. I believed that our school should have a girls’ football team too. It seemed a no-brainer.
After Title IX was passed in 1972, I marched straight into the principal’s office and asked if I could start a team. To everyone’s amazement he said “Yes.”
In hindsight, I can see that I must have seemed naïve. Of course, I couldn’t find enough girls that were as enthusiastic as I was about the game, so the plan fell apart after a few practice sessions.
But I learned that if I wanted to do something—whether it was play football, be an altar girl, or carry the cross—I just needed to go for it. Not because other people were doing it, or that someone else thought it’s what I should do, but because I really wanted to do it.
Never assume doors are closed to you. And, don’t opt out because you assume you can’t get what you want. If you want something, march right up and open that door.
Before You Open the Door, Know You Can Carry That Cross
These lessons have helped me move into a C-level position in corporate America.
This is a tough world. If you want to make it to the C-suite, you have to realize just how tough it is.
People are in higher-level positions, in part because they’re willing to travel, stay late, and work weekends. They carry additional stress associated with greater levels of responsibility. They don’t work part time.
I love the idea of being home by 6pm every night and preserving weekends. I even love the idea of part-time work, but you have to realize those choices are probably not going to put you on an upward trajectory.
Be realistic: A job that doesn’t require you to travel much, and where you’re home for dinner every night, and offers an opportunity to move up to the top is difficult to find. If you want to move up to that higher job, you need to be able to carry the cross.
You also need to make sure the job is really what you want, or you’ll find yourself weaving down the aisle, just looking for a place to drop that heavy brass weight.
The Bottom Line
To be a successful executive, you need to truly have a passion for business, to take risks, and to look past obstacles.
Be careful to truly understand the weight and responsibilities of the positions you pursue. Be willing to pay the necessary price of success. Make the sacrifices the job requires. And build the right team of people around you to help you reach your goal.
Know what you really want, go open that door, and be prepared to carry the cross on the other side.
What's your take? Weigh in with a comment below, and connect with @JParrishNTAP (Twitter).
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