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Leaders benefit from dispensing with the erroneous notion that professional advancement is just stepping up the next rung of life’s ladder
By Danielle Foster
The landscape of leadership continually evolves. Women are stepping into prominent roles, redefining what it means to lead and succeed in today’s world. I have found success by not being afraid to do things differently. Along the way, I discovered that leadership consists of being yourself. The business world operates under the illusion of aloof executives; that mold needs to be broken, and leaders would behoove themselves to cast away normal corporate conventions. The result of such a viewpoint yields formidable teams.
My professional journey began in 2004 in sales and hospitality. In this demanding sector, I honed the necessary skills: communication, problem-solving, client relations, and leadership philosophies. More obstacles were thrown my way while climbing the career ladder; I married an active duty sailor. The transient nature of military life, with its frequent moves, created hurdles to advancement. I experienced the difficulty of uprooting with each move, a common struggle for military spouses.
Yet, personal challenges are a catalyst for innovation. In 2019, I began freelance consulting, never intending to grow a team. However, word spread quickly about our services, and we experienced unexpected high demand. There was a market need for real human service in a sector awash with automated sales, chatbots, and inauthentic technological panaceas that were supposed to substitute for authentic human interaction. I knew that sales relies on selling yourself, and D Foster Consulting’s client base consists of business jumping ship from the promises of automation that defy the essential truth that consumers prefer to interact with real people rather than wooden emergent tech.
Under this guiding principle, the company has grown to a team of over 40 dedicated military spouses, veterans, and neurodiverse individuals. There is a discreet reason for this. Much buzz has been made about the innovation of remote work, but the fact of the matter is that for the most part, traditional corporations merely pay lip service to the concept of working from home. Why do I say this? Because remote work at many other workplaces comes with strings attached; people don’t really get the promised benefit, because in true bureaucratic fashion, guardrails, rules and regs are put around the ‘remoteness’ of the employment, echoing over-surveillance and classic micromanagement.
We do the opposite in my business. 95 percent of my workforce is unpoliced in this manner and fully performing. We enjoy a low turnover rate; usually the sales sector labor has high turnover. People at D Foster Consulting are committed to their job, they give us their all, because we allow them to be remote, and at home with their kids. A majority of our workforce are mothers who juggle work and raising children. The true remoteness of their work environment, and the fact that we cultivate a realistic attitude when it comes to the intervening moments of child rearing–we don’t give parents a hard time when kids accidentally pop on screen–is one of the primary reasons our staff sticks around for a long time.
The only reason this expansion was possible was by cultivating quality relationships, and leading by example. I built a team of individuals with varied strengths and talents, who often previously faced employment barriers. It’s important to me that growing a business also means addressing societal challenges and creating meaningful opportunities for people dedicated to working hard. Building my team while helping other businesses grow is where I operate from. It’s an approach that prioritizes mutual benefit and sustainable growth.
There are several vital leadership lessons that I picked up along my career journey: the ability to transform personal obstacles into professional opportunities, the importance of empathy, understanding the needs of diverse workforces, and the power of creating supportive ecosystems in the workplace where talent can thrive, regardless of traditional career paths.
Leadership is not confined to conventional corporate ladders but emerges from lived experiences, fueled by a desire to make a difference, empowering others to achieve their full potential. It’s about cultivating inclusive pathways for the future. That’s where real growth comes from.
About the Author:
Danielle Foster is the Founder and President of D Foster Consulting, a firm dedicated to providing U.S.-based lead generation, customer service, and virtual support teams. With over 20 years of experience in Sales, Customer Service, Executive Leadership, and Human Resources, Danielle helps support small to enterprise businesses by consulting or having their companies utilize D Foster Consulting.
Also read:
Transforming Leadership: Overcoming Burnout and Personal Struggles to Drive Business Success
Building Client Relationships That Help Support Long-Term Business Growth
Image source: elements.envato.com
