Leadership and Growth: A note from the President

Recently my sister in law told me that I’m the most intense and chill person that she’s ever met. She was so freakin’ precise and I love it. Sometimes I can’t chilleth the effeth outeth. I go hard in so many areas of my life. I see it, I know it and I feel it, for the good and for the bad. Sometimes I'm chill in the best of ways. I empower my team to make decisions. I let my kids eat the extra dessert. I give in on screen time. I enjoy cocktails and good conversations. But again, it's usually intense or chill Jo. Having this pointed out to me has really made me pause and think about all areas of my life.

Today I am stopping to focus and reflect a lot on Promokitchen and my leadership role there. How have I led Promokitchen over these last 9 months? Will I look back at this year and be proud or have regrets?  I'm a person who craves feedback and constructive criticism. I need to hear the good and the bad to grow. So, I decided to take my racing thoughts and to put them into the hands of our amazing board members.

As you know, Promokitchen is an all volunteer organization. We have 15 active board members (chefs), 11 active sous chefs and a few amazing volunteers. A few days ago I emailed all of the wonderful chefs and sous chefs for their feedback on what they need more of/less of/etc.  I asked for them to be open and honest and to not hold back. When I hit send to over 20 people that I sincerely respect I had to walk away from my computer and take a few deep breaths. Chill. Breathe. Chill. Breathe. Sip cocktail. 

I thought to myself, "What would they say?", "What wouldn’t they say?", "Do I have the bandwidth to do more and to give more?"

Responses trickled in. Each time that one did I could feel myself tensing up. Tightened shoulders and stiff neck took over each time. The power was no longer in my hands. All I could do was read, rinse, repeat. Read, rinse and repeat. Read, rinse and repeat. So, that is just what I did. After a few days of emails I felt better for hearing some honest and constructive input. I felt better for putting myself out there and for wanting to grow.

"Do I have the bandwidth to do more and to give more?"

I can be better.  I will be better. I can grow. I will grow. I will make the time because I deeply care about PK and want to see how far we can go. I am taking some of the feedback and implementing changes over the next few weeks. Changes on how we communicate and how we plan. Making meetings more efficient. Discussing big picture items and defining a vision are just a few things on my list. I'm excited for it. I'm ready.

So, I ask you.. yes you, you who is reading this from your phone or your computer or your tablet while doing ten other things. What can you be better at? Who are you leading? How are you leading? What's your why? What's your passion? What's your vision? What do you need from your team and what do they need from you?

Johanna Gottlieb, President PromoKitchen and VP Sales, Midwest for Axis Promotions

If you expect greatness from others around you it is important to take your turn at bat too. It’s my turn up at bat. Let’s see how far I can take this team. I want to knock it out of the park. I want to steal some bases and get dirty sliding into home. Here's to the future of our team and to stepping up to the plate. I hope I don't let you down. 

If you are feeling stuck on how you can grow maybe it is time to consider our PK mentor program. It is never too late to keep learning.