Danielle Biss

I want to be like Danielle Lenarcic Biss when I grow up.

I’ve been highlighting leaders in my life who are women for a few days now. All of them inspire me, but when it comes to making me want to be a better person, no one comes close to Danielle.

I have six key leadership values I try to live each day. The first one is “impact”: a commitment to creating moments where people feel they are better off for having interacted with you. If leadership is impact, we can all go to leadership class with Danielle. She has made an art form out of building a life of leadership through moments of impact. While it’s an ability we all have, it’s not one we all live.

Recently, I gave an interview where someone asked me to identify “a moment where someone had done something profoundly kind for me”. The problem with that question is it’s looking for one single big gesture to celebrate. Leadership isn’t in the big things, it’s in the consistent things. Anyone can manage a single moment of impact — leadership lies in making it a habit. In embedding it into your DNA.

That question made me realize that when I think about the most impactful leaders in my life, it’s not those who have created big moments, but those who have created a relationship filled with powerful moments. It’s people like Danielle.

Powerful moments don’t have to be big moments. Receiving a thank-you note using the lyrics to your favourite musical is a powerful moment. Having someone agree to house-sit and then having them hide notes reminding you you’re awesome all over the house is a powerful moment. And if you’re addicted to the West Wing, receiving a framed napkin with a simple phrase on it is about as powerful as it comes.

A powerful moment is created when someone demonstrates that they see you. That they have paid attention to who you are and what matters to you. We can all do that for others if we choose to.

Danielle is a leader because she never lets life keep her from truly seeing other people and acting in a way that makes that clear to them.

For instance, Danielle has often told me about her friend Guy. She talks about how much she looks forward to seeing him on her way to work every morning. She talks about the stories he’s told her, and the jokes that they share. She was so grateful he gave her a box of chocolates when she saw him before Christmas this past year.

Guy is a homeless man who sits near the corner of Bay and Richmond streets in Toronto. Many of you reading this have probably walked by him.

Danielle knows his birthday is March 23rd.

That’s leadership.