A Story An Executive Coach Told Me Decades Ago Completely Changed The Way I Work
In the 1990s, I was working at Claris, an Apple subsidiary, when I learned I was pregnant with my daughter.
Our CEO, the late, great Bill Campbell, surprised me with a coach to help me anticipate the inevitable chaos that was bound to ensue once I became a mom. Executive coaching was typically reserved for higher-ups, and I was just a product manager, so this was an incredible gesture.
While I didn’t know it then, one story the coach told me would change my approach to work for the rest of my career.
She told me a story about a friend who moved to New York City to find a husband.
This young woman had decided that New York was the best place to meet Mr. Right.
So, she got a job as a receptionist at a media company there. She was on the ball and did great work. As dedicated as she was at her desk, she’d always leave at 5 p.m. to give herself time to meet a husband. In her mind, that was her real job (it was a different time!).
