Cole: What do you believe to be the most important piece of advice for a leader to follow? Neal: The most important piece of advice for a leader to follow is to be strategically courageous. For me that means saying the same things you said when someone is in the room as you said when they were out of the room. And that means you can’t say just anything. That is a continuous lesson for all of us. As a leader, I believe you can be quiet and stand in your courage without uttering a word. I also believe leaders can move through board rooms and ballrooms with the same grace and confidence that they would display in bars and bowling alleys.
Cole: How do you prioritize work-life balance, and what advice do you have for junior professionals who are struggling to find balance? Neal: There is no such thing as work-life balance! It’s a nice myth to strive for but each individual in their respective profession has to find their balance. Sometimes that’s 70-30 or 20-80. In this country we are all overworked and stressed, which is why it is even more important to shut-off all electronics during down time. One rule I strive to follow is to never bring my cell phone to the dining room table or breakfast island. The goal is to give my husband my undivided attention, especially during those times.. Cole: As an African American woman leader, what do you consider to be one of the most difficult obstacles you’ve faced? Neal: As a Black Woman Leader I find it challenging fielding the same culturally insensitive questions about being Black. For example, ”...what do you use on your skin to make it look that way?” or after trying to touch my hair they ask, “...what do you use on your hair?” My suggestion is that they google it. I’ve said on many occasions, “...at times I forget that I’m Black. But there’s always someone who reminds me and they are never Black themselves…” It’s tantamount to death by a thousand cuts on a daily basis. Cole: What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the community today, and how do you see ways to overcome them? Neal: That question requires a dissertation. There are many challenges facing the Black community today. We were not supposed to survive this long, let alone thrive. But man plans and God cracks-up! Incremental steps are taken in every generation and progress is made. However, there are still many difficult days ahead. Just as people have made progress in addressing wrongs facing Black people in America, there seem to be just as many people content on relying on old tropes and negative stereotypes. Berniece King quotes her
Photo: McBoat Photography
26 The Acumen
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