Dr. Kendy Hall, a physicist at Raytheon, said

“Know your strengths and your weaknesses. The power of that is, if you understand your weakness, you understand who you need to surround yourself [with] so it allows you to be better.” And, you know what you have to offer and where you can create value for others because of your strengths. “It’s a mutual respect and mutual sharing of knowledge,” said Hall, that can only occur when you confident enough to acknowledge your weaknesses.

In addition to knowing yourself, the panelist agreed that respect, being a leader, mentors and sacrifice were very important to achieving success.

On the topic of respect, Dana Keefer, Vice President of Talent Management at Northrop Grumman, warns “It takes years to build up respect but seconds to lose it.”

The way to gain respect is to be self-confident. People trust and are attracted to people who are confident but also show humility.

Remember the saying that even the greatest master was once a disaster, be patient with people who aren’t on your level, share your knowledge and be respectful.

Also honor all your commitments: deadlines, meetings, and offers to help co-workers. And if you can’t honor a commitment let your supervisor, co-workers, or clients know as early as possible.

Once you gain respect you need to maintain it. You need to be consistent and continue doing the things that earned you respect.

Two things to avoid at all costs are engaging in workplace gossip or being unprofessional at work functions.

Leadership is important because, “When you contribute to the success of others, you become empowered yourself,” stated Kim Ikemia Arrington, CEO of Courageant Consulting. You become empowered by displaying your strength and creating value for someone else.

Arrington also stated, “You can be a leader from any level. There is an opportunity in any situation to show up and do what you need to do. You never know who is watching you.”

Keefer agrees, “Everything you do as a leader is being watched, it’s being watched by your organization, it’s being watched by your peers, by the people that report to you, the people you report to…it’s what we do and say every single day…it is the difference between okay leaders, good leaders, and amazing leaders.”

Keefer also discussed the role of knowing yourself in leadership. “Authentic leadership is a root construct. It goes back to who you are, your life, your experiences, your family, your challenges.” It is natural and good to emulate other leaders. But, be careful not to forget who you are. If you do, “it doesn’t come across as real and authentic” says Keefer. “The key to being a leader is having people follow you. If they don’t trust you, they won’t follow you,” continued Keefer.

“No matter where you are in your career, mentors are important,” says Hall. Mentors are useful because they see things from a different perspective and can guide you along the path. Keefer adds, “Mentors can be the key to unlocking rules.” It is useful to have a “broad network at different places and levels of the organization.”

On the journey of success, there will be sacrifices and hard decisions. And having a clear idea of who you are and what you want will be invaluable. You can make decisions that are in-line with your values and long-term goals instead of what is easy or seems right under the pressures of the moment.

Keefer, no stranger to work – life conflicts stated, “I have never achieved balance. I have made some horrible decisions, to spend more time at work than with my family. The reality is that’s why I’m in the position I’m in today…I’m not proud of some of those decisions.”

At Northrop Grumman, they provide programs that help employees make work-life choices by prioritizing. Programs Keefer wishes were available to her when she was moving up in her career.

Arrington and Hall have also had to make similar choices.

In Arrington’s case, she had a clear picture of what success was to her. It gave her the courage to turn down a job that wasn’t in-line with her view of success and start her own business instead.

Hall left academia and went to work for a company that values work-life balance. He also states that because he loves what he does it doesn’t feel like work.

Briefly, know who you are. This is the basis for everything related to success. It allows you to define what success means to you and makes it easier to act with integrity because you know what you value. You gain respect and trust when you act with integrity. People will follow you when they respect and trust you. Acknowledge your weakness and learn from others. Pay it forward by helping someone else in return. And there is no success without work and sacrifice.