A lot of people mistake managing for leadership. They think that because they are skilled at keeping the trains running on time, they are leaders. Lara Abrash, named one of the 2022 Most Powerful Women in Accounting by the AICPA, thinks there’s a very important difference between leadership and managing.
“Managers manage outcomes. Leaders lead people,” she said. “It’s about setting an inspirational vision, getting people excited, and letting them know they can be their authentic selves.”
Lara earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA, but she says she got one of the most enduring leadership lessons from her high school softball coach Frank Catalano, who taught her that leadership was about more than producing outcomes. “He truly took time to care about each of us, and he took the time to invest in each of us, individually, and then as a team,” she recalled. As Deloitte & Touche LLP Chair and CEO, Lara has taken the same kind of time to foster a culture of caring and inclusion, albeit for thousands of employees rather than dozens.
In this podcast episode, Lara, who also manages and plays first base on a competitive women’s softball team, talks candidly about the challenges and rewards of authentic leadership. We spend so much of our lives working, says Abrash, we owe it to ourselves to create a collegial environment where individuals, as well as the team, can thrive.
“I have a saying,” said Lara, “Work hard. Play harder. So, I try to make work an environment where people who come together aren’t just doing the work. They are people you actually want to be with.”
You Will Learn
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5:00 How to improve your communication skills.
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15:00 How to be a better listener.
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24:00 Why failing is a necessity.
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32:00 Why goals need to be said out loud.
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Greg Brenneman
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Beth Brooke
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Rick Hendrick
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