As a young woman in the early stages of my career, it was an absolute privilege to hear Jeanne Beker speak at the Ivey Business School’s Leader Character and Candour Conference. A great Canadian role model and global fashion icon, Beker shared lessons from her life and career, giving us a glimpse into the mindset that helped her to get where she is today.
From her recent book, Joy Runs Deeper, Beker shared details of her parents’ journey as holocaust survivors. Their story of resilience helped define Beker and many of her beliefs, including her life motto: “Don’t be afraid and never give up.”
Listening to her talk, I gathered three nuggets of leadership advice:
Do something great
As the child of two holocaust survivors, Beker said she felt she owed it to her parents’ struggle to do something "great" with her life; it was not to be lived unremarkably. With that mentality, Beker was eager to pursue her passions and carve her own path.
Unafraid to try new things, she moved to New York to pursue a career in acting. Later on, while studying theatre at York University, she became fascinated with mime and went to study the art under Étienne Decroux in Paris for a year. Upon moving back to St. John's, Newfoundland, she wanted to meld her interests and experiences to create something exciting with the city’s art and music scene. With an idea to profile local artists, the fearless Beker knocked on the door of CBC Radio. After a bit of cajoling, she became the station’s arts and entertainment reporter.
It was a humble beginning to carving her own path to greatness. She did it all and she did so with a lot of Chutzpah, as she would like to say. I think we could all use a little bit of that motivation and Chutzpah in our day-to-day lives. Why settle for mediocre when we can do something great?
Don’t miss the detours
Despite Beker’s evident persistence and focused determination, she told the audience to not be too focused on a specific goal and instead be flexible and open to opportunities along the way. Tunnel vision can often cause us to miss out on side-adventures, detours, and paths that we didn’t know existed. In Beker’s case, one wonders if she knew that the streets of St. John's would one day lead her to the runways of Paris, Milan, and London.
Goals give us direction, but our goals are based on what we know at the present. On our journey toward the goal, we have to be willing to evolve, not just with our character and path, but possibly our goal as well. Good leaders must have direction, but they should be flexible to an opportunity along the way.
Be yourself; be authentic
Beker had the audience in the palm of her hand as she spoke because she addressed people with such candour. You could see that she is who she is and is proud of it. Beker told the audience to not be afraid of wearing their hearts on their sleeves. Authenticity will help get you to the place you need to be. If something doesn’t fit who you are, it most likely won’t come to pass, and that’s a good thing. As Beker put it, she loves to talk – why on earth did she think of doing mime? That said, Beker asked students to take time to reflect on who they are, what drives them, and where they want to be.
It's easy to get pulled in different directions trying to be what people want you to be, but, if that isn't a fit, it's difficult to get very far. It could also get rather uncomfortable. People are drawn to authentic people even more – to authentic leaders. And it's always easier to lead when you have someone's attention.
Beker’s story of trial and triumph left her audience with lots to think about. I look forward to seeing where her Chutzpah will take her next and will most certainly be picking up my own copy of her autobiography Finding Myself in Fashion to learn more about this incredible Canadian role model.
Sunali Swaminathan
HBA ’10 and Manager, HBA Recruiting.