The more I think about my role and responsibility in my company and in my personal life, one phrase really starts to come to mind. And that is being in the driver’s seat.
Like a race team where you have a team full of people working on a car to make the car be as fast and as competitive as possible, there still can only be one person in the driver’s seat. Being in the driver’s seat for me has always been fun. It’s always been the limelight. It’s always been where all the excitement, fear, anxiety, and success all culminate into one place. That has always been what’s driven me in my career.
But what I’m starting to see in a different light is not just all the things that culminate to the person sitting in the driver’s seat, but the responsibility that comes from all the race team, mechanics, pit crew, everybody relying on the decisions you make to be able to win the race.
Just like a driver is the one who is crowned the race winner, given the checkered flag, and a large trophy to hoist up, the driver doesn’t get there without everybody who makes the car what it is. Those who put the car in a position where it can win a race.
Therefore, it’s up to the driver to properly drive the car and to find ways around the competition, ways to shave time off their lap time, ways to be better, ways to be more effective, and most importantly find ways to not be in a position where you make bad decisions.
As the new year begins, as we’re looking to do bigger and better things than we’ve ever done before as an organization, my mindset has really transpired into what it truly means to be in the driver’s seat and all the responsibility that comes with that.