During my childhood, my father was head of government relations at Nissan North America, and I always admired his work on Capitol Hill. I didn’t understand at the time, but certainly do now, that what makes a leader a leader is their authenticity in speaking truth to power.
My father worked hard to convince his bosses in Japan that if they were going to make a difference in the U.S., they would need to open up their first North America plants. They opened two under his tenure.
He passed away 10 years ago, but I ask myself daily when I walk into work, how would my father have approached my position and how would he lead? He’s my guidepost for leadership.