Author: Donna Allie, Founder, President & CEO, Team Clean
Who inspired you to be a leader and why?
My mother. Being the oldest sibling, I guess you could say that I was born a leader. Throughout my career there have been many times when I had doubts about my leadership. Whether good enough, strong enough, smart enough. When I allowed these doubts to take space in my head there were always women around to inspire me, challenge me and even change me.
What advice do you have for the next generation of female leaders?
Be in control of your thoughts. May I suggest you read an old classic “as a woman thinketh.” Please, ladies let’s start thinking BIG. What would it be like if we began talking about Billion dollar contracts instead of Million dollar contracts. Think about the impact that thinking big will have on your life, your family’s life. Some of us are the leaders in our family. What if we began thinking big, dreaming big and doing big things? Our children would mock us. Future Leaders take the focus off yourself. Begin thinking about how your role as business owner will help others.
As a woman do you think it’s important to have a female mentor? Or do you see value in collaborating with male counterparts?
I believe we need both male and female mentors. There were some things that I could not discuss with my male mentors that I could with my female mentors. Let’s face it – we still live in a male-dominated society. We need to understand what they are thinking.
How do you unplug from work?
That’s tough!! I never have honestly. I would take vacations 2 times a year and was never unplugged from work. It was annoying for my husband, but he was very supportive and understanding. He had to be…I was the bread winner.
What do you think about when you get up in the morning?
God, Family, and Business. In that exact order.
What are you most passionate about?
Seeing the people succeed. Especially the downtrodden. It just really lifts my spirit to see someone who has little or no faith in themselves be lifted up. Especially when they come back and share their good reports of success.