Your Personal Board of Directors

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You need a Personal Board of Directors to navigate life successfully and grow as a leader.

In the corporate world the primary responsibility of a board of directors is to look out for shareholders’ interests. In your Personal Board of Directors there is only one shareholder, you.

The responsibilities of your Personal Board of Directors, though, remain largely the same. To look out for your interests. They do this in 3 main ways:

1. Give you clear feedback when you need it (especially if you don’t want it)

2. Connect you to others from their own network who can add value to your life (and vice versa)

3. Believe in you when you begin doubting yourself

But why have a Personal Board of Directors in the first place? Everything you read in this newsletter and any success I’ve had in my life comes from the teachings of others.

If you’re serious about your leadership journey it means you need to be intentional about your growth. There’s no better way to be intentional about growing as a leader than by surrounding yourself with those who lead better than you do.

I’ve also found the Personal Board of Directors approach to be a much more genuine way to network and maintain relationships with those you admire and look to emulate.

Your Personal Board of Directors act like your mentors, but the way you assemble them should be done intentionally such that the mentorship you receive from the whole of your Board is more comprehensive than any single 1:1 relationship.

I think about the roles in my Personal Board of Directors like the different members of a family.

Characteristics of your Board

Before we cover the different roles on your Personal Board of Directors it’s important to cover the loose characteristics that govern they type of person that should occupy your Personal Board of Directors.

At the outset it’s important to understand that the members of your board are those you have more than a casual relationship with (though there’s no need to formally ask them to “be on your Board). They are those who you look to emulate and who are interested in investing their time in you.

You’ll know someone is a good fit for your Personal Board of Directors if:

• When you call / text them they get back to you within 24 hours

• They’re willing to introduce you to others from their network

• They are, at least somewhat, aligned with your definition of success in life

• You try to meet them in person at least once per year and buy them lunch

You should not choose someone for your Personal Board of Directors if:

• They are a member of your family

• You currently work for them (ideally they don’t work at the same company as you)

• They are successful in a domain completely separate from your goals (use common sense here, but if you’re trying to found the next world changing startup a relationship with a tenured professor can be interesting, but that person shouldn’t be on your Board)

Structure your Board like a Family

I find it useful to think of the members of my Personal Board of Directors as different members of a family. This helps round out the Board such that you receive a diverse set of perspectives based on each individual’s life experience.

I recommend your Board have 5 different people who each fill the following roles:

• Grandparent - 2 generations older than you

• Aunt / Uncle - 1 generation older than you

• Older Sibling - 5 to 10 years older than you

• Twin - Peer

• Younger sibling - Mentee

A note on ages - often when I initially introduce the concept of structuring your Personal Board of Directors like a family people think I mean steps ahead on a career ladder or some other metric when I speak of “generations” or “years” but I literally mean age.

While this seems odd at first, I find that a broad spectrum of ages of people broadly aligned with your goals for a successful life helps ensure you receive a holistic perspective when you’re looking for feedback or advice.

The Grandparent

Seeking a grandparent for your Personal Board of Directors is the area I see people neglect most often, but I think is possibly the most useful.

This person should literally be two generations older than you are. They’ll be particularly valuable at reminding you whatever you’re worried about today you likely won’t remember 10 days from now let alone 10 years from now.

They also help you “rhyme” the patterns of history from both their experience but also their predecessors’ experience to apply those lessons to the problems you face today.

Finally, I’m convinced that so much of success in life comes from good long term thinking. The grandparent on your Personal Board of Directors will help you think better over longer time horizons if you listen to them (which you should).

The Aunt / Uncle

I like to think of the aunt or uncle on my Personal Board of Directors as a cool aunt or uncle. Someone who is the same generation of your parents but enthusiastic about mentoring someone younger than them and with a track record of success that mirrors one you’d like to emulate.

Ideally this person is not retired, still in the arena, operating in an environment similar to your own, but someone who sees the matrix at a different level than you do. This helps because they will have much of, if not the identical, context from an environmental perspective as you do when it comes to analyzing and helping you solve problems.

In a perfect world this person is at the C-level (or equivalent) of their chosen profession or can help you access C-level decision makers from their own network. From a pragmatic perspective this is valuable as you look to advance your own career, however it also gives you access to a sounding board of individuals who are at the top of their game. An invaluable resource.

The Older Sibling

The Older Sibling on your Personal Board of Directors should be someone that is close to you in age and just a step or two above you in their own career.

If the Grandparent and Aunt / Uncle help you with strategic questions and advice it’s the Older Sibling on your Board that will help you with the tactics. Use this framework, try this template, have you thought about this tool, etc.

Outside of the Grandparent it’s the Older Sibling that I see leaders neglect most often. Often times type A people (present company included) think they can skip straight to the endgame and figure out the next few moves on their own.

It’s likely that the person filling the Older Sibling role on your Board will be helpful to you most consistently. They were in the position you’re currently in just a few years ago and have the specific playbooks you can follow to get that next role, position, or achievement.

Your Twin

The Twin on your Personal Board of Directors is someone who should roughly be at the same stage in their career as you are.

Ideally they are smarter, more talented, and more driven than you are (iron sharpens iron) but they should look at you as a close friend.

This is the member of your Board of Directors who you call after a long week to catch up and vent (when needed) over a cup of coffee or a beer (pro-tip the person doing the balance of the complaining always has to buy).

The model I like to use when determining who should be my “twin” on my personal Board of Directors is which of my close friends do I admire the most professionally and can I talk to this person about issues I have in business / my life as a leader. If yes, they are a great fit.

Your Younger Sibling

This person can be someone who you actively mentor, but who you should absolutely consider as part of your Personal Board of Directors.

Being a mentor is one of the best parts about leadership. The truest test of whether or not leadership is the correct career path for you - Are you more motivated by a mentee’s success than your own? If yes, you must pursue a career as a leader as anything else will leave you feeling empty.

Make no mistake though, the Younger Sibling on your Personal Board of Directors is very much someone who you will learn from as much or more than you will teach.

This is true for three reasons. First, because when you teach something to someone else it sharpens your own thinking, particularly if you document it.

Second, because they will help inform your perspective on trends which you are now too old (sorry, it’s true) to spot that have an impact on the success of your team.

Third, because if you are a leader you are likely leading individuals who are younger than you. The Younger Sibling on your Board can help you understand those younger team members so that you can unify and motivate your team effectively.

Conclusion

It’s important to note that I’m a Sales Leader in my 30s interested in having a successful career in business. If your situation is different than mine, your mileage with this exact framework for a Personal Board of Directors may vary.

That said, regardless of your age or stage in your leadership journey having a Personal Board of Directors composed of individuals with a generational makeup from younger to you to two generations ahead is an effective way to ensure your Board has the diverse perspectives needed to help you succeed.

What are you waiting for? Get to work.