As a former recipient of the prestigious Houston Business Journal “40 Under 40” award, our founder, Allie, had the distinct honor of serving as the keynote speaker at this year’s awards ceremony. Addressing a crowd made up of the accomplished “40 Under 40” winners and their guests, along with many of Houston’s most savvy business leaders, Allie’s words resonated with those in attendance.
A few of our favorite takeaways from the evening can be found below.
- “Shut up and listen…rather than pretending to know what you’re talking about, stop talking and observe what’s around you. Sometimes the smartest person in a meeting is not the one talking the most, ensuring his point is heard, but rather the quiet one who is listening and asking the pointed questions. Slow down, listen and observe the environment around you and take advantage of the resources already available to you… this can really be your greatest mentor.”
- “We have to stop comparing ourselves to the Facebook-worthy version of other people’s lives and businesses. I work in Social Media. Trust me when I say, people only post the highs on Facebook and only the good things on LinkedIn.”
- “I like to keep a “happy folder” in my email to refer back to when I am not feeling great. I make all of my employees do this and encourage you all to do the same – What is it that gets you through those crummy days and brings you back to work? Put those reminders in your happy folder. What’s in my happy folder? Emails from clients who are reinvigorated in their businesses or who are seeing their businesses change because of the work we do. It turns my day around every time.”
Congratulations to Allie on a wonderful evening!