085: Morra Aarons-Mele - How to Network and Show up While Being An Introverted Leader
Leaders lead people, which means we have to show up with a certain level of energy to inspire others and get things done. How does this show up differently between introverted and extroverted leaders? And, how can we manage our respective energies to keep the fire lit without burning ourselves out? Our special guest this week has the answers!
Morra Aarons-Mele is the founder of award-winning digital agency Women Online and its database of women influencers, The Mission List. She is an internet marketer who has helped launched online campaigns for world leaders and organizations including the United Nations, Malala Fund, Hillary Clinton for President, President Obama, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Morra is also the author of Hiding in the Bathroom.
As an introvert, Morra wanted to grow her business but did not want to travel nor go out at night. She hates networking and, despite being a consultant, has travel anxiety. Morra wanted to build and grow her business on her own terms and made it her goal in 2016 to achieve this.
We have endless conversations about ‘crushing it’ and always saying yes, but for a lot of people, they’re just not built that way. Introverts might want to crush it and get out there, but it really zaps their energy and some of them, like Morra, have social anxiety. There simply wasn’t a roadmap for people who are introverts as well as leaders, which is why Morra decided to write her book.
Some of the world’s most successful people are introverts. It’s a total myth that introverts are all shy and quiet. Introversion has nothing to do with how people handle ambition or their social skills. Some people even have a hard time believing Morra is an introvert because of how funny she is and that she makes eye contact with people. Introverts can be those things! However, they do need to be more diligent about how they’re managing their energy.
Our culture is obsessed with entrepreneurship, obsessed with scaling up, but what’s motivating you to do those things? Are you trying to grow bigger and bigger for the wrong reasons? Sometimes, you need to stop and tune in to what YOU really want before you experience some sort of health or professional crisis.
It’s really important, no matter what level of your career, to take a step back and see whether you’re truly happy with where you are. If you’re not, are there ways you can fix it so that you can have a more intentional business? Can you scale back? Work from home? Travel less? The reality is, you CAN do work you love and do it on your own terms.
Interview Links:
Hiding in the Bathroom: An Introvert’s Roadmap to Getting Out There (When You'd Rather Stay Home), by Morra Aarons-Mele
Resources:
Scaling Up for Business Growth Workshops: Take the first step to mastering the Rockefeller Habits by attending one of our workshops.
TWEETABLES:
“Leaders tell us to never eat lunch alone, to always say yes, but a lot of us aren’t built that way.”
“Walking into a room full of prospects and strangers fills me with panic and dread.”
“Introversion is just about energy. It’s a total myth that introverts are all shy and quiet.”
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Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...And Why the Rest Don’t, is the best-selling book by Verne Harnish and the team at Gazelles, on how the fastest growing companies succeed, where so many others fail. My name is Bill Gallagher, host of the Scaling Up Business Podcast and a leading business coach with a Gazelles.
We help leadership teams to get the 4 Decisions around People, Strategy, Execution, and Cash right so that they can Scale Up successfully and beat the odds of business growth success. Our 4 Decisions are all part of the Rockefeller Habits 2.0 (from the original best-selling business book, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits).
