Leadership Ripples

My sister FaceTimed me this morning at 7am.

She said she was thinking about me, but instead of a usual text to let me know, she decided to video call.

We spoke for 10 minutes.

For context, my sister moved across the country to a place with no friends in the middle of a pandemic to start her first job out of college (so brave!). And like many people recently, starting a new job remotely has been weird and tough. Especially for someone who is new to the corporate world and trying to get her bearings.

This week, she co-led a project and presented her findings to a cross-functional group.

After she presented, one of the leaders in the room sent an email to my sister's boss (with her copied) offering positive, specific feedback about how well she did. She read me the entire email with a beaming smile.

Some of my reflections from our interaction:

*The importance of offering positive feedback for great work when you see it, especially in a remote environment.
*The joy that feedback brought to my sister, which she brought to me, which I'm bringing into my day.
*Small actions can have huge ripple effects, especially as a leader.
*The sense of pride my sister has in her work, and how that was inspiring her to do more.
*I really value random FaceTimes from friends and family