For the background of this list – see my original post from 2-10-12.

The #12 Rap Lyric That Shaped My Leadership Style comes from the Nicki Minaj’s 2011 song Fly, featuring Rhianna.  Most white folks know Nicki Minaj, not from Rap, but from how her song Super Bass was sung by that little English girl on You Tube and got about 13 trillion hits:

Yeah it’s cute – screams stage Mom – but it got her on Ellen – what have you done in your life!?

They’re actually lyric I love from Nicki’s song Fly – the first is from hook and sung by Rhianna:

I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive
I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise

But that isn’t Rap – so I also love this part by Nicki:

I hear the criticism loud and clear
That is how I know that the time is near
So we become alive in a time of fear

Unfortunately in leadership to many of us had this experience in the corporate world.  The vultures start circling, the private closed door meetings seem to happen more often and you start getting invited to less of them!  What’s very ironic to me, that I’ve witnessed during my HR career, is how people pick up their performance as soon as the criticism begins getting louder and they know the end is near.  If they would have just did this to begin with – they never would have been in this situation to begin with – and now it’s too late to really do anything about it.  The wheels have already been set in motion – your dead man/woman walking.

My advice – work every day like you’re about to get canned – because even though you tell yourself that your not, you really are only one mistake away from getting your walking papers (especially if you’re working in a large corporation).  That isn’t negativity or sour grapes – that’s a reality that we all try to suspend because the enormity of living in that situation would be miserable.  So most of us just ignore it.   And don’t be fooled – this isn’t just a large corporation problem – it can happen anywhere.

I don’t think it’s a bad thing to work like you’re about to get fired – many will think it is – but I think it keeps your job in perspective.  How important is your job to you, really? I mean really?  If you come back saying – it’s right up there with my family and other beliefs – than treat it that way.  Too many of us take our job for granted – even after the most recent recession – and we shouldn’t.