How do you get to the top of the corporate ladder?

It was Donald Kendall, former chairman and CEO of Pepsi Co, Inc., who was asked, “how do you get to the top of the corporate ladder?”

Here’s his answer:

“There’s no place that success comes before work, except in the dictionary. You can’t get to the top of any profession without a lot of hard work, and I don’t care whether you’re in art, music, business, or the academic world. Success at all levels requires tremendous effort.”

A strong work ethic is a key to leadership success. This stands in opposition to the current fad of quiet quitting. Quiet quitting is, “when someone puts in the minimum amount of effort to keep their job, but does not go the extra mile for their employer. This might mean not speaking up in meetings, not volunteering for tasks, and refusing to work overtime. It might also result in greater absenteeism.” (Google)

This is someone who is dying a slow death in their job. It is opposite to what any common sense athletic coach knows about sports. Vince Lombardi, legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers, once said,

“…football is a lot like life…it teaches us that, “Work (a strong work ethic) sacrifice, perseverance, competitive drive, selflessness and respect for authority is the price that each and every one of us must pay to achieve anything worthwhile.”

I remember hearing of my cousin Eldridge, a hard-working Iowa farmer, putting in the crop in the spring. He was sometimes on the tractor for 48 hours continuously. That time window to get the seed in the ground was crucial. But I also remember him taking his family vacation to Florida for several weeks in the winter when things were slower.

I don’t think a strong work ethic means a leader has to mortgage his family or precious relationships to get to the top. Nobody on their death bead groans out with their last breath, “I wish I had worked more hours.”

Balance is key to effective living. Life is a high-wire act that requires hard work and constant mid-course correction.