Mindset, Mentorship, & Making an Impact with Dr. Ronicka Harrison-Briscoe

Discover the secrets to making an impact with featured guest Dr. Ronicka Harrison-Briscoe, a distinguished leader whose life work embodies the essence of transformative leadership and community engagement. As an interdisciplinary scholar and a beacon of change, Dr. Briscoe shares her invaluable insights on fostering a leadership mindset, balancing professional and personal life, and the power of understanding one's innate strengths. 

Join Host Natalie Benamou as she explores the layers of leadership through the lens of education, mentorship, and the relentless pursuit of empowerment for women and young girls with Dr. Briscoe.

3 Leadership Takeaways

• The Leadership Mindset: Dr. Briscoe emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and recognizing one's value proposition. She argues that understanding one's innate talents and focusing on them can lead to a more fulfilled life and career success.
• Empowering Young Women: Through her work with the Legacy Foundation for Girls, Dr. Briscoe is pioneering a movement that begins with young girls in fifth grade. She highlights the critical role of early empowerment, self-awareness, and mentorship in setting a positive trajectory for young women's futures.
• The Role of Community and Mentorship in Leadership: Dr. Briscoe discusses the significant impact of having a diverse support network of mentors and sponsors. This network is crucial for navigating challenges, seizing opportunities, and achieving success in leadership roles across various sectors.

The discussion with Dr. Ronicka Harrison-Briscoe brought to light several insightful highlights regarding her work interviewing C-suite leaders. Here are some key takeaways:

1. Diverse Networks and Support Systems: A common thread among the success stories of C-suite leaders was the presence of a diverse network of mentors, sponsors, and peers. Dr. Briscoe underscored the importance of having people from different backgrounds and with different expertise to provide support, advice, and opportunities for growth and advancement.
2. Understanding and Leveraging Personal Strengths: Dr. Briscoe emphasized the significance of self-awareness and understanding one's value proposition. C-suite leaders, through their journey, learned to identify, embrace, and leverage their innate talents and strengths, which played a pivotal role in navigating their paths to leadership positions.
3. The Challenges of Balancing Personal and Professional Life: An interesting aspect discussed was the personal sacrifices and decisions regarding family life that many women in C-suite positions had to make. Dr. Briscoe highlighted the need for early and thoughtful planning around family life, including considering options like egg freezing for those who may want to delay starting a family due to career commitments.
4. Mental Health and Well-being: Surprisingly, despite the high-stress levels associated with their roles, very few C-suite leaders were reported to seek therapy or professional mental health support. This finding led Dr. Briscoe to stress the importance of mental well-being and the need for a shift in perception about seeking help for mental health issues, especially within the African American community.

Quotes from Dr. Ronicka Harrison-Briscoe

“We are born with innate talents, abilities, and strengths. If we live our lives to really develop those rather than focusing on the things we can't do and our weaknesses, then we live a more fulfilled life.”

“If you don't know who you are when you go into an organization, they'll make you who they want you to be. Knowing who you are, what you bring to the table, what you value, and when those values are being challenged, that's the difficulty.”

“Leadership is not just about guiding others.  It's about igniting a spark within them to discover their own strengths and potential.”

“Empowerment begins with the belief that you are capable of making a difference. It's about setting a path for others to follow, not by leading them, but by walking beside them.”

“Resilience in leadership doesn't mean never facing setbacks.  It means having the courage to rise every time we fall, armed with lessons learned and a vision that guides us forward.”

Dr. Briscoe's discussion not only highlighted the achievements and challenges of African American women in C-suite positions but also offered valuable lessons on leadership, resilience, and the importance of support networks for aspiring leaders.

Thank you Dr. Briscoe for being on Women Leaders on the Move a HerCsuite® Radio podcast and a valued member of HerCsuite® Network. Special thanks to Jen Pestikas and Hope Mueller for the upcoming Brave Women at Work: Lessons in Leadership book. We look forward to the launch day!