Diane Young. In an industry where women make up 50% of the workforce, tech only has a small percentage of women in senior management positions. In her after-hours chat, Young shared some tips for women looking to get ahead in ad tech.
While she’s the co-founder of a successful tech outlet, Young is no stranger to struggle. Here is Diane Young’s sage advice after years of fighting her way to the top:
INVEST IN YOURSELF
If you’re the master of your own fate, why not invest in yourself? The Drum co-founder suggested women dive into podcasts, courses, conferences, industry newsletters – anything that will feed their brains. She preaches, “put coins from your purse into your mind, and your mind will fill your purse.”
THEN FORGET YOURSELF
While you invest in yourself, forget yourself. Diane urged women to lose any self-entitlement and instead place value on their bosses, colleagues and partners. She emphasised surrounding yourself with positive, supportive and inspiring people because, after all, you need quality people to achieve anything meaningful.
OWN YOUR AREA
Because other people are so important, so is leadership. Leadership is leverage and Diane encouraged women to become leaders by owning their areas of influence. She suggested that when you own your area, you become a woman worth following. So, it’s crucial to figure out your opinions on important issues, speak in public settings and take a hold of your finances. She advised reading ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ and ‘Richest Man in Babylon’ to better manage your personal finances.
DROP A PIN
Once you know where you stand, it’s good to know where you’re going. Figure out where you want to go, but don’t stress about how to get there. “Drop a pin” and consider the multiple paths to success. Your pin, or goal, is something to work towards as you figure out your bigger purpose. Diane stressed forming proper goals, communicating clearly and explaining your vision frequently to others.
COPY AND PASTE
Others have paved your path and will guide you on your journey to success. So, copy and paste their best practices and apply them to your life. Diane suggests reading ‘Think and Grow Rich’ to imitate attitudes and habits of successful people and ‘The Languages of Leaders’ to learn how CEOs communicate to inspire, influence and achieve results.
As a community of women (and men) empowering women, Captify is proud to host powerful leaders like Diane Young. We already look forward to all the insights our next Be the Change event will provide.
