Good Leaders: What can we expect from you, as you build your future?

“An empire!” Alex Steinman said with conviction.  She was the speaker at the Good Leadership Breakfast this past Friday, who came to share her approach to family – specifically her perspective on being a working mom. But the question I asked that evoked the “empire” response was: What can we expect from you in the future?

High aspirations

Alex Steinman is an advertising industry leader who is not yet 30 years old: on her 28th birthday last Thursday, she was elected the President of the Minneapolis MadWomen, a non-profit association with the mission of promoting the careers of women in the  male-dominated ad industry.

The mother-of-two is also the creator of a high-impact blog and merchandising company: Strong Like Mama which is gaining momentum nationally.

“I think we have tapped into something really special by empowering young mothers to do things their own way,” Alex commented to me in the interview portion of the breakfast. “Yes, I want to monetize the blog – but I also see how the Strong Like Mama idea can become a powerful brand to deliver merchandise and ideas for working moms. I want to build an Empire!”

Blending the Seven Fs

Alex is blending her work and home life together in ways that seem exhausting. She and her husband both work corporate jobs during the day while their two young children go to daycare. “I call it school, because somehow that makes me feel like a better mom,” Alex laughed. And after the kids go to bed, both she and her husband have entrepreneurial ventures on the side. Her driving motivation is living the question: “What brings me the most joy?”

For those of us who raised our kids, we know that something will have to change in Alex’s life when the children begin to have lives of their own…but her raw enthusiasm and unbridled aspirations were inspiring!

Look to the future

My gut tells me I should invite Alex Steinman back to be a speaker ten years from now…in 2027!  It will be fun to get an update on her 12 and 10-year-old kids then, and see how the Strong Like Mama empire is growing.

Good leaders embrace their family as an inspiration for their leadership. And a rare few are willing to use the word “empire” to describe their aspirations. Wow!

Register here for the May 12 breakfast featuring Nathan Dungan. It’s a big day, because we will be giving out free copies of our newest book: The Bucket List Book. See you there!