I saw a LinkedIn post that referenced a quote by Thasunda Brown Ducket, President & CEO of TIAA.
“What I know today, as a leader, is that I rent my title, but I own my character,”
– Thasunda Brown Ducket.
There is so much impact in this statement.
Our titles are fleeting.
A moment in our career timeline.
Our character moves with us throughout our lives both in and outside of work.
My Perspective
As I reflected on this statement, the concept of “rented” started to resonate.
When talking to marketing teams , we talk we reference the PESO model:
Paid (Paid media), Earned (Press/Word of Mouth), Shared (Social Media), and Owned (company website/CRM).
I often change this model a bit – replacing shared with borrowed and rented.
Borrowed are social media pages – you have the space, but the platform controls the experience and can add/take things away at any time.
Rented are places where you pay a fee to use the platform and/or the platform takes a percentage of sales on the site (Etsy, Amazon, etc.). Rented spaces also have the pros/cons of borrowed.
Circling back now to the idea our titles are rented.
We are renting the space of that title in trade for our time and intellectual property.
The company can raise the “rent” (time investment) at any time and “end your lease” (job loss) at their discretion.
Yet, when we leave, our character and intellectual experience follow us.
A new person can rent the title, but they will never bring the same mix of qualities.
Remember, as a Me-EO, we own our character and intellectual property.
Rent or borrow titles that make sense.
Feel free to be the one to “break the lease” if the rent for the title has become too high.
Your Turn
How easy or difficult is it for you to separate yourself from your title?
How do you describe your character and intellectual property?
Does the idea of rented or borrowed titles resonate with you?