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Former Starbucks IR SVP: How a Homeless Teenager Ended Up Managing $130 Billion Market Cap on Wall Street · The Diary of a CFO

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We are live in Atlanta, and this is the Diary
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of a CFO. I'm your host, Wassia Kamon, and I've
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called this city my home for over two decades.
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It's one of the most important business hubs
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in the country. More than $2 trillion in payments
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flow through Atlanta every year, with an estimated
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70 % of all U .S. credit card transactions touching
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the city. Yet, most of the business conversation
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is still centered on places like New York and
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San Francisco. So I'm trying to change that with
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this limited series where I'm sitting down in
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person with CFOs and senior finance leaders right
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here in Atlanta to talk about how they build
0:40
their careers, what's working, what's different
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about doing it here, so that we can better understand
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the human beings behind the big title. Let's
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get in. So today I'm so excited to have here
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Tiffany Willis. Tiffany is a global investor
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relations executive, recently serving as senior
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vice president at Starbucks, where she managed
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nearly $130 billion in market capitalization
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and directed Starbucks' Wall Street engagement
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and financial communication strategy. With a
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career spanning from big four accounting, finance
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operations, and risk management, she brings a
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rare combination of technical expertise and strategic
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influence to the C -suite. She's a CPA, a Lean
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Six Sigma Black Belt, and a graduate of Advanced
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Management Program at Wharton Business School.
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She also holds an MBA from Emory University,
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and now she also teaches at Emory University
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as an adjunct professor. Beyond the numbers,
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Tiffany is a sought -after keynote speaker, former
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Miss Black Georgia USA, and a trusted advisor
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to boards and executives, helping leaders turn
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high stake pressure into a strategic advantage.
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Thank you so much for being here, Tiffany. Thank
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you for having me. It's an absolute honor. Oh
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gosh, I've waited for this moment for you don't
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even know how long. So thank you for being part
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of this series, Live in Atlanta. So my first
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question for you, of course, would be what brought
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you to Atlanta? Yeah, so I actually came to Atlanta
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from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and it was with
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a transfer with PwC. So I started my career with
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the firm PwC, and at the time I was in the Pittsburgh
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office. And when an opportunity rose, they tapped
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me on the shoulder and asked if I would relocate
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to Atlanta. And so I've come to Atlanta, and
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I've been here now over 20 -ish years, probably
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25 now. Yeah, I like to say I'm 25 years old.
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But the math is no longer mathing. Because I've
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been here about that long too. So you said yes,
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you came here. But at some point you moved from
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public accounting to investor relations. Yes.
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What prompted that transition and what was the
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transition like? Because it's a big change. Yes,
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a huge change. And so being in public accounting,
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it's really like you're in the field of... Pure
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accounting. Going into investor relations, it's
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this combination of finance, strategy, communication.
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So it almost uses different sides of how you
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think. But for me, it was really always saying
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yes to special projects. As I grew in my career,
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whether it was in Big Four, whether it was in
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industry, whenever there was something extra
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that needed done, I always raised my hand. And
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so that ultimately allowed me to be tapped for
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the investor relations role. Wow. That's impressive
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because you've done it at different companies.
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And a lot of people don't realize what being
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in investor relations really is because you're
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like the bridge between the public company and
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Wall Street. So tell us a bit more about. What
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does that role actually look like in reality?
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Yeah. So a lot of people, when they think of
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investor relations, they think of the person
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behind the earnings calls. Yes. And that's just
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one part of it. So I'm definitely writing the
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scripts for our CFOs, our CEOs. I'm helping tell
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the story in terms of what's our performance,
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but also what's coming next. What's our new innovation?
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Why should Wall Street be excited? Why should
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they either hold our stock or buy more? And so
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my job is not just to tell the story of the numbers.
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but get them really excited about the strategy
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and how that's going to manifest into results.
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Another part of investor relations, though, is
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making sure that internally our employees know
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what we're doing because we need them galvanized
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around the strategy because they're the ones
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that's going to help us produce the results to
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meet Wall Street's expectations. And then another
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piece of my role is really just being the storyteller,
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the cheerleader from the company to Wall Street,
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but then also making sure that I'm bringing the
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Wall Street sentiment. back to the company. So
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the C -suite leaders understand how our investors
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are thinking, how our shareholders are thinking,
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and then also how our competitors are showing
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up for them. So we can use that intel as we think
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about how we're executing against our strategy.
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Wow, that's a lot of working with different people
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in different areas. And your background is like
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mine, accounting. How did you learn? Like, how
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did you become comfortable with... Because now
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it's one of the most on -demand skill when you
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think about AI. Like, how did you get there and
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be comfortable in those boardrooms? Yeah. So
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I think part of, you know, the storytelling piece,
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I always say people think a beauty queen, like
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what experience does that have? What experience
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and how is that relevant? It's very relevant
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for me because that's where I had on the ground
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training for communications. I served representing
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the state of Georgia for a whole year as Miss
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Black Georgia USA. And so it was constant. the
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speeches and communicating and standing behind
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a mic and standing behind a podium. And so that
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was on the ground communications training. And
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so now when I'm in a role where I'm storytelling
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and now the content is numbers and finance, I'm
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just bridging both of those worlds together.
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Nice. So for the people like, you know, asking
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for a friend here who cannot be at this point,
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Miss Georgia USA. Sure you could. So for those
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who can be at that level, like what would you
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say some of the steps they can take to improve
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their storytelling skills? Yeah. So when I think
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of storytelling, there's a lot of different avenues.
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One, I think people are just scared. speak in
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public. So that's part of it, right? There is
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the whole comfort piece. So there's a lot of
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tools out there, the Toastmasters, the things
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like that. But the other piece is just knowing
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your content and being able to speak. I always
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say, if you cannot sell yourself, how can you
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sell the numbers that you're presenting in front
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of someone, right? And so, so often people think
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about that when you're interviewing. And the
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question is, tell me about yourself. If you cannot
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answer that question, How are you going to then
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be in a role that is a finance leader or CFO
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and now sell the CEO on this tweak to the capital
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allocation strategy? How are you going to sell
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the board on why this acquisition should be at
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X valuation versus Y and you're seeking their
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approval? If you cannot even sell yourself in,
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tell me about yourself in a resume question,
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I mean, in an interview question, then that's
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kind of the start of the storytelling. And so
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I always say when you're storytelling, it doesn't
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matter what it is that you're telling. The objective
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you should have is for the person to buy what
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you're selling, right? Even if it's not something
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physical. It could be the financials. It could
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be the guidance you want to go out with next
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year. Whatever it is you want someone to quote
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-unquote buy, you have to be good at selling
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it. And I think so often as finance leaders,
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especially in the CFO wheelhouse, we're so used
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to the numbers. Especially as you grow up through
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your career, it's all about let me put the spreadsheet
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together, let me make sure it ticks and ties
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and it looks beautiful. But now as you elevate,
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you have to be able to tell the story behind
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those numbers. You have to be able to sell yourself.
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Wow, I never thought about it that way. And if
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you can't sell yourself and you know yourself
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best, how are you going to sell some financials?
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Yeah. Right? So I think just bringing it back
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to something so fundamental. And I always say
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it could be the most simplest thing. that you
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have to sell, but you have to get used to it
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by exercising that muscle, right? For example,
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if I wanted to sell you a pool, I could tell
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you that there's this pool and it's 20 feet deep
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and 10 feet or 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep,
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right? And you're like, okay, I can visualize
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this pool that's 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep.
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And that's what we do as finance professionals.
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We go in with our spreadsheet and we're like,
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this is what we have, a pool 20 feet wide and
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10 feet deep. But what we want to do and what
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we want to get people to be comfortable with
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is coming in saying, we have this swimming pool
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and it's so wide that Michael Phelps can do laps
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from start to finish. Oh, where is that pool?
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And then if someone doesn't want to do laps and
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they just want to practice their diving. This
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pool is deep enough for someone to be able to
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dive into the pool, and their toes would barely
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scratch the surface on the bottom of the pool.
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But it's also wide enough and has enough parameter
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around it that if you just want to sit on the
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side and sunbathe, you can, and when that person
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that's diving in the pool, you'll barely get
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wet as you get your suntan. In this pool, the
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water is so crystal clear that you'll just see
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a glistening blue that you'll almost think that
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you're looking at an ocean. But it's really just
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the swimming pool. And that's the difference
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in presenting numbers, a swimming pool 20 feet
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wide, 10 feet deep, or a story and storytelling
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and the art of storytelling and how it helps
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with persuasion and allowing people to enter
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into what you're trying to sell, which is then,
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in essence, what we need as finance executives.
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Yes, because they have to buy. Into you, right?
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That you need their buy -in before they can buy
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in the numbers and what you say. And I love that
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analogy of the pool. What are some things that
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helped you refine this? Because you were talking
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about it and I was like, wow, I need a pool.
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The summer is coming up. Well, you know, just
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the role of investor relations, one. My job is
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to sell the company, right? Every day I'm talking
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with investors and analysts and... they only
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have what I would call a basket. They only have
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so much capacity in their basket to hold stock.
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So if you think about a basket and you think
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about eggs in a basket, there's only so many
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eggs that can fit. So my job is to convince you
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to move some of those other eggs out the basket
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and make room for mine. And if you have some
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of my eggs in your basket, let's move some of
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the other eggs out so you can add more of mine.
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And so you have to be compelling in that story
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if you want people then to react to what you
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want them to do. And so that's really just been
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a natural thing for me based on my roles of just
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trying to make sure that whatever the intent,
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the message is, that it resonates. And I found
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that people react to something they can visualize,
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something they can feel, something they can smell,
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touch, even if it's just imaginary touching more
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than they respond to just a number on the page.
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Yes. But sometimes it's also hard because you
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can walk into a high stick meetings. And something
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can go wrong because they saw something on the
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news, some strike, I mean, whatever it is. And
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so when you walk into those big meetings where
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you have to make that sale of, you know, pick
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me, put me in your basket, what are you usually
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looking for maybe to tweak your narrative or
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adapt your narrative or what tells you something
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wrong is about to happen and you need to kind
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of change your strategy? So I think the biggest
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thing in that type of situation, and I've had
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it, You have to be prepared for what you're not
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saying, but what's going to be asked. And so
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when you go in and you're trying to make sure
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that you're communicating and you're persuading
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people, you have to also play devil's advocate.
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Well, what would this person say? Well, why wouldn't
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they want this? Well, why would they push back
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on this? And you have to already have those answers.
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So when the questions come, it's not stumbling
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you. It's, you know what, that's a great question.
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I actually thought about that when I was pulling
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together this proposal. And the reason we didn't
12:21
go that route is because A, B, and C, right?
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So it's not a, let me think about it. It's a,
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I thought about that. And the reason we didn't
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go with that, or I thought about it, and this
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is how we incorporated some of that, right? So
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then you are also being perceived as someone
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that's prepared, someone that's comprehensive.
12:41
Someone that thought through the different avenues,
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the different takes and puts. And so that's important
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as well, because then your story is more compelling
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because now they feel like she's buttoned up
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from top to bottom. Yes. Yes. But sometimes the
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adversity is not coming necessarily from the
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other side, like the investors. Sometimes you
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walk into a group, you are supposed in the group
13:01
is your company, but you are in a group and people
13:04
have different views on a topic and you're supposed
13:07
to have. a unified front. Like how do you craft
13:11
a unified narrative in those situations? Yeah.
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So the one thing, and I remember this all the
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way from B school, but it was a book around the
13:18
six thinking hats. And when you come up with
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a decision, you have to put the hat on of all
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the different functions. So you're in finance,
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but how's this going to impact HR? How's this
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going to impact IT? How's it going to impact
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my supply chain? How's it going to impact marketing?
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Right. And thinking through that. So when you're
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in meetings and it's a cross -functional and
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you need to kind of appear with a unified consensus
13:38
in front that you've thought through those different
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avenues. The other thing is there's so much value
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in the meetings before the meetings. Oh, gosh.
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Yes. Even though we don't like them on the calendar.
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Yes. We don't like the meetings before the meetings.
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But there's value. So the decisions sometimes
13:54
are made in those meetings before the meetings.
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Then the official meeting is just the readout.
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And so sometimes so often people will say, well,
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I know my idea is good. I've already thought
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through it. Oh, they're going to poke holes,
14:08
but that's okay because this is the direction
14:09
we need to go. But then you waste so much time
14:12
in the meeting and you're not getting to what
14:15
your objective is, which is approval, success,
14:17
let's move forward. And so spending that time
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with the meetings before the meetings are important,
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but even before that, building relationships
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so those meetings before the meetings are fruitful.
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It's those relationships part, right? Because
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especially with people in finance and accounting,
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one of our favorite departments to love is sales
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and marketing. They always have the great ideas,
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and then we know how much is in the budget, and
14:44
we're like, eh. You know. So how would you say,
14:48
like, what are some of the things that helped
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you build those relationships over time with
14:51
all the, you know, cross -functionally? Yeah.
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I love the, just the analogy of WIFM. Have you
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heard of it before? No. So W -I -F -M. What's
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in it for me? Okay. Right? So WIFM. But the thought
15:05
is, what's in it for me? But you're thinking
15:07
from their perspective. Okay. So if I was sitting
15:10
in that marketing leader seat. and I was to propose
15:13
this, or I gave a readout on this topic, they're
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going to say, well, what's in it for me? Without
15:20
ever saying it verbally, that's what they're
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thinking. And so I start to think through that
15:25
answer. So when I'm going and presenting it to
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them, I'm incorporating what's in it for them
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without them ever asking me, without them ever
15:34
thinking through it. Nice. Hey, I know that we
15:37
want to go out with this new marketing campaign,
15:40
and I know you want to get it out. before X event.
15:45
But I think we need to rethink it. And this is
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why I think we need to rethink it. But this is
15:49
how I think it's going to be better from a marketing
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perspective. Because what we found is the ROI
15:54
on X, Y, and Z event wasn't as beneficial as
15:58
the Y event. And so I think from your perspective,
16:02
right, from a marketing, you want as many eyeballs
16:05
on this as possible. And you want this conversion
16:07
rate to be as high as possible. So I think if
16:09
we maybe pull back on the spending dollars now,
16:12
And save them for later. It also happens to be
16:15
the next quarter. So it helps just from a planning
16:17
and budget perspective. But it also will get
16:19
you more impressions, more eyeballs, more conversion.
16:22
And I think that's what you're looking for ultimately.
16:25
So you're putting it into their language. But
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you're also giving them a proposal. You don't
16:32
want to spend that money this quarter. You don't
16:34
have the budget. But they don't care about that.
16:37
So you have to make sure you're presenting it
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in a way that's what's in it for them. Yes. And
16:42
I definitely need, as you were talking, I'm like,
16:45
how can I clone Tiffany and do like the rubbing
16:49
genie and do like, rub Tiffany, help me before
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this meeting? You could call me anytime. Because
16:56
that was so good. Because I feel it's often something
17:00
we don't realize is relationships. And it ties
17:03
back to what you said earlier about, can you
17:05
sell yourself to be able to be in those relationships?
17:10
So I really wanted to start talking about your
17:12
books on your narrative because I feel like it
17:15
ties it all together. And curious to hear first,
17:20
like what inspired you to write the book? Yeah.
17:22
So for me, I do a lot of public speaking outside
17:27
of being a finance leader. And one of the things
17:29
that I have found is in speaking, people initially
17:32
may book me for finance topics. But when I talk
17:37
a little bit about my personal journey. and how
17:39
I went from early childhood up to my role and
17:43
leading at the Fortune 100 level, it's the personal
17:46
journey that allows people to lean in and connect
17:49
with me. And so more and more speaking engagements,
17:53
people would start to say, can you actually speak
17:56
about X? Instead of finance, instead of the art
17:59
of storytelling, can you come speak to our audience
18:02
about resilience? Can you come speak to our audience
18:05
about authentic leadership? And so there was
18:08
this need there. And then also people started
18:10
saying, can we also not only book you, but can
18:13
we buy copies of your book for the attendees?
18:15
And I would always say, I don't have a book.
18:19
And so the piece that really turned for me to
18:21
say, let me get serious about the book is seeing
18:24
how many people connect with my story and having
18:27
one particular experience where I was in Wall
18:29
Street for Juneteenth last year. And someone
18:33
in the audience heard me speak and said, we have.
18:36
to have you at our big global annual women's
18:39
summit. It's 3 ,000 women. We have to make sure
18:43
we have you. You're a female. You're a minority.
18:46
You're in finance. You're an author. And she
18:48
just kept going. And so I corrected her and said,
18:50
oh, no, I'm not an author. And she said, you're
18:52
not an author? And I said, no. She's like, oh,
18:54
that's a criteria. Wow. Because then we sent
18:57
her on this book. And in that moment, it made
18:59
me realize. that I know people are carrying a
19:03
weight that's invisible, and now I can't share
19:06
my story to help someone carrying that weight.
19:08
And people show up every day with that weight,
19:10
and it impacts them, not only as a leader, but
19:13
it impacts their team. Because in the event that
19:16
you don't have weight when you come in, just
19:19
know someone on your team does. And if you're
19:22
not showing up in a way that allows them to feel
19:25
lighter, they're not able to contribute their
19:28
best. to their job, to the team members, their
19:31
colleagues, and the company overall. And so that
19:33
really was the turning point for me saying, not
19:37
having a book is keeping me from lightening the
19:40
weight that someone else that I don't know is
19:43
carrying. Yes. And only so many people can listen
19:47
to you at once, but a book you carry. Yes. Love
19:52
that story. And just to dive a little deeper,
19:55
because I have... My copy. Yes, you got a pre
20:00
-release version, early. Yes, feel special. You
20:04
are, you are. Thank you for that. But you start
20:08
the book with, the windowsill was my refrigerator.
20:12
Yes. Can you take us back to that moment and
20:16
how it has shaped the leader you've become? Yeah,
20:18
so the windowsill was my refrigerator. People
20:21
always say, what does that mean? Yes. Because
20:24
when I am introduced, there's always this bio,
20:27
and the bio talks about SVP of investor relations,
20:31
Wharton grad, Emory grad, Emory professor, so
20:36
many things, managing $130 billion in stock market
20:39
cap, managing $4 trillion in assets, right? Being
20:43
in the boardroom with the Howard Schultz and
20:46
the Melody Hobson, and there's all this greatness.
20:49
But I always like to remind people behind that
20:51
I'm also a ninth grade dropout. I had my first
20:55
son at the age of 14, and I was homeless. And
20:59
so it's that moment of how does someone with
21:01
a bio, like folks just heard, come from someone
21:07
that had this backstory? And it's the power of
21:11
owning your narrative. And I have found that
21:14
owning my narrative and showing up being authentic
21:16
has allowed my team to then be able to show up,
21:20
feel lighter, then gravitate to me. then go the
21:24
extra mile to the edge of the cliff when I need
21:28
them to, and sometimes not even when I ask. And
21:32
so the windowsill was my refrigerator is because
21:34
being homeless, I had to put my son's milk on
21:38
a windowsill to keep it cold. And that's the
21:42
essence of the windowsill was my refrigerator.
21:45
And going from that to first step. Going back
21:51
to school. So you're a ninth grade dropout. Yes.
21:54
You somehow get back to school and you go to
21:57
a big four. Whatever you see. Can you talk a
22:00
little bit about what carried you through just
22:03
that gap? Because it's huge. Because I'm on the
22:05
board of a not -for -profit called Hope, and
22:07
we help single parents. Oh, I got to get involved
22:10
with that. Oh, yeah. Complete an education degree.
22:13
And what we found is a lot of people give up
22:16
education because parenthood is so hard. And
22:21
it's hard to find a job when you don't have the
22:23
degree or the support of your family. to just
22:26
say, I'm just going to go even part -time. It's
22:29
so hard. So I'm curious to hear how you manage
22:32
just that gap. Yeah. So for me, it was having
22:37
this, what I would call, quote -unquote, all
22:40
-American upbringing. My father was military.
22:44
He was an engineer. My mother was all about community
22:46
service. So I saw what, in essence, greatness
22:49
was supposed to look like. And so when that chapter
22:52
of my life changed, I still had that in my mind.
22:56
I still knew what I was capable of being. I still
23:00
knew the life I was capable of having. And so
23:03
it really took a lot of grit and resilience to
23:05
get through that chapter. And eventually I went
23:07
to an alternative high school where I took my
23:09
son with me every day to school. And he's in
23:12
one room and there's a glass wall. And I'm sitting
23:15
in the other room with other teen moms or other
23:18
individuals that have had behavior issues at
23:21
their traditional high school. And now they're
23:23
there. But it was a way to then eventually get
23:27
back into the academic space. But there was a
23:29
gap between being a ninth grade dropout and getting
23:31
to that alternative school. And I do think so
23:35
often people will put schooling on the back burner.
23:39
I talk about in the book how a parent should
23:42
never have to make. tough decisions. And the
23:45
book is all about my journey, but how it equates
23:47
to leadership and helping others be better leaders.
23:50
And I talked about one particular example, when
23:53
my son was sick with a fever, so he couldn't
23:55
go to daycare. And at this point, I'm in college.
23:58
And so I had to have my sixth son sleep in the
24:02
break room of a neighborhood pizza shop, just
24:06
so I can go to class and take a calculus exam
24:09
that was required. Right? But normally people
24:13
would say, You can't go to daycare. I don't have
24:16
any family. I'm just going to miss the exam.
24:18
But then you're putting your grades in jeopardy,
24:20
graduation in jeopardy. But there's so many things
24:22
like that. And then I talk about how that translates
24:24
to leaders and how so often as leaders, especially
24:27
in the C -suite, but even middle management,
24:29
even when you're starting out, you're going to
24:31
have to make tough decisions and decisions that
24:34
no one will ever understand. But sometimes you're
24:37
making a decision because your only options is
24:39
choosing between hard and harder. And as you
24:42
grow to be a leader, you have to be comfortable
24:44
with making decisions between hard and harder.
24:47
Your story is so amazing. And you sharing it
24:51
so freely is mind -boggling for me. And I'm curious
24:56
to hear, at what point did you realize that your
24:59
struggles were not to be something you will hide,
25:02
but something you could lead from? So for me,
25:06
reigning as Miss Georgia, my platform was actually
25:08
inspiring and motivating at -risk youth. Because
25:12
I am one. And so I always had this freedom to
25:16
share my journey and share my story. I think
25:19
the difference was there wasn't all this social
25:21
media. And so in a way, it almost was like my
25:25
life was siloed. I had all this community effort,
25:28
all this community engagement. I was out kind
25:31
of trying to make a difference, fulfilling that
25:33
purpose, pouring from my heart. And then I had
25:35
the corporate America side, not intentionally
25:37
keeping them separate. It was just a different
25:39
way in how we operate it. And so now I'm just
25:43
making sure that people understand now that the
25:45
the worlds have integrated and everything's on
25:48
social media, how this actually has made me a
25:51
better leader. Right. So often people will say,
25:54
oh, my goodness, you have high engagement scores.
25:58
You have people that want to follow you from
25:59
department to department. Yes. That didn't come
26:02
natural. It's not something you learn in a book.
26:04
No, no, no. And so just sharing. My story so
26:09
people can understand that sometimes the same
26:13
scars that you're suppressing are the scars that
26:15
are actually giving you your superpower, but
26:17
you're not letting them blossom and you're not
26:19
showcasing them. And so I'm just trying to give
26:21
others the comfort to know that you can showcase
26:25
it and it can still be your competitive advantage
26:27
versus being the thing that holds you back. That
26:30
is so hard, though, because for someone listening
26:33
now, even myself. You can feel stuck by your
26:38
past or like how your past is defining you. So
26:42
what could be like a first step that someone
26:45
listening could take to be okay with sharing
26:48
their struggles, with being okay with leading
26:51
from that place? Well, the one thing is, and
26:55
you just said it, right? You could be so stuck
26:57
with how people define you. That in essence is
26:59
the power of owning your narrative. It is not
27:03
up to anyone else to own your narrative but you.
27:06
It is not up to anyone else to own your narrative
27:09
but you. Just like it's not up to anyone else
27:11
to shape your leadership style but you. And so
27:14
that is also when I thought about this book and
27:17
crafting it, I did not want it to be just a monologue.
27:20
I did not want someone just to read my journey.
27:23
And so I have in the book, it's like 30 -some
27:25
pages at the end, where it then turns this monologue
27:29
into giving people direction on how do they reflect
27:32
on their journey. And it's prompts and leadership
27:35
kind of what I would say triggers to think about
27:39
on how are you showing up as a leader and things
27:43
to make people think through some of their journey
27:45
and how that then equates to being a leader.
27:48
And so I wanted that in there because I didn't
27:50
want the book to be a monologue. I really wanted
27:53
it to be a leadership tool that people can read
27:56
and they can utilize and they can then say, you
27:58
know what, this is something as a team. We need
28:01
to all center around, and let's go through this
28:03
as a workshop. We need to talk about this in
28:06
our next team meeting. And I think that's what
28:08
we're missing all too often, especially with
28:10
social media. It's this whole image that perfection
28:14
wins. Oh, gosh. Yes. And I feel like perfection
28:18
is an illusion. It is. And I feel like perfection
28:25
will divide. Authenticity will connect. And all
28:31
too often, we're not reminded of that. And so
28:34
I'm hoping that this book reminds not only people
28:37
individually to kind of embrace their own journey,
28:40
but to think about how that shows up in your
28:42
leadership style and to think about how do you
28:44
become a better leader because of it. Yes, because
28:47
I had another podcast interview with Cindy Wilson.
28:50
She was talking about how you can't just switch
28:53
off and be a leader and be a person. The two
28:56
always be together. Yes. Because you can't just
28:59
switch off work and now it's life and then you
29:01
switch back. You carry baggage from one to the
29:05
other and from the other to one. So that really
29:08
resonates with me. Yeah. And I talked about this
29:12
in the book. And sometimes it was going through
29:14
the book and recalling my stories that I forgot
29:16
about myself. Right. But in the book, I talk
29:19
about how being in corporate America, someone
29:22
was looking at a pizza box. And as they looked
29:25
at the pizza box, they had said, who keeps doing
29:27
this to the pizza? And what they were looking
29:30
at was the pizza being cut, the pizza being left,
29:35
but the crust being gone off of multiple pieces
29:37
of pizza. And it was in that moment that I realized
29:41
that my childhood trauma, drama, and journey
29:44
followed me into the corporate space. Because
29:48
when I was homeless and I could only afford a
29:50
dollar piece of pizza, it was $1 .25, I would
29:53
give it to my son as a toddler. I would let him
29:56
eat the pizza. And as a kid, they always leave
29:59
behind the crust. And the crust was my dinner.
30:03
And so here I was now in corporate America. I
30:08
got my legs underneath me. I'm quote unquote
30:12
doing well. And I'm in a corporate space still
30:16
unconsciously and subconsciously in that childhood
30:23
journey of cutting the crust off and only eating
30:26
the crust, even though I'm sitting with other
30:29
people in suits in corporate America. It was
30:34
an example of just if you don't address it, it's
30:38
going to follow you and it's going to show up
30:39
in ways that you never expect. Oh, yes. That
30:43
is so true. As you were talking, so many memories
30:48
came back of how I came as an immigrant here
30:52
in the U .S. and some of the habits I took as
30:55
a broke college student to make. Things work.
30:58
And even as now, you can afford the full pizza.
31:02
You can buy pizza for the whole floor. It's the
31:05
same thing. It shows up in different ways. But
31:09
how do you actually get comfortable leaving that
31:13
mindset or is it a continuous journey to let
31:17
behind the trauma? Because I don't think one
31:19
therapy session is what will resolve it, for
31:22
example. How are you able to grow out of it?
31:27
Yeah, so part of it is you have to acknowledge
31:29
it, right? And that's the whole essence of owning
31:31
your narrative. So often we're suppressing it.
31:34
True. And if you suppress it, you're not acknowledging.
31:37
And so I always say I cannot acknowledge, I cannot
31:41
celebrate my success without acknowledging my
31:43
scars. And so being able to acknowledge it, then
31:47
it starts to resolve itself. But all too often
31:51
we have this image of perfection. Yes. And that's
31:55
really... holding us back from being probably
31:58
the greatest that we can be not only as a person
32:00
but as a leader yes because suppressing feels
32:03
good right because you don't temporarily temporarily
32:07
it feels good yeah temporarily right eventually
32:10
and then from even the cfo perspective right
32:13
these are individuals your listeners they are
32:16
in charge of a whole function a whole function
32:21
And so just think about how much weight people
32:23
are carrying across all those different functions.
32:26
And just think if you could show up and be just
32:28
a little more authentic. And sometimes it's not
32:31
necessarily bringing all of yourself to work
32:33
if that's what you choose not to do. But if you
32:35
can just think about it, you then by default
32:38
become a little more empathetic for others, even
32:41
if you don't share all of you. You can start
32:44
somewhere. And then in essence, that's where
32:47
the contribution rises. That's where the team
32:49
dynamics become more positive. That's where the
32:52
team bonding becomes stronger. That's when you
32:56
get the team to truly deliver on what you're
32:59
trying to do as a company. It all starts, though,
33:02
with the person. Yeah. Wow. I think you already
33:08
answered this question, but I still want to ask.
33:10
So who is this book for and who do you think
33:14
needs it the most right now? Yeah. I mean, this
33:17
book is for leaders. It's for people that are
33:21
even individual contributors because this book
33:23
has multifaceted to it. One, it's all about my
33:27
journey. So for those who are just like, how
33:29
did she do this? And I can relate. Let me read
33:32
it. It's for them. But it's also for individuals
33:35
that are in leadership roles who need to understand
33:37
how lifting the weight off of others will help
33:40
you not only be a better leader, but it'll help
33:42
you get more out of your team. And then in terms
33:45
of just, you know, who does it benefit? I mean,
33:48
I think right now we're in this era where everything
33:51
is about perfection in terms of an image. Everything's
33:55
about perfection. And so just being able to speak
33:58
with people and hearing. that it's the raw story
34:01
that resonates more than what's on my resume,
34:04
there's so much benefit on why people need to
34:07
just sit down and just have the courage by hopefully
34:10
reading this, they'll get some of that. Oh yeah,
34:12
I'm already getting some of that just listening
34:14
to you. So yeah, so how can people get the book
34:18
and how can they support you on this journey?
34:20
Yes, so the book is available on Amazon. So feel
34:24
free to go to Amazon and... The book cover looks
34:27
like this. It's Own Your Narrative by Tiffany
34:29
Willis. But then also they can follow me at underscore
34:34
Tiffany Willis on Instagram. I'm also really
34:36
big on just posting leadership lessons on LinkedIn.
34:40
So please, if you're not on LinkedIn on my page,
34:43
please feel free to join me on LinkedIn. And
34:45
also if, you know, your readers, your listeners
34:49
are out there and they're in roles and they're
34:51
thinking of, hey, we need a lunch and learn for
34:53
a team or we need a leadership summit. Please,
34:56
I would be more than happy to join you all. And
34:58
you can find all my information at tiffany -willis
35:02
.com and would love to participate in that way
35:04
as well. Oh, yes. I'm so signing you up. Thank
35:07
you. Thank you so much. You're so welcome. Thank
35:10
you for having me. It's an honor and great job
35:13
on doing what you're doing. I'm watching you
35:16
from the sidelines and cheering you on. So kudos.
35:19
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank
35:21
you. And that's it for today's episode of the
35:24
diary of a CFO podcast live in Atlanta. You can
35:26
feel the difference and I'm loving this in person
35:30
style and getting to really understand the human
35:33
beings behind the big titles. So if you felt
35:36
the same way, don't forget to get Tiffany's book
35:38
and also follower. I will definitely drop all
35:42
the links in the show notes. You have to do this
35:45
because I'm trying to be like her when I grew
35:46
up. Okay. So I'll see you in the next one.