Story 10: You wouldn't be where you are if someone did not come before.

Leadership isn’t just about innovation—it’s about iteration. It isn’t about getting it right the first time; it’s about learning, adapting, and moving forward with the wisdom of experience.

BTE Leadership Series: Building on Lessons of the Past

One of the most humbling realizations I’ve had as a leader is this: you wouldn’t know what you know if someone hadn’t come before you. It’s easy to criticize, but building something new requires navigating challenges and learning from what didn’t work.

Every failure, every trial and error, becomes a foundation for growth—and sometimes, the lessons from those failures are more valuable than the success that follows.

Before becoming President, I spent a year on the leadership team. Since its inception, we experimented with countless approaches to event organization, team structure, job responsibilities, and culture. Some of it succeeded, a lot of it failed.

But here’s the thing: everything I’ve been able to do as a leader stems from those experiences. I knew better because I saw what didn’t work. Each misstep shaped my understanding of what needed to change, and those lessons gave me the clarity and confidence to build something stronger.

Leadership isn’t just about innovation—it’s about iteration. The ability to create something new comes from recognizing and honoring the lessons of what came before, even when it wasn’t perfect.

Progress isn’t about getting it right the first time; it’s about learning, adapting, and moving forward with the wisdom of experience.