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Be authentic and do your best says Cisco CTO
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Cisco CTO, Padmasree Warrior, was the keynote speaker at a conference hosted by the Indian Business and Professional Women in San Jose yesterday. In a presentation titled “The Evolution of Women in the Workplace,” she spoke about some of the lessons she had learned in her lifelong journey from a village in India to her current position driving technological innovation at a leading company in Silicon Valley.
Although she is a woman in a field usually led by men, Warrior has not let that stop her. “Women can play to their strengths.” People remember you for different reasons and being a woman can help you stand out from the crowd. “You have a platform,” she said.
Warrior has wielded influence from her platform for a number of years. Prior to Cisco, she was the CTO at Motorola, where she led 26,000 engineers and directed Motorola Labs, with an annual R&D budget of $3.7 billion.
While praising the virtues of being one’s self, authentic and approachable, she also said, “Perform at your maximum level in your current role.” She spoke about the importance of applying your strengths. “Mold the job to your strengths. Opportunity is a mold waiting to be shaped.” Don’t wait for the perfect opportunity.
On juggling her career with family and life responsibilities, Warrior said she thinks of it as work-life integration rather than work-life balance. Instead of feeling out of balance or guilty about not being there, try to integrate your work with your life. Be there for the important moments, in work and in life. “Be the complete you,” she said. In addition to her work and family roles, she makes time to paint and write haiku. Do the things that fuel you.
When asked who had inspired her, Warrior spoke of her admiration for Mother Teresa. “She went to a country where she didn’t speak the language. She was a risk-taker,” she said.
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