I’m a Harvard lawyer turned tech marketing leader. I learned the hard way how to quit and start over again, how to build teams and how to lead them — and through it all, how to flourish and find joy in the journey.

Along the way, I learned:

• Everyone knows you need help (sponsorship and mentorship) from the inside; few people know, though, that no one succeeds without coaching from the outside. Everyone needs an impartial cheerleader whose only goal is to help you succeed on your own terms.

• Speaking of your own terms, only you can define them. Not your manager, not your company, not even your family.

• No, it doesn’t get easier — but with repetition, practice, and accountability, you do get better.

• Intention combined with focused action beats hard work without direction, every time.

• Leadership isn’t about emulation, but authenticity; it isn’t about fearlessness, but taking brave action; it isn’t about always being right, but not worrying so much about being wrong.

• Everything — and I truly mean everything — can be learned. The hard part is getting started.