Kathy Button Bell Talks to the NY Times On Management

Kathy Button Bell, the Chief Marketing Officer of Emerson, did a Q&A with the New York Times "Corner Office" column. In it, she discusses lessons from Princeton sports and other influences on her management and leadership style. Here's an excerpt:

Q. When you think back over your leadership and management style, how would you say it’s evolved? What are you doing more of, less of?

A. I am much more patient — a hundred times more patient than I was. I also prioritize much better, which comes out of patience. I think patience, by far, teaches you what to do. The mistake people make is they try to do everything. Dave Farr, our C.E.O., says that if you have a to-do list of 10 things, rip it and do three. Just do three.

I’m really better at putting my time and attention on the business issues that matter the most. I always say that one does what one likes to do. If you really think about it, you should like the things that are the biggest things.