Susan Chapman-Hughes: Be Provocative. Your Difference is Your Power.

At the Podium with Patrick Huey

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Your Difference is Your Power

Susan Chapman-Hughes is a powerhouse of a woman, mother, and businessperson. She has sat in the top executive level of companies like American Express and Citigroup and on major corporate boards across the country. And like the action Shirley Chisholm took on her rise to power in the Democratic party to become the first woman and black person to run for a major party’s presidential nomination, Susan didn’t wait for the invitation to the table. She pulled up her folding chair (and in Susan’s case wearing chic and hip eyeglasses) and got to work.

That tenacity and belief in herself and her abilities came from the love and support of her two parents who were staunchly in Susan’s corner. Her mother in particular taught her life lessons as a child that have become foundational to her world view today. Her mother gave her unconditional love and permission to try things even if she failed. She instilled in Susan a sense of self-confidence and the belief that she always belonged. That who she was, was good enough, and that she had a right to inhabit any space that she chose to occupy in her life. Lessons that Susan is passing onto her daughter today.

She is also using those childhood teachings to mentor young people, women, and people of color in the business world whose names still today are not usually found on the masthead of companies in the USA. She has reached down to lift people who she has had unswerving belief in, even when other executives on her teams doubted their abilities. And once those she has helped have achieved their greatness, her expectations are that they not only keep those doors opened for others to walk through, but they actively seek others to help as well. And once you get the opportunity to sit at the table or be in the C-Suite, you speak up and let people know you’re there.

Her approach to life and business is straightforward and hopefully replicable. Your difference is your power, and you have a lot more power than you know. To meet big moments in life, you must do so with empathy. And people are always going to judge you, so navigate life in a way that works best for you.
Susan on LinkedIn
At the Podium Website
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