Succeed by being a decathlonist, good in 10 things.

When Dr. Betty Siegel visited a California forest, she was deeply moved by the tall, majestic sequoia trees and assumed they had very deep roots. Actually their roots are shallow, but each tree reaches out its roots to embrace the roots of another Sequoia.

"They can only stand tall in the company of each other," she explained, extending the metaphor to women in higher education. "All of us stand tall because of the people who prepared the way for us."

Standing tall as president of Kennesaw State University GA since 1981, Siegel discussed leadership and life lessons at the American Council on Education's Fourth Women Presidents' Summit in Washington DC in June.

A satisfying third act

Siegel also believes it's important to own your roots and tell your unique story: "Who are your people? From where do you come?" she asked.

She grew up in a poor coal mining family; eventually her father bought the mine where he worked and her mother ran the company. His epitaph: "A man much loved by family and friends who dared to dream and do." From him she learned to dare to dream and do, becoming the first woman president in Georgia's state university system. Under her leadership, Kennesaw State has grown from 3,500 to 16,000 students.

Siegel quoted Ethyl Barrymore: "' A good life is like a good play. It must have a satisfying third act."' She's in the first scene of the third act. "At my age I find it absolutely comforting to know what I'm good at and what I'm not," she said. "And I don't care a fig much anymore about how bad I do.... I'm going to concentrate on what I'm pretty good at." Emulate decathlon athletes: "They're the not best in anything but they're good in 10 things."