This text is part of the special Feminine Leadership notebook
In her latest book, “Rivière-des-Prairies”, the actress and comedian remembers her adolescence.
“I was always a girl who wanted to get things done in her own way,” says comedian and author Mariana Mazza, who has just published Rivière-des-Prairiesa work in which she recalls an eventful adolescence. From her first steps in high school, she stood out as a natural leader — a role that she has never stopped embodying. “This was as much the case when I played soccer as when I performed,” she confides.
For Mariana Mazza, however, the notion of leadership is inseparable from teamwork. From an early age, the artist understood that success does not rest on individual efforts, but on the ability to mobilize others around a common goal. “And then winning alone didn’t interest me. I loved creating victories and sharing them. As with team sports, the ecstasy that I would get from it if we won together would be greater than if I experienced it alone,” we can read in particular in Rivière-des-Prairies, about of the Secondary en spectacle competition, in which she immediately wanted to participate. “Managing girls who aspire to the same thing, being part of a collective action and emotion,” has, little by little, taught her to navigate by taking into account the different facets of her comrades.
Adolescence is also a period of learning, and Mariana Mazza recognizes, with hindsight, that she sometimes lacked tact. “But it’s totally human,” admits the one who has since developed her sense of communication, but not without always avoiding some awkwardness. “I went as I felt, with the pitfalls linked to the emotions or the talent of others. »
Despite everything, her experiences have reinforced her idea that good leadership requires the ability to bring people together, motivate and guide. “We all have the same objective, but we don’t always achieve it in the same way,” she emphasizes, however, recalling that teamwork also requires flexibility.
Trial and error
Mariana Mazza today takes a critical look at her role as a teenage leader. At the time, she had a very clear idea of her goals, but didn’t necessarily know how to achieve them. “I didn’t yet have the physical, vocal or moral tools to achieve this,” she explains.
His main challenge? Adaptation. “When you are a leader, you have to adapt to others,” says the comedian. If Mariana Mazza often imposed her vision of things, thinking that her way of doing things was the best, or even the only way, she recognizes today that it was not always the most inclusive. “I didn’t know how to adapt to others. They were the people who adapted to me,” recalls the actress and comedian.
Of course, over time, Mariana Mazza learned that, to be an effective leader, it is necessary to understand each person’s strengths and limitations, their differences. “We are much more empathetic as we age,” she believes, advocating a more nuanced approach to leadership, where communication plays a central role.
Evolving leadership
Often reckless and sometimes inflexible, Mariana Mazza has evolved towards a model that is now more open and collaborative. “I went from someone who could be very intense, very closed, to, quietly, a person who takes others into consideration to make it work,” she notes.
Since she returns to her teenage journey in Rivière-des-Prairiesthe opportunity is also given to the author to address the question of female leadership more generally. Unlike many women who feel pressure to fit into gender norms, she never felt concerned about this issue. “I have never changed the way I am because I am a woman,” she asserts with confidence. For her, being firm and tenacious is an essential quality, even if it can sometimes be appreciated differently depending on gender. “A firm woman can come across as mean, while a firm man is just seen as assertive,” she laments.
Mariana Mazza therefore makes no apologies for being herself. His approach to leadership has never relied on compromises dictated by societal expectations. On the contrary, she has always strived to chart her own course. “Being firm is one way to achieve your goals,” she emphasizes.
According to the leader, being a good leader means being able to reconcile your particular standards with those of everyone else. “You have to accept the values of others, while respecting your convictions,” she concludes.
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Dutyrelating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.