Nation's top CEOs give a teenager some advice
Updated: 10:24 a.m. ET May 27, 2004
Doug Barry wrote dozens of executives and, to his surprise, they wrote him back
When seeking a role model, it makes sense to aim high. Fourteen-year-old Douglas Barry did just that,
writing letters to the leaders of some of the world's most powerful corporations to ask how he could
someday attain such a lofty position. The plentiful responses he received —many of them warm,
personal, and funny — were remarkable not only for their content, but also for the fact that these highlevel individuals spent some of their highly compensated time responding to a child’s query.
The piece of advice he received from many of them was actually not to aspire to be a CEO. "George
Fisher, who's the CEO of Kodak, said in a very short letter that there is more life than being a CEO,"
said Barry on Wednesday's "Deborah Norville Tonight."
"He said 'Go for your dreams, whatever they are.' It struck me. I realized he was right. You have
to find what you really love to do first, and then take that goal to wherever it may lead you."
Read Barry's introduction, below. Also, below are the seven attributes he discovered stood out in all of
the letters, and a list of CEOs who responded.
Introduction
When I was 12 years old (I am now 17), my lifelong dream of becoming an archaeologist faded before
my eyes. It faded, in fact, when I watched a TV documentary about archaeologists and learned what
they really do. Of course I knew that they excavated bones and artifacts from the past, but I never
realized just what lengths they went through to find their prizes. Hours of labor in the sun, in the dirt, and
sometimes even underwater, suddenly didn’t seem like fun to me. I began to wonder if it might be better
to just sit in a nice office and manage these archaeologists out in the field while I still got to reap the
benefits of the dig….
Around the same time, I started asking my mom about what she did at work every day (she’s a bank
vice president) and actually listening to what she said. I would ask her questions about reports she was
preparing and meetings she had attended, and what went on in those meetings. Eventually, I started to
picture myself in such a position, realizing that, after all, I would definitely rather work with people than
with a bunch of dirty old bones. And I even began to wonder if I could surpass the level that my mother
had reached in her career.
Then, in the summer after I finished 7th grade, my family took a trip to Europe. While touring the
French countryside, I saw a McDonald’s restaurant in the middle of a small village. I was speechless!
And it struck me like a bolt of lightning, this awesome power of major corporations to influence the entire
world, even tiny villages in France. It was then that I decided to strive for the very best, and to reshape
my future goals. It was then that I knew I wanted to become a Chief Executive Officer of a major
corporation.
But soon panic set in. How does one become a CEO?, I wondered. Sure my mom is a bank vice
president and my father is a doctor, but no one in our extended family has ever reached the heights of
CEO of a major corporation. My first thought was that I had to raise my grade-point average from 3.9 to
4.0—otherwise, I thought, I would have no shot. I also figured I needed to join every club in school, and
to be elected to the student-body government (no less than President would suffice, I figured).
But even as I began to set these enormous goals, I had a nagging feeling that perhaps I was missing
some secret ingredient needed to become a CEO. So I decided to go directly to the source—to seek
advice from the men and women who have reached the peak of the corporate mountain.
I prepared a letter that I sent to the top executives of more than 150 major corporations, asking them the
basic question: What does it take to become a CEO?
I could never have predicted what happened next. First of all, most of the CEOs responded with
personal letters. And the responses I received were sincere, heartfelt, personal, and surprising! I quickly
realized that my initial fears and subsequent plans (ensure a 4.0 GPA, join every club under the sun,
become student-body president, etc.) were unfounded. And I found out that, besides the fact that there
is no secret ingredient to becoming a CEO, there is also no prerequisite. The men and women who
responded to my letter, and whose names we read about in newspapers every day, were themselves
just kids once with big dreams. Many of them were not excellent students (though all appeared to be
voracious readers). Most of them were not born with a silver spoon in their mouth. And all of them faced
great adversity and achieved even greater accomplishments in their own unique ways.
But most of all, the similarity in the advice offered is what struck me most. Find something you love to
do. Work hard. Respect others. Don’t be afraid to fail. Protect your integrity. Go for your dreams. And
more….
The advice, personal counsel, and universal words of wisdom offered here by today’s titans of
industry has already inspired me immensely.
I hope it inspires you, too.
Seven attributes
Despite their authors’ varied backgrounds and expertise, a pattern emerged in the letters, it was quickly
evident that a good leader needs seven attributes to succeed:
Respect: “I believe in treating people with respect. My style is to speak to people, be
available to them and willing to answer their questions. This also means being straightforward
and honest with them.” —Sanford I. Weill, Chairman and Co-CEO, Citigroup, Inc.

Passion: “Passionate people get things done. Passion for doing what you’re called to do
resonates in every fiber of a true leader. Passionate people energize other people and build
enthusiasm. And as you surely know, enthusiasm is contagious.” —Leonard Roberts,
Chairman and CEO, RadioShack Corp.

Vision: “One of the key qualities that any CEO (or successful person) needs—a
willingness to stretch yourself and go after goals that others think are too visionary, too hard,
or too ambitious to accomplish.” —Richard A. McGinn, Chairman and CEO, Lucent
Technologies.

Humanity: “Actions need to go beyond the letter of the law to a spirit of trust and integrity,
and a willingness to lead on issues where the needs are greatest. This also includes a
commitment to give back to make the world a better place—both as a corporation and by
providing opportunities for employees to give their time and talents to help others.”—Betsy
Holden, President and CEO, Kraft Foods North America.

Curiosity: “I am curious and interested in just about everything. So, I am always learning
and working at the margin of my ignorance.” —Harvey Golub, CEO, American Express.

Integrity: “It is critically important to be determined to do the right thing—to commit to
conducting yourself with the highest standards of ethics and integrity. It will inspire people’s
confidence and trust in you. And people, as a result, will help you in ways that you would never
expect, and maybe never even know about.” —Raymond V. Gilmartin, Chairman, President
and CEO, Merck & Co.

Pragmatism: “An important mark of a good leader [is] to know you don’t know it all and
never will.” —Anne M. Mulcahy, CEO, Xerox Corp.

Who wrote back?
The list of those who wrote to this young man reads like a who’s who of today’s corporate leaders.
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Avery, William J., Crown, Cork & Seal Co. Inc
Barrett, Craig R., Intel Corp
Blanchard, James H., Synovus:
Boscia, Jon A., Lincoln Financial Group
Bossidy, Lawrence A., Allied Signal
Bovender Jr., Jack O., HCA
Cadieux, Chester, QuikTrip Corporation
Cahill, John T., The Pepsi Bottling Group
Carroll, Philip J., Fluor Corp
Cavanaugh III, William, Progress Energy
Cawley, Charles M., MBNA America
Correll, A.D., Georgia-Pacific Corporation
Cosgrove, Howard E., Conectiv
Croce, Pat, Philadelphia 76ers
Crutchfield, Edward E., First Union National Bank (now Wachovia)
Davis Jr., Don H., Rockwell
Davis Jr., Erroll B., Alliant Energy Corp.
Deavenport Jr., Earnest W., Eastman Chemical Company
Dillon, John T., International Paper
Drexler, Millard S., Gap, Inc.
Eckert, Bob, Mattel Inc.
Elliot, Ray, Zimmer Holdings Inc.
Elliott, R. Keith, Hercules Inc.
Esrey, William T., Sprint
Fish, Lawrence K., Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Fisher, George M.C., Eastman Kodak Co.
Gellert, Jay M., Health Net Inc.
Galvin, Christopher B., Motorola, Inc.
Gamper Jr., Albert R., CIT Group Inc.
Garnier, Dr. Jean-Pierre, GlaxoSmithKline
Gilmartin, Raymond V., Merck & Co.
Glass, J. Kenneth, First Tennessee Bank
Golub, Harvey, American Express Co.
Greco, Rosemarie B., Office of Health Care Reform
Greenberg, Jack M., McDonald’s Corp.
Gutierrez Carlos M., Kellogg Company
Haley, Roy W., Wesco International
Harris, Mark, IBM South Africa
Holden, Betsy, Kraft Foods North America
Hynes, Toby, Gulf States Toyota
Immelt, Jeffrey, General Electric Company
Jansen, Harry M., Baxter International
Johnson, Larry, Albertsons Inc
Johnson, Thomas S., GreenPoint Bank
Johnston Jr., Summerfield K., Coca-Cola Enterprises
Jordan, Michael H., Electronic Data Systems
Kleisterlee, Gerard J., Royal Phillips Electronics
Lafley, A.G., The Procter & Gamble Company
Lanni, J. Terrence, MGM Mirage
Lauder, Leonard A., Estee Lauder Companies
Lee, Charles R., GTE Corp.
Liddy, Edward, Allstate
Malone Jr., Wallace D., SouthTrust Corp.
Mark, Reuben, Colgate-Palmolive Co.
McGinn, Richard A., Lucent Technologies
McKinnell, Henry A., Pfizer Inc.
McKnight, Bob, Quiksilver
McNeill Jr., Corbin A., PECO Energy
Morgan, Charles, Acxiom Corporation
 Mulcahy, Anne M., Xerox Corporation
 Nasser, Jacques A., Ford Motor Company
 Neubauer, Joseph, Aramark Corporation
 Niwa, Uichiro, Itochu Corp.
 Odland, Steve, Auto Zone Inc.
 Olson, Richard E., Champion International
 Parker, James F., Southwest Airlines Co.
 Perdue, David, Dollar General
 Pichler, Joseph A., The Kroger Co.
 Redstone, Sumner M., Viacom Inc.
 Ridder, P. Anthony, Knight Ridder
 Riggio, Leonard, Barnes & Noble, Inc.
 Roberts, Leonard H., Radio Shack Corp.
 Rodin, Judith, University of Pennsylvania
 Rowe, John W., Exelon Corporation
 Sanger, Steven W., General Mills
 Seidenberg, Ivan, Bell Atlantic Corp.
 Sharp, Richard L., Circuit City Stores Inc.
 Sheehan, Jeremiah J., Reynolds Metals
 Smith, Sharon A., Girl Scouts of Southeastern Pennsylvania
 Stavropoulos, William, Dow Chemical Co.
 Steere Jr., William C., Pfizer, Inc.
 Thoman, G. Richard, Xerox Corporation
 Toan, Barrett A., Express Scripts
 Tucci, Joseph M., EMC Corp.
 Tyson, John, Tyson Foods Inc.
 Valine, Roger, Vision Service Plan
 Von Seldeneck, Judith M., The Diversified Search Companies
 Wagner, H.A., Air Products and Chemicals Inc.
 Ware, Marilyn, American Water Works Company, Inc.
 Washkewicz, Don, Parker Hannifin Corporation
 Weill, Sanford I., Citigroup Inc.
 Weinbach, Arthur F., Automatic Data Processing Inc.
 Weinbach, Lawrence A., Unisys
 Weldon, William C., Johnson & Johnson
 Zimmerman, James M., Federated Department Stores Inc.
 Zumwinkel, Klaus, Deutsche Post World Net
Printed with permission from Wisdom for a Young CEO: Incredible Letters and Inspiring Advice from Today's Business
Leaders by Douglas Barry, Copyright © 2004 by Douglas Barry, published by Running Press Book Publishers, Philadelphia
and London.