Are you required to put in enough time on the job to get respect or have influence? Someone who listens to the Creating Disney Magic said they have been given a responsibility that is higher than their experience. However, they’re confident about their knowledge. Sometimes, they feel like their colleagues don’t take them seriously because they’re underage for their role and asked for tips on how to develop tact, influence, and authority in everyday leadership while being welcoming, caring, and nice. This is a problem all over the world. Young people are entering the workforce while the older generation is in the middle of their careers or on their way out. There is a pervasive mentality that you have to pay your dues before you get your shot. However, the world doesn’t work that way. I didn’t finish college myself but took on highly responsible positions from a young age. I had people from Harvard, Stanford, and other big schools reporting to me. It was clear that they were annoyed, but it wasn’t my fault. All you can do in this position is to continue to do your job with excellence. Performance outweighs all else. Be professional and do your job every day the best you can. If you do your thing and do it well, people will eventually come around. If they don’t, there’s something in their wiring or some other issue they need to work through that’s the cause. Just smile and do the best you can to work through it. You can control your performance, but you can’t control what others will do or think or say about you. Even when you’re the same age as people, some will still not like working with you. They might think you didn’t go to the right school, didn’t work for the right company before, or didn’t take the right courses. All you can do is stay focused and responsible. No matter your age or position, you can become a better leader by what you will learn in the Cockerell Academy.