Courtney Wright didn’t expect to be a leader, but she has distinguished herself with both grit and grace. With supportive parents who told her she could do anything she set her mind to, it never occurred to her that being a woman could hold her back. And it didn’t. She founded CDW Merchants, the leading provider of 3D visual retail displays and e-commerce gift packaging for the nation’s top retailers, including Kate Spade, Sperry’s and Club Monaco. In 2016, Courtney packaged CDW for the last time and sold it to a billion-dollar global  company.  Listen as she shares what she’s learned about what it takes to be a great CEO: landing the biggest deals, hiring the best people, and staying grounded in vision. She recently launched her inspired podcast, Lady Boss by Courtney Wright.  Courtney is a big believer in using life plans and written goals to get where you want in life. Routines define her days, including her typical 430am rise to gain an edge with a few more productive hours. She focuses on customer-centered values and the top 20 relationships in her life, and she listens and gives generously. She’s a calculated risk-taker who is both thorough and thoughtful about the moves she makes. I learned so much from Courtney today about making plans and following through, and we hope you do too. Visit https://www.gobeyondbarriers.com/ where you will find show notes and links to all the resources in this episode, including the best way to get in touch with Courtney.   Highlights:  [02:33] Courtney’s journey [04:10] How she narrowed in on her goals [06:47] Forming a life plan [08:17] Becoming a leader [09:22] Overcoming imposter syndrome [11:31] Building a personal brand [16:33] Taking risks [19:02] Staying grounded [21:17] Building relationships [23:30] Being the only female leader [26:42] Being bold as a female leader [28:29] Lightning round questions Quotes: “Your subconscious brain is 60,000 times more powerful than your conscious brain.” – Courtney Wright “The biggest investment I ever made in my business was peer to peer learning.” – Courtney Wright “The time away from your task list is when you move your career and plans forward.” – Courtney Wright “I take away as much stress in my life as I can because that’s not what I operate the best.” – Courtney Wright   Lightning Round Questions: What book has greatly influenced you?  I’m a skimmer, so any build-to-sell book. What is your favorite inspiring quote or saying?  “If you do the work and grind every day and do the time, everything happens.” What is one word or moniker you would use to describe yourself?  Grind/hustle What is one change you've implanted that made your life better?  I try to delegate everything but genius. What power song would you want playing as you walk out onto a stage?  Anything by Prince.   About Courtney Wright: Courtney Wright has the equation for success … stay curious, listen to feedback, fail a lot and make time for friends and family.  Coco’s (all her friends call her Coco) tenacity begins at 4:30AM when she begins to connect the dots. She’s always laser focused on her master plan. The five-decade old business bombshell is New England born, but calls Illinois home after attending Lake Forest College.   She founded CDW Merchants, the leading provider of 3D visual retail displays and e-commerce gift packaging for the nation’s top retailers, including Kate Spade, Sperry’s and Club Monaco. In 2016, Courtney packaged CDW for the last time and sold it to a global billion-dollar company.  Free time isn’t her thing … quickly she jumped on an opportunity to buy a company she worked with closely, a vendor to CDW.  The downtime didn’t last long, in 2016 she bought Gemini Builds It (F/K/A Gemini Moulding). Since the deal closed, she saved 60 jobs, bought a business to close the gap on outsourcing and offered 401K and continuing education to the staff. Gemini is housed in a 50,000 square-foot manufacturing center in Elgin, but Courtney has her mind set to double the growth of the business in a year and bring the sales team to Chicago ... she's one woman making manufacturing cool in Chicago.  Wright wants women to know they can have their cake and eat it too. She has been married to her life and business partner, Larry, for the past 21 years. They live in Winnetka and have two sons. She prides herself on never missing either of her boys sporting events and stopping to smell the sweet scent of success.  Links: Website: https://www.geminibuildsit.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/courtneywright1/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stories/ladyboss.podcast/2969347327464033922/ & https://www.instagram.com/courtneywright.co/