Growing up in a small town with less than 5,000 people, it’s perhaps unsurprising that I was surrounded by a sense of community. In fact, I graduated from high school with the same people I went to kindergarten with! Developing and deepening relationships was of the utmost importance in a small town — from school and sports to church and band practice, relationships were at the core of everything I did. Somehow even as a teenager I knew that I would only be successful with the support of my community.

It is a lesson that has served me well throughout my career, and something I tell young women: Build a community. Lean into those relationships when you need support and help getting through the tough times. And don’t forget to celebrate the wins with them – theirs and yours.

Cherish Your Relationships

My community grew even larger when I attended the United States Military Academy at West Point after high school. This was the ultimate test to see if I could not only “make it” at the academy, it was also an opportunity to develop long-lasting and genuine relationships. West Point was an incredible and life-changing experience, and one that forged unique and special bonds.

While at West Point, I learned one of the toughest lessons in my life: the importance of cooperation. Not only did the relationships I built at West Point shape who I am today, but they actually helped me survive my time there. I stay in touch with many of my classmates, especially my West Point sisters. We have an annual sisterhood trip each year, where we catch up with each other, recharge, and deepen our friendships through the years. A community of sisters that you have history with is especially powerful because these women have seen me at my best, and my worst, and they’ve been there for me.

Become Acquainted with the Gut Check

After West Point, I received a subsequent role in the United States Army serving as an officer in the Adjutant General’s Corps in the U.S. and Germany for seven years. Every day in the army was a “gut-check day” where I learned I am strong. But that recognition belongs as much to my community as it does to me – they helped me get through what was a particularly grueling, intense time. I learned I am mentally and physically tough.

This constant “gut-check” allowed me to serve as a Company Commander at Fort Bragg, which was at the time the largest military installation in the world. This role is the most sacred of responsibilities in the military and something that manifests in the roles I continue to take on in the private sector.

Focus on What’s Important to Your Stakeholder

One of the biggest challenges I faced when I was at West Point was feeling I couldn’t accomplish everything at the level of perfection I expected. Over four years, I had to learn how to make the best choices for my teammates and me. You can’t just think of yourself. You must focus on what’s most important to your stakeholder: whether it’s your squad, your platoon, your project partners, your rifle team, and so on.

This is a lesson I carried with me after the Army, when I began my career at GE/Synchrony. I always reminded myself that I had to be true to myself, and balance that with the priorities of the organization. Everything can’t be perfect.

Prior to Synchrony, I took on large company-wide initiatives and integration roles. Soon, my hard work and leadership was noticed by other women, including Carol Juel, who was serving as chief technology and operations officer. Carol tapped me for her infrastructure leader role – underscoring the importance of building and deepening relationships. When I began working at Synchrony, as part of our IPO, I applied key experiences thinking through the IT infrastructure challenges involved in separating from GE’s legacy systems. I also realized that relationships are just as critical in the business world. These same relationships led me to a commercial leadership role.

Identify Your Core Values

Today, I am the chief information officer at Synchrony, where I’m focused on three key elements that are critical to the business: our platform, our products, and our partners. While I’ve advanced in my career, I still work to support and lift up my team members. It doesn’t matter where you work – the public sector or private – the core principles are the same. Community, relationships, results, and supporting others matter. I’m so lucky that Synchrony shares these values every day.