‘No Plan B’ – The Making of an Unapologetically Ambitious CEO

Best Seller TV, the only show dedicated to covering today’s best-selling business books on C-Suite TV,  is announcing a new episode featuring Shellye Archambeau, author of Unapologetically Ambitious: Take Risks, Break Barriers, and Create Success On Your Own Terms.

Archambeau recalled how even as a high school student, her goal was to become a CEO. While she didn’t have a full understanding then about the implications of running a corporation, she set her goals and pursued them becoming one of the first African-American tech CEOs in Silicon Valley. Her book’s core message is to teach readers how to get what they want out of life – professionally and personally, by being intentional. The book shares strategies, approaches, tactics, and hacks on how to go about it, despite it being hard.

Archambeau relates that when people say someone is “ambitious,” they don’t necessarily mean it as a compliment. She knew she wanted the word “ambitious” in the title; however, the “unapologetic” part was inspired by her friends. They noted that women tend to apologize for everything. She adds, “Everyone deserves the right to be ambitious and nobody should have to apologize for it.”

She recognizes she used to be one of those “overapologizers” and had to work on that throughout her career, “because in business, it makes you look weak.” Women apologize, not because they did something wrong but because it just makes everything better. Archambeau adds, “We use it like salt, it just makes everything better.”

Achambeau has a definition for ambition. She says it’s about being intentional – something she learned along the way simply by listening. It’s about paying close attention and watching other successful people and follow their path, take in all that knowledge and build it into your own plan. She adds, “There’s a lot of good advice that comes down if you actually listen to it.”

Archambeau encourages people to find mentors because they don’t have to have a “formal role.” Mentors are people that can offer you advice, counsel, and perspective so you can make decisions and take risks. “It is not weakness to take help, it’s actually a strength.”

She also imparts great advice for readers: “You have to be strategic about what you’re doing” and “Ambition alone won’t get your where you need to be.”

All episodes of Best Seller TV air on C-Suite TV and are hosted by TV personality, Taryn Winter Brill.  

Best-selling author, speaker, and former Fortune 100 CMO Jeffrey Hayzlett created Best Seller TV to give top-tier business authors a forum for sharing thought-provoking insights, in-depth business analysis, and their compelling personal narratives.

“Shellye is a perfect example of what a great leader is. It’s all about listening, being strategic and working hard to achieve goals with as less distractions as possible,” Hayzlett said. “Her book serves as a reminder that, as a society, we need to de-stigmatize the word ‘ambition’ as a pejorative term, especially for women, but as something to strive for. I love having guests like Shellye who can challenge the norms of what great, unapologetic leadership looks like.”

For more information on TV episodes, visit www.csuiteold.c-suitenetwork.com/tv and for more information about the authors featured in Best Seller TV episodes, visit www.c-suitebookclub.com.