I. Stephanie Boyce CBE: Leadership Insights and Perseverance

The Full Transcript of I. Stephanie Boyce CBE | CEOs Go Wild

[00:00:00] Stephanie: The law touches every part of your life. I can feel the fear coming in now. I was a qualified solicitor, cut the people’s grass, from failing the 11 plus, 150 applications for training contracts.

[00:00:12] Stephanie: I had people who said never in our lifetime would we see an ethnic minority become president. There is something powerful about being able to see someone that looks like you. Representation matters.

[00:00:23] Stephanie: My biggest fear is looking back. Yes, I felt defeated. Yes, I thought about giving up. I’m not sure that I can do it. But the absolute belief in myself meant that I kept going.

[00:00:32] Stephanie: I want to raise aspirations. I was the first, but I shouldn’t be the last. There is still much more to be done.

[00:00:47] Tanuk: I’m Tanuk, adventurer and entrepreneur. I spend my time exploring the wilderness and pushing my boundaries in nature. Now I’m taking some of the UK’s most inspirational female founders and business leaders on an expedition to get their take on ambition, leadership, and balance.

[00:01:02] Tanuk: Today I’m with I. Stephanie Boyce CBE, trailblazing legal leader and the first person of color and the first black person to become president of the Law Society of England and Wales. She’s dedicated her career to championing underrepresented talent in the legal professions and beyond. Hers is a story about the power of perseverance, and that’s about to get tested.

[00:01:25] Tanuk: I’m here with Dr. I. Stephanie Boyce CBE. Come on!

[00:01:29] Stephanie: First-generation British, coming from a single-parent household, low socioeconomic household. Yes, navigating my way through spaces and corridors of power that I knew nothing about, to rise in to become the first person of color, the first black president of the Law Society of England and Wales. Yeah, come on!

[00:01:49] Tanuk: What was it that excited you about law specifically?

[00:01:52] Stephanie: The law touches every part of your life, and it fascinates me how it can be a powerful weapon for good, but equally, as we’re seeing, it can also be a powerful weapon to oppress, to undo some of that good.

[00:02:12] Tanuk: So going back to the beginning, what was your entry point into law?

[00:02:15] Stephanie: It wasn’t straightforward. Barriers, seen and unseen barriers I’m still having to navigate, of course. I was always a child who asked lots and lots and lots of questions.

[00:02:22] Tanuk: Amazing.

[00:02:23] Stephanie: And through that curiosity, I got into university, and then people started to tell me that you need to apply to law school, you need to apply for a loan to get to law school.

[00:02:32] Tanuk: All of those things, all these avenues started opening up in front of you.

[00:02:35] Stephanie: Absolutely.

[00:02:36] Tanuk: What did your family think? Were they interested in the law?

[00:02:39] Stephanie: They’re absolutely proud, but equally, there absolutely was a distrust in the law.

[00:02:47] Stephanie: Not only did we not travel because we couldn’t afford to, but looking back, actually, there was a deeper reason why we didn’t travel, and that was because of the fear. My grandfather never went back to the Caribbean.

[00:02:59] Tanuk: Yeah. That you weren’t going to be able to come back to the UK?

[00:03:01] Stephanie: Absolutely.

[00:03:02] Stephanie: Much of what we’re seeing today with the Windrush scandal is where lots of thousands still remain undocumented who have the right to remain in this country. But when the legislation changed, they got caught out by that legislation.

[00:03:16] Tanuk: Okay.

[00:03:17] Stephanie: And the right to remain was removed. And I guess that’s what drives me in respect of access to justice.

[00:03:23] Stephanie: There wasn’t those networks, you know, that you could tap into to go and ask for legal advice, of course, to help you navigate how to get your documentation. And when you have purpose, clarity of purpose, that is the driving force.

[00:03:37] Tanuk: You have had an incredible journey. Please describe to me how you became the president of the Law Society.

[00:03:43] Stephanie: So you’re elected from council, there’s about 95 or so in total, and they had to vote for me to become elected. And it was convincing them. The Law Society is the professional representative body for over 220,000, I think, solicitors now, and it exists to be the voice of the profession.

[00:03:57] Stephanie: When you’re successful or not successful, you get a telephone call. And I got a telephone call from the then CEO who told me that I have succeeded.

[00:04:10] Stephanie: I felt defeated. I rolled up or curled up in a ball in my home and I just sat there curled up, and I just cried. And then when I finished crying, I picked myself up, I brushed myself off, and I thought, “How am I going to do this again?”

[00:04:28] Tanuk: So there was never any point when you felt like giving up?

[00:04:30] Stephanie: Oh, absolutely. There were times where I felt like giving up. From failing the 11 plus, to not getting into university, not having my high school diploma from America recognized (where I finished high school in America), to 150 applications for training contracts.

[00:04:43] Stephanie: I wanted to be a litigator, so I left the end of my 2-year training contract unemployed, no job to go to. I was a qualified solicitor, but there I was cutting people’s grass.

[00:04:56] Stephanie: To the four attempts it took me to become president. People said it wasn’t going to happen. “Go home and rest, Stephanie, you’re embarrassing yourself.” I had people who said, “Never in our lifetime would we see an ethnic minority become president.” And having succeeded and done that for the first time in almost 200 years.

[00:05:13] Stephanie: There was something so strong inside that just kept me going. Yes, I felt defeated, yes, I thought about giving up, but the absolute belief in myself and that quiet determination to keep going meant that I picked myself up and I kept going.

[00:05:28] Tanuk: So is there a personal mantra that helps you get through the tough times?

[00:05:31] Stephanie: That realization that every door is open if you push. Yes. You persevere until something happens.

[00:05:34] Stephanie: It took me four attempts to get to presidency, but I tell you something for nothing: I would have kept going a fifth, a sixth, a seventh, because for me, not only to irritate the hell out of everyone, but because it was just important to be seen. I absolutely believe that you have to get uncomfortable…

[00:05:54] Tanuk: Totally.

[00:05:55] Stephanie: …in order to get comfortable. I flourish in discomfort.

[00:06:02] Tanuk: Okay, well we’re about to put that to the test, honey. Did you say you were going first to show me how it’s done?

[00:06:20] [Rock climbing sounds]

[00:06:25] Stephanie: Ding ding ding ding ding ding.

[00:06:27] Stephanie: It looked easier going up than it did coming down. I’m knackered already.

[00:06:44] Stephanie: I can feel the fear coming in now.

[00:06:54] Tanuk: So, Stephanie, what do you think is your biggest fear?

[00:06:57] Stephanie: Gosh, my biggest fear is… it’s looking back. I think if you spend too much time looking back, you don’t see where you’re going.

[00:07:07] Tanuk: How does this feel compared to some risks that you’ve taken in your career?

[00:07:11] Stephanie: Well, this feels very scary because I can see what’s around me, whereas some of the risks I’ve taken, you can’t see what’s ahead of you, you can’t see what the outcome is. And I guess as I’m sat here resting, there is comfort in resting, but I can’t stay here forever and I have to get back down.

[00:07:36] Stephanie: Want to get to that bit, but I’m not sure that I can do it.

[00:07:46] Stephanie: Ding ding ding ding ding.

[00:07:53] Stephanie: I’m absolutely exhausted.

[00:07:58] Tanuk: Absolutely smashed it! I can’t believe it’s her first time even going up like rock climbing, she’s totally killed it. I’m so proud of her. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, well done!

[00:08:14] Stephanie: That was amazing. I can’t let my mother see this cuz at one point I was going to give up. I thought, you know, that’s far enough. I thought, nah, cuz I wouldn’t forgive myself if I came away and thought I could have… I could have.

[00:08:23] Tanuk: You did it.

[00:08:24] Stephanie: I did it.

[00:08:25] Tanuk: That is an unbelievable achievement. It is really, really, really high.

[00:08:29] Stephanie: I went all the way up there and beyond, literally. I couldn’t see my way up at certain points, I mean obviously with your guidance.

[00:08:37] Stephanie: But isn’t that the whole thing about leaders? We don’t always have the answers, we don’t always see the way forward, see the way forward. But the measure of a good leader is admitting when you have got it wrong and you were stuck. And I was stuck, and my support, you and others, was telling me where to go, you know, what to do, and you know, that confidence and that faith that I could.

[00:09:05] Tanuk: So how did the physical fear that you experienced when you were up there compare to the fear in big leadership decisions that you’ve had to make?

[00:09:13] Stephanie: With this physical fear, I can feel myself now coming down, the calmness, and once I got my feet back on the ground, you know, absolutely I felt comfort in…

[00:09:23] Tanuk: Yeah, relief in that.

[00:09:24] Stephanie: …relief in that. Whereas emotionally, you make a decision, it’s out there, and then sometimes you kind of wait for it, all the noise. I can’t say I’m in a hurry to do it again.

[00:09:31] Tanuk: So you obviously can’t change everything as a leader, but how do you pick your mission?

[00:09:35] Stephanie: Gosh, so when I came into office, I said that my mission was to leave the profession more diverse and inclusive than the one I entered. That became my guiding principle, if you like. You can’t solve everything. Having that clarity of purpose absolutely helps, but it is about being clear as to what your purpose is.

[00:09:54] Stephanie: I’m absolutely standing on the shoulders of giants, those who have gone before me who have made that, you know, that crooked path a bit straighter, a bit wider, because far too often the path to leadership, to success, has been too narrow and confined to a select few.

[00:10:14] Tanuk: So what do you think makes a good leader?

[00:10:16] Stephanie: Mary Terrell Church had a saying: “To lift as you climb.” You need compassion, empathy, integrity, you know, values. For me, a good leader is someone who recognizes that they are a custodian of the space that they are occupying. They are there temporarily, not there permanently, not for self-service, but for the service of everyone.

[00:10:40] Tanuk: So you speak about empathy and holding space for others. That’s not what we see necessarily for the leaders of today.

[00:10:46] Stephanie: Absolutely, and that is such a shame, yeah. Because there are so many people who should be occupying these spaces of leadership, but again, we seem to elevate the same type of individuals into these spaces and then we wonder why progress is slow.

[00:11:05] Stephanie: There is something powerful about being able to see someone that looks like you. Representation matters. That visibility, that representation has been my guiding light amongst many other things.

[00:11:29] Stephanie: Is it gone? Yeah, it’s gone. Good job you didn’t get that on film.

[00:11:34] Tanuk: So do you aspire to be the change or to wait for the change?

[00:11:37] Stephanie: Oh, no. You know, if you wait for change, you’re going to be waiting a hell of a long time. You know, I always say don’t wait for permission. I didn’t wait for permission to occupy this space, because if I’d waited for permission, I’d still be waiting. I just went ahead and did it. I’d rather seek forgiveness than ask for permission.

[00:11:51] Stephanie: When I was first elected as deputy vice president-elect, I was interviewed. One of the questions I was asked was about the challenges that I faced as a woman, and actually, I answered it by saying, you know, it wasn’t just about the challenges I faced as a woman, but about the challenges that I have faced as a black woman.

[00:12:11] Stephanie: There is a burden that comes with being in that space, that people will think that when you are confident, when you are being assertive, that actually you are being or mistaken for being aggressive.

[00:12:26] Stephanie: The younger Stephanie was told, “You’d perhaps get a bit further if you kept your mouth shut.” And I have no doubt whatsoever that by being opinionated at times, it perhaps has stunted my accession to places. But you know, in the still of the night when it’s just me, myself, and I, I’ve got my conscience, and my conscience is clear.

[00:12:53] Tanuk: How does it feel to be championing others around you?

[00:12:56] Stephanie: For me, that’s exactly what it’s about. How can I share the space? How can I share that wealth of knowledge and information and love? That’s why I go into schools and I, you know, I want to raise aspirations, and that’s one of the reasons why I wanted when I was in that role for it to be so accessible, so visible. For me, that’s my calling, that it’s holding that space. I was the first, but I shouldn’t be the last. There is still much more to be done.

[00:13:18] Tanuk: So what are your hopes and dreams for the future?

[00:13:21] Stephanie: You know, there’s a saying that the graveyards are filled with people whose dreams died with them. I’m absolutely determined to ensure that my dreams don’t die with me. So my dreams is to leave a lasting legacy of change, to build on that amazing platform, that we will have access to justice, that poverty is eradicated, that people are not treated differently because of the color of their skin, their sexuality, their age, religion, socioeconomic status, any of those things. But most of all, that we are kind.

[00:13:58] Tanuk: Yeah, yeah.

[00:13:59] Stephanie: Cuz one of my favorite sayings is: “In a world where you can be anything, be kind.”

[00:14:10] Tanuk: So for anyone watching who might think that the system isn’t built for them, what advice would you give?

[00:14:15] Stephanie: I would say every door is open if you push. You persevere until something happens. Believe in yourself as much as I believe in you.

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