At a HIMSS conference in New Orleans, not long after Hurricane Katrina, I was in a large auditorium where I got to hear Colin Powell speak. As a one time Secretary of State, Four Star General and overall well respected public servant I was super-excited to hear him speak much more than Steve Ballmer or any of the other industry luminaries who were present at the time. Being a newly minted Director of Technology, I was hoping to soak up as much information as possible from leaders who I looked up to.

Over the course of being a manager I had made mistakes, but those mistakes could be compartmentalized. The fancy new mistakes that I could make now would have further-reaching impacts. So I had gone back to the library and started reading everything I could on leadership and those books invariably have case studies that highlight the book’s points. I remember reading Good to Great and really latching onto those stories of CEO’s and how they found success. Those CEOs were clearly people to look up to.

I sat in the auditorium and Colin began to speak. He told the story of how he was home one weekend, hanging out with his grandkids who were playing in his pool, when he received a call. Two countries were at the brink of war over what he described as “and island that pretty much had goats on it” and they wanted help from the Secretary of State of the United States of America to assist them with resolving it. It turned out that both sides had an out and could save face if they had an official documented opinion from a high ranking US official.

Colin was having a great weekend. His Grandchildren were over and playing in the pool and the last thing he wanted to do was work but how often are you called on to stop a war? He thought about it, went into the house and used his computer to print up a declaration on the island’s status and faxed it back to both parties. He didn’t go through official channels or use the NSA-sanctioned communication gear and thus a war was avoided and he got to go back to hanging out with his Grandkids. His parable, it turned out, was about how sometimes it just makes sense to break some rules, but I left there thinking about something else.

The Secretary of State of the United States of America broke some rules to hang out with his Grandkids. I’m not exactly sure what I assumed such an important and prestigious job entailed, but that wasn’t part of the mental image I had made for myself. I knew the guy would be married and have a family but how that affected his job and the humility in which he described it got my attention. All of these folks are human. They put their pants on the same way I do. They are prone to mistakes, nervousness and the whole array of human triumphs and failures. It just so happens they took a different path and landed in a different gig than I do.

I work with a lot of very cool people. We all look up to different luminaries in the industry. People who found ways to achieve something spectacular. Articles about Amazon and how they write one pagers or how Spotify does agile or how Slack was invented float around along with dozens of management articles. Peter Drucker is everywhere! Add to that all of the Podcasters, Youtubers and Linkedin Influencers and the world starts to look like it’s full of people who are doing extraordinary things. So too are all my co-workers. They all have something in common with Colin Powell, Marissa Mayer, Larry Page, and Jeff Bezos. They are awesome people doing amazing work. Even if their work isn’t published, blogged or podcasted it’s amazing what they accomplish every day. We’re all human and while marketing is a powerful tool, it can make people seem more than human.

Who do you look up to? Do you look up to someone who has received accolades in your field? Is it someone whose fitness routine is amazing? Are there authors or media personalities who you see as witty or extremely polished? Perhaps it’s someone in your family whose work ethic you’ve always looked up to? Take a moment to stop and imagine their daily routine. Imagine what they do when the dishes or other chores need done. Imagine them when they are waiting in line for coffee. Think about the things you have in common with them.

Next take a moment to think about all the things you do the best and that you’re proudest of. Think about all the people who have asked you for help. Someone has probably asked you for your opinion recently. Have you ever been asked to proofread or check someone’s work? Has someone ever asked you to suggest a book? Does someone look to you for encouragement? I’m pretty sure you can relate to this and if you can, well, you’re in the same boat as the people YOU look up to. It turns out we’re all human.

The next time you’re looking up to someone or perhaps feeling that good old imposter syndrome, just remember. Nobody uses a magical trapeze to put their pants on in the morning. Not even Colin Powell.

Colin Powell