Rarely do you wake up one morning ready to slay dragons; more frequently you forge small, brave acts that lead to larger ones. Learn to be a little more fearless than you are comfortable with, and trust yourself.

The people who you surround yourself with are everything. When I was in Shakespeare Society, I asked my friend Kara Lipson how she was able to time and again get up a successful production. She said, "It's all in the casting." I have found this to be true in every area of my career - from political campaigns to business to volunteer leadership. The professional experiences I value the most, and have learned the most from, all have amazing teams in common.

Great leaders make the people around them better.  They equip others to do their best work through guidance, support, and example.

Don’t be afraid to step into your voice early and build your own individual brand. Sometimes we, as women, feel that we need to subsume our individual pursuits for the collective, but they don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Write the op-ed, start the blog, do the podcast. Don’t be afraid to become a opinion leader. Your success will inspire and empower other women to do the same.

Fink is a political analyst and is the founder of Rebelle Communications.