Mette’s view of leadership is rooted in her childhood in rural Denmark, where her father ran a co-operative dairy. Part of his responsibility was to teach his craft to young apprentices. Because these apprentices received room and board with the family, her home was in effect a Petri dish of 24/7 leadership. This is where she learned that leadership is personal, it’s generous, and it requires a sense of urgency—the ability to get people moving now.
Today, Mette lives with her husband in New York City. Here she thrives on the tempo, the pulse, the expansion of “silicon alley,” the density, the diversity, the collision of cultures and ideas, the messiness, and the innovation. In effect, her current hometown is a Petri dish for the future of leadership.