Stephanie McMahon opens up about her failures when she first started with WWE.
These days, fans know Stephanie McMahon as the confident, yet evil, on-screen authority figure. Off-screen, she's the Chief Brand Officer of the company. Stephanie has worked in WWE since 1998, occupying multiple roles, including working on the creative team, booking live events, marketing and more.
Appearing on the 3.5 Degrees Podcast, Stephanie discussed filling multiple roles and how she wasn't succeeding in the eyes of her father Vince McMahon.
"I was in charge of our creative writing and live event booking and marketing and talent relations departments at that time," recalled Stephanie. "I guess I really wasn't doing a very good job because my boss, who's also my father, called me into his office and told me that I wasn't meeting expectations and that something needed to change. And I think that it's one thing when your boss sits you down and tells you that you're not meeting expectations and that you are performing subpar in some capacity, it's another thing when that boss is your father and you have disappointed him."
Stephanie continued, "I questioned my value, I really did, and I questioned my value to our company, you know, where would I fit in? How did I fit in? And was I going to be able to overcome this massive setback to me personally and professionally? And was I ever going to be able to earn not only my colleagues' respect but was I ever going to be able to earn or regain my dad's respect? I beat myself up for a really long time and the main thing that I was doing wrong is that I was micromanaging. But then there was this huge self-doubt and insecurity that I was left with because, again, I took it so hard."
Stephanie went on to reveal that she began working with a coach, who helped her "focus on her strengths."
"If you focus on your strengths, if you focus on what you do better than anybody else, it creates a greater value for your business, it creates a better value for your personally because then you start delivering," said Stephanie. "Then you start bringing things to the table that people may not have even thought were possible."
By 2006, Stephanie had been promoted to Senior Vice President of Creative Writing. She became the Chief Branding Officer in 2013 and still occupies an on-screen role as an authority figure.
