Today is Father’s Day and for the last several days I’ve been thinking about Dad and the important lessons he taught me, both when I was growing up in his home and in the years since. Though I don’t think it was ever his specific intent, he taught my siblings and me – and many others in the community – how to be leaders in whatever we pursued. Here are three important lessons that have helped me get to where I’m at today:

Hard work: Nothing replaces hard work. No matter what job you have to accomplish, there’s nothing more important that getting busy and getting the work done. Dad raised my siblings and me on a cattle ranch, and there always seemed to be work waiting for us. He taught me the best way to get through it was to “roll up your sleeves and get to work.”

Responsibility: At a very young age Dad taught me responsibility. He gave me chores to do and paid me for the hours I worked, with the agreement that I would keep track of my time. I learned at a young age the importance of accounting for the work I did. He let me start my own cattle herd at a very young age. That experience taught me about how business works.

Perseverance: If you want to succeed, you have to “stick with it.” Dad taught me the importance of the statement “stick with a task until it sticks to you.” He taught that if you press forward with hope and desire, you can accomplish anything you set out to do. Dad continues to teach this lesson in his older years. He suffers from cancer and its ill effects, but he always smiles and has something positive to say every time we talk. He has proven through the years that he will never give up on anything.

These lessons, and many others he has taught me, came much more from his example and the way he lived than from eloquent speeches or sit-down discussions. Happy Father’s Day Dad! You’re my ultimate teacher. I love you!

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The Product Management Perspective: As a product manager you’re not the ‘father’ of your products, but your leadership will make all the difference in their success. I hope you can find a way to apply these lessons.