Canadian singer, songwriter, and actress Shania Twain was born on the 28th of August 1965 as Eilleen Regina Edwards to Sharon and Clarence Edwards. She was the first of three daughters. When she was two years old, her parents divorced, and her mother moved to Timmins, Ontario, with her daughters and married Jerry Twain, an Ojibwa, and together they had son, Mark. Jerry adopted Shania and her sisters, and their surname was legally changed to Twain. Jerry and Sharon later adopted Jerry’s baby nephew Darryl following the death of his mother.
Shania had a traumatic childhood. She never knew her biological father. There was always a shortage of food in their household as her mother and stepfather earned very little money. But she did not reveal her situation to school authorities, as she feared they might break up the family. She started writing songs as a young girl to escape from the negative situation in her home and to distract herself from hunger. To pay the family bills, she began singing in bars at the age of eight. The marriage between her mother and stepfather was difficult; her mother struggled with bouts of depression, and her stepfather was an alcoholic, violent, and mentally ill. One time, when Shania was about 11, Jerry beat Sharon unconscious and plunged her head into the toilet repeatedly. Shania hit him across his back with a chair. He punched her in the jaw; she hit him back. Jerry often abused Shania, physically, psychologically, and sexually but she never reported it as she couldn’t bear the family being separated. In mid-1979, however, Shania convinced her mother to drive the rest of the family 420 miles south to a Toronto homeless shelter while Jerry was at work. But in 1981, Sharon returned to Jerry with the children.
In 1983, after graduating from school, she moved to Nashville to sing country, and in 1987, she was on the brink of achieving her dreams when Jerry and her mother were killed in a car crash. She abandoned her dreams and moved back home to become a substitute mother to her four siblings and for the next six years, she supported them by singing at a local resort. In 1993, a record label signed her on, and she became known as Shania. She was an instant success, and her second album, The Woman in Me, released in 1995, sold 20 million copies worldwide and brought her widespread success.
In 2004, Twain entered a hiatus after a diagnosis of Lyme disease, and dysphonia led to a severely weakened singing voice. Twain did not make a record for 15 years. During this period, she also divorced her first husband, Robert John Lange, who had an affair with her friend. She is currently married to Frédéric Thiébaud.
With over 100 million records, she is the best-selling female artist in country music history and among the best-selling music artists of all time (Wikipedia).
Leadership Lessons from the Life of Shania Twain
- Sometimes our dreams are placed on hold as we serve others and help them achieve their goals. Great women are great leaders, and great leaders are great servants. Shania Twain put her dreams on hold to serve her siblings following the tragic death of both their parents. Every great person is a servant to others. No one is truly great, who does not help others.
- While we cannot choose how our lives started, and the circumstances surrounding our birth and early years are outside our control, we can decide how our lives end. We can change the trajectory of our lives, and it is possible to rewrite our narrative. We do not have to settle. We do not have to repeat the mistakes of our parents. Shania Twain understood this and great women understand this.
- Sometimes leaders make sacrifices to maintain the status quo. Living in a home where there was always a shortage of food supply could not have been easy. Being raised by a stepfather who abused her physically, psychologically, and sexually could not have been easy. Shania Twain could have reported the situation at home to the authorities but she chose not to because she was thinking not just about herself but about other members of her family and how the breakup of the family would impact each member. She made a sacrifice to hold the family together; to maintain the status quo.
- Great leaders are selfless. We see Shania display selflessness repeatedly. When she declined to report the abusive behaviour of her stepfather, and when she refused to report the inability of her parents to provide adequately for the home, she was selfless. When she returned home to care for her siblings, putting her dreams on hold in the process, she was selfless. Selflessness is vital to relational success, and it is a fundamental ingredient for business and or career success.
- Talent is a gift that brings us fulfilment and helps us escape our current reality. Shania Twain, amid hunger, violence, and abuse, took refuge in her ability to sing and write songs. This gift helped distract her; it helped her escape momentarily from the reality of her situation. Our giftings and talents are needful, necessary and helpful in escaping our reality.
- It is okay to dream, just for the sake of dreaming. It is okay to escape your current reality to maintain your sanity. Great leaders know that sometimes they must flee or retreat in other to win another day. We have been told to go beyond dreaming to bring our dreams to fruition, but I think that it is okay to dream just for the sake of dreaming; even if you are unable to bring that dream to fruition, daydream to maintain your sanity.
- Great leaders know that their gifts will make room for them. The gift Shania had from a young age helped her support her family. It eventually brought her out of poverty. Don’t ignore your gifts and talents, as they have the power to bring you out of frustration and hardship.
- Life happens, understand this, and don’t take it personally. Sometimes when all is going well, life throws you curve balls. This is a truth that pertains to everybody and is not unique to you. On the verge of a breakthrough, Shania Twain lost her parents and had to abandon her dream. She experienced fame, and then an illness caused her to take a hiatus for over a decade. She got married and her husband betrayed her by having an affair with her good friend. But she kept moving forward. People and indeed situations can only take from you what you permit. No more no less.
- Embrace setbacks as part of the journey to greatness. There are valuable lessons that we learn from setbacks if we are paying attention and embracing the processes that are valuable and help us attain and maintain success. Our character is developed during a setback in a way that it can never be developed during a winning season. Setbacks toughen us and help us build resilience, which is necessary for success. And in a season of setbacks, we can identify what is truly important and be grateful for it.
- Great women weather the storms of life. Therefore great women are survivors. Shania Twain survived a traumatic childhood, she survived a disease that almost caused her to lose her voice, she survived a hiatus that lasted well over a decade, she survived the betrayal of her husband who cheated on her with her good friend, and she survived divorce. She weathered the storms and she came out on top. You can do likewise.
- Great women are positive and see good in adverse situations. And I believe this is one reason they can weather the storms of life. Shania never reported her stepfather or the harmful situation in her home because even at a young age, she could see the positive in the adverse situation, she realised that they needed each other and should remain together for better or worse. Being able to see the silver lining in every situation is so crucial as it helps us to be grateful and not to be hasty in making decisions that might take us from the frypan and into the fire.
- Great women are steadfast. Shania Twain demonstrated steadfastness from a young age. She did not report her stepfather’s abuse, but more importantly, she also never acknowledged her biological father publicly as she thought it was not proper to acknowledge a man who had not been there for her paying bills, putting a roof over her head, food on the table, etc. She was committed and steadfast. She was also grateful. Her stepfather may not have been the best father in the world but she knew he had done what her biological father had failed to do.
- Great women are an inspiration to other women. Their story sends a simple but powerful message to other women. One that says, if I can, so can you. Shania Twain survived a childhood full of trauma, a marriage mixed with betrayal and heartbreak, and went from poverty to best-selling female artist in country music history; anything is possible for you.
