Asleep at the Wheel

Michelle Pelluso, the CEO of Travelocity, was the featured speaker in the CEO Perspectives class that I'm auditing on Wednesday nights. She was very laid back, casually dressed and spoke to us while perched on the table at the front of the room; a huge contrast with the other CEOs that came before her. I enjoyed her casual style, approachable nature and (perceived) soft management skills. Which comes to show that you don't have to be a high-strung, tough-as-nails, superachiever to become a CEO. Or so I thought... Until she said she'll answer every e-mail that is sent to her within 24 hours, no matter what the subject is or whether she's on vacation, traveling or working at the office. Which begged the question: How do you manage to do all these things and still have a life? Her simple answer: "I don't like to get a lot of sleep". Ouch! I guess being a CEO means never falling asleep at the wheel...