Recently, I had the chance to hear Marty Ellen, chief financial officer of the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, speak at a Network of Executive Women event. Ellen shared that he leads by three guiding principles and emphasizes these as a mentor.

Control Take charge of your own life and how you are showing up. Ellen said that when he delivers a speech, he pays attention to who is sitting in the front row — in other words, who is ready to engage and be seen instead of fading into the woodwork. The other aspect of control is asking for what you want. Don’t assume, for example, that your bosses will know you’re interested in a promotion. Ask for what you want.

Influence What truly makes you influential is the power of relationships, and what makes your relationships thrive is relating to others on a personal level, Ellen says. No matter how far you’ve risen in an organization, remember your journey. You were learning the ropes once, too. Showing humility and respect in how you treat others will increase your influence.

Judgment Ellen got his MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where he learned the concept of “managing your 168.” That’s the number of hours in a week. How will you invest that time based on what matters to you? How you use your 168 will vary at different times in your life, but you must always use careful judgment in how you spend those hours.

His talk gives us some valuable questions to consider: How are you taking charge of your life? How are you showing up in relationships?  Are you “managing your 168” in a way that reflects your priorities? I challenge you to identify one small step to put at least one of these principles into play this week. Remember, small steps can lead to big results.