Amy Summers, founder of Pitch Publicity and author of Lift: 10 Mentorship Touchpoints to Empower Your Team and Accelerate Your Career, shared why she believes mentorship is the most powerful—and most overlooked—driver of long-term success.
After launching more than 50 careers over two decades in the natural products space, Summers said leadership should prioritize people over profits.
“My approach in business has always been a people-first approach and not a profits-first approach,” she said, noting that developing talent, even if they eventually go elsewhere, ultimately strengthens both companies and leaders.
Summers built her agency as dietary supplements increasingly entered the mainstream, working with brands to navigate media skepticism, regulatory nuance and evolving consumer acceptance. That experience shaped her belief that mentorship is not a formal program but a daily leadership practice rooted in relationship-building.
“Mentorship is not a title, it’s not a program,” she said. “In the book, I really try to emphasize that at its core, mentorship is a relationship.”
Among the leadership strategies she outlined, Summers highlighted building confidence by giving team members real purpose and delegating high-stakes responsibilities, which she calls “Delegate MSH Style” or “Make Success Happen.”
“I think that when we get into situations where it’s a crisis or high stakes, a lot of times as leaders, we think nobody else can do this except me,” she said. “But when you entrust that with somebody, it builds confidence and trust.”
Summers also warned that overreliance on technology is eroding communication skills and weakening human connection—a critical issue in an industry built on relationships between brands, retailers, media and consumers.
“There’s nothing that can replace human connection,” she said. “Ideas and brainstorming and things that we can’t automate—those come from people.”
One of the book’s most talked-about chapters focuses on “healthy exits,” encouraging leaders to handle departures with empathy and professionalism, especially in a tightly connected industry like natural products.
“You’re going to run into these people again,” Summers said. “How we treat people on the way out is really important.”
she added that ultimately she hopes leaders redefine success not by titles or revenue but by the relationships they build along the way.
“At the end of your career, what’s going to matter are the relationships,” she said. “That is the true treasure.”
To hear more about Summers’ 10 mentorship touchpoints, why delegation builds loyalty and how leaders can create stronger, healthier teams, listen to the NutraCast above or on your preferred podcast platform.
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