Dolly Parton’s advice on running a successful, sprawling business empire: ‘Rely on “higher wisdom,” look your best, and don’t boss anyone around’
· Fortune
Dolly Parton, the legendary singer turned business mogul and philanthropist, could always be relied on for some straight-talking advice. Even when it came to emulating her massive success, the country music star’s guidance was simple: “Work your butt off.”
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Friends, family, and fans of Parton are reminiscing and celebrating her accomplishments—be it her music, entrepreneurship, or philanthropy—after her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver, announced her death in a statement earlier this week.
Parton died at 80 years old, with Seaver telling fans: “She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history.” He added: “Dolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton because after a life wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be comfortable and have some rest.”
Indeed, the famed “9 to 5” singer suggested to Bloomberg she had always put in more than just the standard office hours.
As co-owner of the Dollywood Co., Parton helped oversee the Dollywood Theme Park, the Splash Country water park, several diner ventures, as well as a spa and hospitality venues in the Great Smoky Mountains. Her portfolio also included pet apparel business Doggy Parton, a fragrance brand, and a series of baking kits with Duncan Hines.
Forbes valued Parton—who was also a fierce philanthropist—at $450 million, though other outlets placed her wealth closer to $650 million.
But despite the brand her name became, Parton said she never became the “step on the bossman’s ladder” she once wrote about. When asked how she ran her empire so successfully, Parton said she had been “blessed” in her endeavors, working with great people and letting them get on with it.
Parton never sought to micromanage, she added: “I don’t boss anybody around, because I don’t even have the time or the energy to even do that. I just try to put people that are smarter than me in all the right places, and then I go on about my business.”
Parton, also an author, made it clear her talents lay in the creative side of the business, saying there were aspects of her empire that she didn’t know anything about—but didn’t need to because of the team she had in place.
“I’m more of the creative force and the one that has an overall sense of things,” she said. “I try to find the best people, and I try to trust them to do what they say they can do. Then I have people looking out after all of them.”
The “Islands in the Stream” singer also said her hands-off management approach with senior executives was paired with instinct, and she trusted that if an individual isn’t right for their role, it would eventually be revealed.
“We know if somebody’s not right, they’ll show themselves, or it’ll be pointed out so many times by other people that you do trust, you’ll know it’s time to move on from that person,” she said. “So I depend on my own higher wisdom of knowing if I’m in the right place with the right people.”
‘Looking like a woman and thinking like a man’
Parton, who was awarded the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy, said that from her early days performing in Nashville, she knew she had talents she could monetize. Or as Parton put it: “Looking like a woman and thinking like a man, so to speak.”
Appearance is another area in which Parton had some sage advice—which may help Gen Z employees who reportedly are entering the workforce unsure of how they should dress for the office.
For Parton, known to be a big fan of wigs and brightly colored suits, the aim is to be comfortable, adding: “You know what business you’re in, and you pretty much know what’s expected.
“If you’ve got a dress code, just look the best you can, take it right to the limit. You can kind of bend the rules a little bit, but if that’s the job you want and you already know the rules, then go by the rules.”
A version of this story was published on Fortune.com on February 12, 2024.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com