Dolly Parton takes America, and the world, to school.

There are people who spend their entire careers trying to control what people say about them. Face to face, social media, massive promotional campaigns, whispering to friends and colleagues what they want to be heard.

Dolly Parton figured out something better.

Give people enough good things to say, and stop worrying about the rest.

That’s control, and maybe the most remarkable part is that she never seemed particularly interested in controlling us.

She didn’t tell us what to think, didn’t demand that we agree with her, and didn’t spend every morning on social media explaining why everybody else was wrong.

Instead, she showed up. Worked smart & hard. Laughed at herself. Quietly and without fanfare helped people.

She built businesses, gave away books to kids who will undoubtedly hand them to their children, helped disaster victims rebuild their lives, supported medical research leaning on truth, facts, and talking with those who understand such things, instead of getting her insight from social media.

She invested much of her millions in children and creating jobs, giving them a real head-start in their lives when they often needed it most.

And somehow, while being one of the most recognizable women on Earth, she protected enormous portions of her private life. Be honest, did you know what her political affiliations were? Did you care? Did she ever cross the screens as part of some scandal?

Perhaps the greatest example of “scandal” is the time she appeared on the David Letterman Show to deliver the “Top Ten Pet Peeves of Dolly Parton” and noted how people never talk about the fact she has a “great ass” as well as other attributes.

Such scandal.

Her husband Carl Dean was married to her for nearly 60 years and remained largely invisible to the public.

That’s not accidental. That’s called boundaries, and boundaries are becoming a lost leadership skill.

We live in a world where people believe everything must be shared. Every thought, every meal, every argument, every political opinion, every grievance, achievement and failure.

Dolly demonstrated another possibility: You can be accessible without being available to everyone.

Wow. Just imagine the possibilities.

You can actually be warm and engaging without revealing everything. There’s no need to constantly remind people that you’re successful. Strong beliefs can be an important part of your life without turning every conversation into a political battlefield.

The opportunity exists, right there in front of you, to build a powerful brand without making yourself the center of every story.

Look at what she actually left behind. What we know now is staggering.

She gave away more than 300 million books through the Imagination Library. Gladly handed out millions of dollars for disaster relief without a single press release. She learned the truth and doled out major contributions to medical research while supporting children’s healthcare.

Dolly started and funded education programs and scholarships for employees.

She built a major business empire during a time when the power-brokers of America knew there was no way for a mere woman to accomplish much, especially a once dirt-poor hillbilly who parded about in trashy fake wigs and rhinestones.

With all of this came a reputation that somehow managed to cross political, cultural and generational boundaries.

That is not an accident. It’s called consistency, and consistency is one of the most underrated forms of communication.

Dolly also understood something else that is widely missed today, especially by those who think they are leaders.

People don’t need you to be perfect. They need you to be real.

Her self-deprecating humor helped puncture the enormous celebrity image surrounding her.

Sure, those rhinestones were gaudy and enormous.

The ego wasn’t. That’s why people could look at Dolly and somehow see their mother, aunt, sister, neighbor or friend.

That’s incredibly difficult to manufacture.

You can’t buy it. Can’t hire an agency to create it. You certainly can’t fake it for 60 years.

You have to live it. Day in. Day out. Honestly. Sincerely. With conviction and without fear.

Therein lies the lesson Dolly Parton leaves behind for leaders.

Don’t spend so much time trying to manage the story. Instead, become the story you want people to tell.

Because eventually, people will tell it without you. That’s when you’ve truly controlled the narrative and shown people who you really are. Without the shouting. Without incessant social media bellowing.

Without the ego.

Thank you, Dolly.

You showed us how, and gave us a splendid roadmap to being not just professional better, but personally better to ourselves and those around us.