I was working with a senior leader not too long ago who had what I call a LIGHT BULB moment.
He’d been a senior leader for years—a successful one too—and realized something that had never occurred to him before.
His light bulb moment was this: “He HAD to deal with his own “stuff” so he could be the kind of leader that makes it POSSIBLE for the overall CULTURE to THRIVE.”
This is one of the most valuable realizations any leader can have.
He connected the dots between how his values directly affects the overall team culture.
Who we are is how we lead—our natural wiring, our values, and our beliefs.
Leaders drive culture by what they DO and DON’T DO. And by what they ALLOW or DON’T ALLOW.
So, what does it mean to “deal with our stuff” as leaders?
It can mean…
– IDENTIFYING our values, triggers and natural wiring—our VALUES, TRIGGERS and NATURAL WIRING indicate how we show up and relate to others, what we prioritize and don’t prioritize. We have to first understand our WHO.
– POINTING the finger at ourselves first—looking at how we are showing up in our context and what’s working or not working about it. Before we change THEM, we have to change US.
– DEVELOPING strategies for managing ourselves—we can’t expect to lead OTHERS effectively until we learn to lead OURSELVES effectively. This includes learning to leverage our strengths as well as mitigate our risk areas.
This is just a START, but it is a strong one.
If you’re interested in learning more about our process of deeper self-discovery, schedule a consultation.