Category: Leadership Development

Uncommon language

I just found this draft blog sitting unfinished. Well, not just unfinished, not started apart from the title. So I wondered, what could it have been about? Any clues? It was drafted on 19 April and looking back at my calendar, I had a farewell lunch and a meeting with Restorative Justice Waitakere to discuss an upcoming governance workshop that I subsequently delivered. It was a Tuesday so I might have gone to the movies so maybe it was to do with that.

Friday afternoon is often a day for catching up on things that have slipped by in the rush of the week, so I’ve been doing some of that today. My team have been very busy getting ready for next week’s Strategic Thinking for Leaders workshop and it’s almost ready. Good feeling.

This week in one of my client meetings, the client said that they were interested in leadership development – the soft stuff, real leadership development for real people. Eureka! Something has changed lately in the language I am hearing from potential clients. Strategy is important, but leaders are wanting authentic leadership development and expressing that in the language. Like I heard this week.

So that’s what the blog’s about. The uncommon language of leadership development. Often expressed as desired but when you dig, it’s management that’s talked about – getting the job done. Leaders need to do both, but focusing on authenticity will be a very special place to start and create followers. The management of getting the job done will likely follow too.

My last meeting of the week this morning was discussing a two-day senior lead-team retreat to be held next month: “So you want to do a half day of strategy at the end don’t you?”. “Actually I don’t now, let’s keep the whole time for real leadership development. We can do the strategy later after we understand ourselves and have a team vision”.

Uncommon language, slightly more common this week. Perfect!

Stephen

Coming home

Someone said at the end of the Authentic Leadership Course that they were looking forward to going back to work to try out the new insights from the programme. Others said that they were sad that a good thing had come to an end, well sort of, as the commitment was to stay connected. The journey of leadership development can include a programme when new insights are discovered, experienced in action and plans made for the future. For many, deep changes are promised and implemented. I know this from the many communications that I receive from participants after the programme.

Coming home for me after 4 days away, emersed in the work on the course, I was tired. I made a commitment to myself to get more sleep, possibly to enable the boundary between work and home to be clearer. Hence, doing a blog at home early evening! Is this work, or is this home? I mean pleasure. It must be pleasure, in fact it is because I often blog in the evening. The feeling I get from it is one of peace, fulfillment and plain good old-fashioned satisfaction.

So what promises are you making on your leadership journey? Whether you were on the Authentic Leadership Course or not, how will you implement those changes? Who will notice? Just the team at work, or will you bring it home for the better?

Never has there been an opportunity to bring work home that isn’t bringing the work home, and gives to home and those we care about.

If you implement what you planned at this juncture of your leadership journey, you’ll be happier for it. More authentic I reckon and that will not just make your team at work more productive and satisfied. You will be too. And you’ll bring that home. For much good for those that mean everything to you.

It’s nice to come home.

Stephen

ps here’s Richard Kerr-Bell, one of the Centre’s Leadership Coaches out on our Leadership Walk on Wednesday

Authenticity now

It’s a special moment. We’re on day two of the Centre for Innovative Leadership’s Authentic Leadership Course. Every course we’ve run is new, fresh and builds on learnings and insights from the previous. Each one has been the best I can safely say, because it’s what the participant’s wanted and needed for them. We did some work on personality preferences this morning which is a great way to get an authentic leadership conversation going about our strengths, blindspots and how we grow and develop our teams.

When you’re on a programme like this you’ve got a gift. A gift of time for reflection, growing awareness of self and others and a chance to reconnect with your authentic self. For some that might read connect with authentic self. It’s a gift to watch it happen too.

So when you’re with us on the Authentic Leadership Course you’ll probably hear it clearly that you should take the opportunity you have. This group of people will not come together here, at this time, again. What is in the room here and now is perfect for you. This moment in your leadership journey can be defining. I say can rather than will, because at every opening there is choice. You can take it, embrace it, or you can watch it.

Watching might look like being part of, but we all know it’s not.

Our leadership coaches Richard Kerr-Bell and Jasbindar Singh working with me this week aren't waiting for next week. Nor should you.

Gathering data and information, fact and figures and processing that is a buffer for real leadership development.  You might put the folder on the shelf and feel satisfied that “I did that”. You might even feel proud to tell other people about the information your got.

It doesn’t just apply in leadership development programmes. Leadership development is a journey. Quite likely a journey you’re on if you’re reading this and there will be moments, possibly every day, that you can take for your own and define the next path for you.

To do so is authentic. Now.

If you know my personality preference you’ll know it’s not about bringing quick closer. I do know about the present. Days are limited, on the Course and on this planet. So authenticity now. Don’t wait to read the stats, or for anticipated special moment in the future.

Today is that special moment.

Stephen

Slightly excited

I’m feeling slightly excited. I ran the first module of our Innovative Leaders GM Programme last week and spent this week getting ready for the fifth run of our Authentic Leadership Course. And it all seems to be coming together (which you’d hope if you’re reading this and you’re joining the programme on Sunday!). I hope we haven’t left too much carnage on the way – my team are in really good shape (well they haven’t told me otherwise so let it rip on the comments now!) – but we have put our suppliers under pressure with so much to be done with so little time. They have all got there and I hope that as well as enjoying the business, they feel some positive energy as well as the pressure.

Energy is really important. I’ve worked in environments where the energy is not only lacking, it’s negative. Working where I do where there’s positive energy, gives me energy and I hope others feed off that. It’s like a perpetual motion machine, where the more energy you give the more you get, and so on. It’s an elusive thing this energy and some people, in an attempt to explain what they can’t explain, call it synchronicity or “the invisible force”, attaching some sort of quasi-supernatural notion to it.  It’s a reflection of what we do, how we communicate it, how open we are, how quick we can process but still reflect and whether we really want to make something happen.

A bit like leadership really.

So feeling slightly excited because we’ve done a lot, achieved what we wanted and enjoyed it (well mostly!) is a sign I think, that the team has performed. Well done I say. The team at CIL, some in the building, some out, and our suppliers.

I wasn’t sure where this was going when I started, but I started because I had some energy and ended up talking about energy in leadership and a high performing team. If that’s where your work is, I know how you feel. I don’t even want to say what it’s like not to be there, it’s so dull. Oh I just said it.

By the time you read this I will have done my running speed training in the morning. Friday’s going to be even more energetic!

Stephen

Just for laughs (especially if you’re a decorator!):