Category: Leadership Development

Lucky 13

If you’re born on the 13th every now and again you’ll have a birthday on Friday 13th – infamous because of the Pope’s order to kill the Knights Templar (nothing to do with black cats actually!). I am sure Mum was happy to have me on the 13th – probably happy just to have me out!  I don’t remember the start now, but I’ve learned to be happy, including when it’s 13.

I headed off yesterday afternoon on a run from Titirangi shops through Exhibition Drive, Pipeline track to the Arataki Visitors Centre. Cruising through Exhibition Drive (flat!) my GPS watch told me I was sitting on 5.25 min/km.  Okay I thought, not bad, could improve but let’s see how we go.  The Waitakere forest is beautiful. Summer, Winter, sunny, rainy, misty it’s perfect I reckon.

But today was sunny and hot.  As I rounded the 7k mark deep into the forest, the GPS reports suddenly deteriorated and the average approached 6. My legs pumping I began the climb to the visitors centre through the new section of the Hillary Trail. It’s steep, windy and an ideal blowout for me prior to our Authentic Leadership Course today. But when you’re happy the hills are fine – and the run feels all the better for it.

Passing back into Titirangi, the GPS told me I’d done a little over 13km – 5.51 average.  Needs to improve but the legs have had a workout.

13.  We’ll start off cruising and happy today with our new cohort and we’ll do some uphill. It will be happy and rich with life like the forest. Welcome everyone, it’s going to be a great week. We’re ready. Let our reflection begin.


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Are you faking it?

We want something that’s going to inspire – you know something on leadership that’s going to hit them, jolt them and make them sit up.  They don’t need any of this soft self or team building stuff – they can get that anywhere.  This is big and gutsy get-up big leader talk we’re after.

And you have been told! Or I should say I had been – so went the briefing for some work with a potential client.  It makes you think, well it did me.

So do people like me and the team at the Centre for Innovative Leadership need to refocus sometimes. Do we need maybe to tell more about being a big leader – some good theories on leader types – charismatic, command etc.  After all why pay for someone to have you learn about yourself.  As my client said – they can get that anywhere. 

I have been doing some work recently with the fantastic Mr Fox (sorry that just slipped out – that was a funny movie and strange how word associations can derail me – been on a train lately?), no I mean Vikram Murthy on leadership and problem solving. I give him credit for helping me to clarify the above situation for me. Thanks Vikram.

For some people emotional intelligence is one of those yeah yeah things, but actually it’s not. It’s real and provable. Just like the universe (I’ll look at this later and wonder, but I’ve only had juice tonight honestly).

Back to leadership:  that might be about team, about relationships, about change, about vision, about problem solving, about using energy and emotion and you can think of a few more things too I’m sure.  But there’s a good start, or is it?

It’s the end.  The end result of something much more complex from a journey of discovery – self awareness, then self management, then social awareness and then you’ll get to leadership.

So you’re the leader now: Are you starting with self?  Of do you reckon you can cut all that stuff out and start with the leader duties? Watch out! Especially if you’re the big and gutsy out-there leader. Is that real? Or are you faking it?  You might not realise it but the team will notice it.

Really Mr Fox, what is that suit all about – you’re a fox for god’s sake! Get real! The dogs can tell.


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Is it time to give up defining ourselves?

This blog has been sitting in draft for a few weeks but lately, I’ve been talking quite a bit to people about self – you know my brand, defining myself, my self esteem and so on.

My Dad (I am sure my biggest and possibly only blogging fan and did I just say my!) sent me some scans of a book by Eckhart Tolle (A New Earth) with a segment about ego:

“You are most powerful, most effective when you are completely yourself. But don’t try to be yourself. That’s another role…’How can I be myself?’ is in fact the wrong question. It implies you have to do something to be yourself…..[so] give up defining yourself – to yourself or others. You won’t die. You will come to life. And don’t be concerned with how others define you. When they define you, they are limiting themselves, so it’s their problem.”

As my Dad could, I see the relationship with our authenticity. Is it time to give up defining ourselves (for ourselves and others?).

Are we not what we are?  Or in practical speak, what we are will come through.  Which leads me to my next thought for the next blog – are you faking it?  See you soon.


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Be selfish and give!

“What makes you happy?” I asked a business leader today. 

I love asking this question.  In my experience there is nothing more rewarding and likely to lead to happiness than growing others.  

Open for giving?

 

The thing about growing others that you give what you have, so you don’t have to learn much (other than how to give), there’s always back up when you need it, and those you grow, well they grow and become happier.  And so will you. 

No-one openly disagrees with this scenario in my experience, but putting it into practice is not always that simple. Some functional managers  jealously guard what they have learned, protecting their patch for the next promotion. Sometimes it’s even rewarded, reinforcing the behaviour. 

Therein lies the dilemma.  If I share I lose my personal competitive advantage. On function you might, and if that’s you then leadership might not be your gig (yet).  

So what did my business leader say in response?  “It sounds selfish you know, but I get so much happiness from giving to grow others”. 

So be selfish, look after your own happiness and give.  I don’t think anyone will criticise you for that sort of selfishness!