Be the Leader You Wish You Had

Leadership as a mindset that everyone can, and should, opt into.  It is a responsibility to lead by example and to care for all.  How leaders show up and interact with others greatly impacts the overall culture and daily experience of the entire group.

Leadership is a behavior that each of us must exhibit to create positive change for all.

What is Leadership:

• Having a positive attitude and taking rapid, consistent action
• Showing up with conscious intentions and positive energy
• Taking ownership of the team and their product
• Making sacrifices and puting others first
• Taking responsibility and caring greatly for those in your charge
• Helping people grow and achieve
• Appreciating the opportunity to positively shape the lives you touch

Leadership is inspiring.  When we get to see a leader we admire in action, we feel motivated and encouraged, and we thrive.  When there are several leaders around us that we enjoy, we surge with positivity, creative ideas, and refreshing energy.

Simon Sinek shared one of my favorite thoughts of all time.  At the Conscious Capitalism Conference in Chicago in 2015, he inspired us to "be the leader you wish you had".  What an amazing way to think... it takes the concept of  "be the change you want to see" to a whole new level.  Not only be that change, but lead that change and steward others to be able to make the change as well.

Keys to Leadership:  These thoughts on leadership can be applied to your work or your home.

• Set the Example
• Choose your attitude.  Lead with a clear sense of grounded optimism.  Be aware of when you need to reset your presence.
• Take care of yourself.  Show your team that having a healthy work/life balance is expected - with your own actions.  Maintain a balanced work load and ask others to do the same.
• Hold positive opposites gracefully.  Find the value in the opposites you undervalue. 
• Be aware.  Assess your own strengths and weaknesses to make improvements.  Surround yourself with others whose strengths complement your weaknesses.  Always learn how to be better.
• Build trust.  Create strong foundations for relationships built on trust.
• Take Care of People
• Focus on people.  Take care of the people that are responsible for the results.  
• Listen and connect.  Be the last one to speak.  Find out what's going on with your team members.  Let them know you care.  Change what needs fixed.
• Grow others.  Create the space for others to expand their skills and move beyond their challenges.  Create a structure for the team to thrive and grow personally and professionally.
• Be Inclusive
• Create a safe, inclusive environment.  Create communities of openness and safety which encourage us to build off one another.  Build teams that express genuine care for each other.  
• Align around purpose.  Identify a vision of a better future with your team and engage them to obtain it.
• Send people home each day safe, healthy, and fulfilled.  Measure your success by the way you touch the lives of people.  
• Practice servant leadership.  Lead from behind.  Provide your team with the tools they need to excel.  Teach, mentor, coach, and inspire by serving others.
• Stay Focused
• Be consistent rather than intense.  Take small steps every day and don't stop.  
• Have a clear vision and end goal.  Update your vision and goal(s) as often as needed.
• Celebrate achievements.  Let each person know they matter and what they do makes an impact.  
• Focus on driving progress.  Make rapid, consistent advancements toward key goals.  Don't invest too much energy into "just in case" items.

What else would you add or adjust? :)

References:

• Simon Sinek's speech - Conscious Capitalism Conference, Chicago 2015
• Barry Wehmiller's speech - Conscious Capitalism Conference, Chicago 2015
• Contagious Culture by Anese Cavanuagh
• Me :)