What are you striving for?
Image via Stocksy
Why do you do what you do?
Does your work bring you a sense of meaning & purpose, or has it become a means to an end?
Do you feel you are contributing to something larger than yourself?
Why do you want to lead?
A conscious leader takes responsibility for themselves and is clear on where they are meeting or resisting their potential. A conscious leader makes time to reflect and realign with what's important. Not only does this help us realign with our vision and values, but it's an essential skill to avoid burnout.
Without a clear vision, it's far too easy to be derailed by the busyness of the day to day, or the demands of other people's agendas.
Conscious Leadership means being present, awake and aware. It means standing up and showing up - for yourself, for others, for your organisation, business and community.
To be a great leader requires you to form a deep connection with yourself, others and the world. This is difficult work. Yet it's what sets average managers and great leaders apart.
Many of my clients, past and present, come to me to work on improving leadership skills like strategy, communication, executive presence, stress management, marketing, perfectionism, an ability to lead through crisis and change and many other traditional leadership skills. And yet, without fail, we always come back to the inner self. Because you cannot develop in any of these areas without addressing the deeper question of who you are, and why you do what you do.
Become aware of how you use distraction (which can take many forms, including chronic multitasking, obsessive scrolling, back to back meetings that run too long and lose focus from the core issues, doing work that is not yours to do…), as a way of avoiding the things you fear, including taking an honest look at yourself, regularly.
The work I do in the world goes far beyond leadership. Ultimately, I help people connect with themselves. Because at the end of the day, all that will really matter is the difference you made.