I always find it interesting when I am delivering our leadership training which we share in very different leadership environments, how the same underlying issues appear. The quickest and easiest journey to high positivity, professionalism and performance is when leaders seek to really understand and lead themselves before leading others.

So often though these leaders realise through the training that they have forgotten who they actually are in the effort to fit into their organisational culture and become a leader within it. They’ve hidden their true colours.

To understand and lead yourself means many things. The top areas I see which have the most practical results for leaders are:

Understanding your own thoughts – Taking the time to really understand your thoughts in areas such as why the role matters to you, what you want to achieve with your role, what’s driving you and equally what might be holding you back.

If there is any conflict between what is actually happening around you and what you truly want then you will feel unsettled. Sometimes we unconsciously hide what we want and avoid thinking about it because deep down we know this means we probably have to make some difficult decisions. Mentoring and training are really valuable tools here.
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Managing your own thoughts – When you are being you and authentic that doesn’t mean sharing brutal honest comments the moment they pop into your mind. It’s being authentic in a positive way. So if you feel that something isn’t right then that means making sure that you’ve understood your own emotional response to the situation so you can share the issues in a positive way. If you are feeling in yourself a ‘grey’ day for example, then being authentic doesn’t mean explaining that to everyone in the office and spreading the gloom. It means seeking to understand why you feel the way you do. This takes practice and we cover these skills in detail in our resilience course.

Being assertive – This is about having the confidence to share your needs and to respect your thoughts, ideas and beliefs whilst respecting others too. If you don’t feel you can share your views then that is showing you cannot be yourself. Longer term this block will cause you low mood and the feelings of not being valued. You don’t have to swing your colours from the highest flagpole singing to be assertive 😊 It’s just about giving yourself permission and courage to share your input in a positive way. Leadership training can help here especially if you are lacking in confidence or have team challenges. .

Understanding your values – This is about exploring what is important to you and why is it important. Are your personal values in alignment with your leadership role and your work? If not, how can you shape or influence your work or start planning an exit to a role that is a better fit for how you feel? If you submerge your true colours to fit in then this leads to longer term disengagement and poor results for the organisation and very likely stress related symptoms in yourself. How you feel is just as important as to how you think. If you’ve made a logical decision and overridden how you feel the red mist of annoyance is likely to be firing away! There are always other Career options to explore rather than burning away.

Understand your skills and knowledge – Have you taken time to review what works for you? What are you naturally good at? Where are your colours sparkling? Are your talents visible and recognised by the team? What areas are really hard work for you? What learning goals do you have? How does this all fit with what your role needs? If you have any areas where you feel you have insufficient knowledge, skills or time to achieve them compared to your inner resources then that is very likely to lead to stress. On the opposite side if you have great experience and skills then by using them through a structured mentoring programme you can gain even deeper leadership skills, satisfaction and help others too.

Happy Leadership 😊

We were delighted here when one of our clients, James Turner, heard the news that he had been chosen as a finalist at the Enterprise Excellence Awards. We had nominated James after supporting him with our Enterprise Leadership Training and Mentoring Programmes at different stages of his work and plans. The Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurs (IOEE) Awards event is a high profile one that is held at the House of Lords. The awards are attended by leading people and organisations in the business world to celebrate and recognise the very best in enterprise learning and skills.

James is a finalist in the Enterprising Learner category along with two other finalists from UK Universities. The Award recognises individuals who have demonstrated a passionate focus on their learning programme with key results in applying their new skills in enterprising activities.
 
James said, "It is an honour to be nominated as a finalist in the IOEE Annual Awards. I am grateful to Leapfrog Mountain for the invaluable mentoring and training that I have received on my professional journey and I look forward to continuing my learning with this fantastic organisation as I strive to achieve my goals whilst setting a positive example.”
 
James ‘The Dragon’ Turner is an award-winning martial artist who now supports others in their fitness goals as a personal trainer. He shows the power of a portfolio career as he also works and supports his family business Karrek Financial Planning.

He recently received the Guest of Honour trophy at the Best of the Best 2019 Intercontinental Kick Thai Boxing Association. He has been using his learnt skills to share the culture and passion of martial arts and to encourage people to recognise the value of fitness and sport at all levels.

James has brilliantly combined his martial arts ethos with his leadership and enterprise learning with us. I discussed with him earlier in the year about his mindset issues on setbacks. An extract of that interview is here:

JT:          I approach every day with a disciplined mindset with regards to what I want to accomplish.
 
You have to be adaptable to unexpected circumstances but it’s important to keep your mission in mind. I start my day with my 5-mile run and this is my first “victory” of the day; it sets the tone for productivity.
 
I set long and short-term goals, relating to whatever I’m working on at that time.
 
My overall mental approach is consistent. In any field, you are going to experience some setbacks. As a fighter, you have setbacks, mistakes, injuries and roadblocks.
 
With financial services, it’s just the same. I may aim to prepare a certain number of client information packs and I don’t, whether it’s due to circumstances out of my control, or poor planning on my part.
 
The important thing is that I learn from the experience. I try to learn from any setbacks and aim not to put myself in that position or make the same mistakes again. I then move forward with newly gained knowledge. An “indomitable spirit” is an important characteristic of the martial artist.
 
JJ:           With achievement being so important here, how do you deal with your feelings with any setbacks?”
 
JT:          I initially feel very disappointed because what I do means a lot to me. For example, in kickboxing: losing fights; missing opportunities to compete due to illness or injury; or my opponents being unable to compete for the same reasons.
 
In these situations, I’ve recognised that my setbacks weren’t through a lack of sincerity or effort, so the positive I could take from the situation was that with my passion and desire, I knew that I would do what it took to bounce back and win my next fight.
 
I’ve always learnt something from any setback, in any area of my life. Little by little, I’ve learned to get rid of the worry and anxiety and look at situations logically, which is important to be able to do when it’s something you’re passionate about. In those situations, emotions are liable to take too much control if you let them, so awareness is key.

James’ insights really tie in with our training on emotional intelligence and having a positive learning mindset. Using this approach to any setback enables you to develop and move forward with all your results and plans.

Wishing you all every growth success! 😊