Leadership – inspirations

Great Leaders Know Exactly How TUF They Need to Be

How are things going with your new boss? She has been there a little over a month, right?”

“It is exactly six weeks tomorrow.”

“Honestly, it hasn’t gone well. I’ve had almost no meaningful time with her. Every conversation has been transactional. She knows nothing about me; professionally, personally, why I’m here, or where I hope to go.”

“Personally, I’m struggling with caring for my mom who’s ill. She has no idea.”

Professionally, I can’t get any feedback. When I push for some, she tells me to keep doing what I am doing. I am frustrated.”

Those were the words of one of my executive coaching clients. Unfortunately, I hear versions of this conversation far too often.

People leave organizations because they never experience care in ways they recognize. Caring isn’t simply a feeling. It is a feeling caused by leadership behavior.

Now let’s make it personal.

Suppose I went to several of your direct reports and asked: “How do you know (insert your name here) cares about you? What would be their answer?

Would they be as frustrated as this individual?

Below is a framework to help you analyze and predict what your direct reports would say. I call it the TUF analysis. It has three elements. Time, Understanding, and Feedback (TUF).

Let’s do a TUF analysis right now. It can be instructive to think about two direct reports. The most outstanding and the most challenging.

Time

Time, the first element, has two dimensions; quantity and quality. In each, think of is as a Goldilocks spectrum, that goes from too little, just right, to too much.

Quantity

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

Quality

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

Place yourself on each spectrum.

Are you where you need to be? Consider writing a couple of bullets to capture your feelings and reasoning for your scores.

Understanding

The two dimensions are professionally and personally. Same Goldilocks spectrum. The governing question for this element is: How well do you understand them professionally and personally.

You can definitely know too much about an individual. I am thinking about the individual who has no filter and shares everything.

Here are some considerations. What motivates them? What brought them here? What is their career trajectory? How is their personal life impacting their professional direction?

Professional

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

Personal

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

This is unique for every individual. Consider what is reasonable for the amount of time you have known someone. Knowing someone in the workplace for ten months, is much different than someone you have known for 10 years.

Feedback

This element evaluates the type of feedback you provide on the two dimensions of tactical and strategic. Tactical feedback addresses those things you see every day. For instance, quality, attendance, and deadlines.

Strategic feedback focuses on those things related to the big picture. Such as recognizing progress towards an individual’s long term leadership development, a new career milestone, or credential.

Tactical

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

Strategic

Too Little                                             Just Right                                           Too Much

Score yourself on the spectrum and write some notes to put the score into perspective.

Putting it All Together

In this exercise you just determined the “why” behind what your direct reports would tell you. Now predict what they say.

Next steps

If you are not hearing what you want to hear, what actions do you need to take? Start here: determine which dimension in which element needs to move closer to “Just Right”.

That shows people they matter.

The real purpose of the TUF framework.

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The Epic Story of Us: Build Team Alignment Through Shared History

“My executive team isn’t aligned. They’re all working hard, but they don’t seem to understand one another or where we’re headed.”

Those were the words of a new executive director of a large nonprofit. He called me after six months on the job, he voiced a concern many leaders face.

He wasn’t looking for another strategic planning session. He needed his leadership team to become a team first. One of the most effective exercises I’ve used for this challenge is something I call The Epic Story of Us.

Every Team Has a Story

Organizations don’t become what they are overnight. They are shaped by people, milestones, successes, setbacks, leadership changes, and pivotal moments. The problem is that most teams only know pieces of that story.

Long-tenured employees remember events that newer members have never heard about. Newer leaders often don’t understand why certain traditions exist or why some decisions still influence the organization today. Without a shared understanding of the past, it’s difficult to build a shared vision for the future.

Building the Epic Story

The exercise is remarkably simple. Cover a wall with large sheets of easel paper. Draw a timeline across the middle.

Think of the timeline as having three layers:

  • Peopleabove the line
  • Timelinethrough the center
  • Eventsbelow the line

The timeline begins with the arrival of the longest-tenured person on the team. Each person has five minutes to tell their story—from the day they joined until the next team member arrived.

Every participant started by providing answers to these three questions:

  • Why did I join this organization?
  • What was the culture like when I arrived?
  • Who and what shaped my experience during that period?

As they speak, the team records important people above the timeline and significant events below it.

One important rule makes the exercise work: no interruptions. Everyone gets to tell their story without correction, debate, or additional commentary. After everyone has shared the group spend 10–15 minutes adding missing events or additional context.

Why It Works

I facilitated this exercise with a 12-person executive team. With five minutes per person, the activity required patience.

For the first time, team members understood how each colleague had experienced the organization differently. Someone who had weathered a difficult restructuring viewed the culture differently than someone who joined during a period of growth. Leaders who had lived through major organizational milestones suddenly understood why certain decisions or reactions existed today.

The exercise created something that strategy sessions often fail to produce: Empathy.

People stopped seeing one another only through today’s challenges and began understanding the experiences that shaped each person’s perspective.

Turning History into the Future

The timeline itself isn’t the destination. It’s the foundation for the next conversation.

At the conclusion of this session, I asked every executive to answer two questions individually:

  • How would you describe our culture today?
  • What should our culture become?

Those responses became the starting point for a series of weekly leadership meetings over the following month. Because the team now shared a common understanding of where they had come from, they were able to build agreement on where they wanted to go.

A Challenge for This Week

Every team has an epic story. The question is whether everyone knows it. If your team feels disconnected, lacks trust, or struggles to align around a common vision, don’t begin with another strategic plan.

Start building team alignment by understanding the journey that brought everyone to the table. Sometimes the fastest way to move forward is to first appreciate the story that got you here.

What story is your team telling—and does everyone know it

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Can You Define Your Leadership in One Sentence?

What’s your definition of leadership?”

I asked that question recently during a leadership coaching session. My client immediately began answering — and kept going for more than two minutes. When he finally stopped, he looked at me and said:

“For the position I’m in, I should be able to explain leadership clearly and directly. I couldn’t do that. Let’s fix it.”

That moment became the starting point for an important exercise: creating a personal definition of leadership that was clear, authentic, and actionable.

Many leaders spend years leading teams without clearly defining what leadership means to them. When you articulate your definition in a concise and meaningful way, it becomes a guide for how you lead.

Here’s the three-step process we used to get there.

Step 1: Draw Leadership

Start with artwork. Yes — artwork. Draw a picture of what leadership looks like to you. Don’t overthink it, and don’t worry about artistic ability. 

Stick figures are perfectly fine. The goal is not to create art; it’s to uncover how you naturally think about leadership.

One important rule: No words in the drawing.

No labels, no captions, no explanations. Just images.

When I did this exercise myself, I drew a series of two pictures. The first, a group of stick figures with one clearly identifiable leader. The group was in disorder. 

In a second drawing, the group became more organized. The leader in central position connected to the team. The team was moving together toward a common target.

This visually captured how I think about leadership.

Step 2: Interpret the Artwork. 

Explain your drawing to someone else out loud. What’s happening in the picture? What story are you telling?

As I interpreted mine, these themes emerged:

  • The leader is distinct, but connected to the group.
  • Leadership brings order to uncertainty.
  • Leadership creates direction and focus.
  • Leadership helps people move toward a shared goal.

The interpretation matters because it reveals the beliefs of how you lead. 

You already know what leadership means to you. You just never took the time to articulate it and write it down. Listen to your words during this step. They are the foundation of your leadership. 

Step 3: Write a Succinct Leadership Statement. 

Turn your ideas into a concise statement. This part takes time. Don’t expect perfection on the first attempt. My client refined his statement over several weeks, and I did the same with mine.

When you write something down you are making a commitment to yourself. 

Here’s the definition I ultimately developed: “The art of positively influencing others to unite in a common direction to achieve common goals.”

For me it is simple, clear, and memorable. Also, every word of it matters.

“The art…”

Leadership is not a formula or a checklist. There’s no single recipe that works for everyone. Leadership is an art, and each leader practices it differently.

“Positively influencing others…”

Leadership is influence, not control. Great leaders don’t force people forward; they inspire people to move willingly and purposefully. I also see leadership as a positive endeavor. My view is negative leaders are not leading they are manipulating individuals. 

“Unite in a common direction…”

People need clarity. Leadership helps bring teams together, help them understand where they are going, and why.

“To achieve common goals.”

Leadership is ultimately about collective success, not individual recognition.

A Question Worth Asking Every Day

At the end of our coaching session, my client told me something powerful:

“This is what leadership is, and this is how I’m going to lead every day.”

From that point forward, he ended each day with one simple question:

How well did I fulfill my definition of leadership today?

That’s the real value of this exercise. A clear definition creates accountability. It becomes a daily standard for how you show up as a leader.

This week, take the time to go through all three steps:

  1. Draw leadership.
  2. Interpret the artwork.
  3. Write your leadership statement.

If you want to develop greater leadership clarity, communication, and influence, executive coaching can help you define the leader you want to become.

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Why Leaders Should Ask for Help (3 Common Myths That Hold You Back)

Why Leaders Struggle to Ask for Help

“I’m not asking for help. That’s not what leaders do.”

If that thought sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Many leaders believe that asking for help will make them look weak, unprepared, or vulnerable. In reality, avoiding help often leads to poor decision-making, isolation, and unnecessary stress.

If you want to become a more effective leader, learning negative impact caused by not acting is critical.

Myth #1: Asking for Help Makes You Look Weak

One of the most common leadership beliefs is that asking for help signals weakness.

The Reality: Your team knows you have a lot on your plate. They understand you cannot do everything on your own. What they do expect from you is effective leadership.

When you do not ask for help; you isolate yourself, appear overwhelmed, and limit your effectiveness.

When you ask for help: you demonstrate self-awareness, build trust with your team, and lead more effectively.

Asking for help doesn’t make you weak, it shows strong leadership awareness.

Myth #2: Leaders Should Have All the Answers

Many leaders feel pressure to always be the one with the answers.

The Reality: your team doesn’t expect you to know everything. You brought each member of your team on board for their expertise, and they want to contribute.

When you do not ask for Input; you miss critical information, disconnect from your team, and make decisions with gaps

When you do ask; you gain better insights, your team feels valued, and you make stronger decisions.

Great leaders don’t have all the answers however, they build teams that do.

Myth #3: Asking for Help Requires Vulnerability

Many leaders hesitate because asking for help requires vulnerability.

The Reality: yes asking for help does require vulnerability. That is a positive. It doesn’t have to be extreme. Think of it as “small v” vulnerability, enough openness to build trust.

When you show vulnerability; you build more trust with your team, become more relatable, and strengthen relationships

Vulnerability is not a weakness. When used properly it is a leadership advantage.

The Cost of Not Asking for Help

Avoiding help creates hidden risks. When leaders avoid asking for help, they often make uninformed decision, isolate themselves from the team, and waste time and energy.

An ask for help translates into; informed decisions, stronger teams, increased efficiency, and better outcomes.

Start Asking for Help as a Leader

Start simple. Think of one situation where you’ve been holding back.

Ask yourself:

  • Would my team really see this as weakness?
  • Do I have all the information I need?
  • What could improve if I show some vulnerability and ask for help?

Then take action and ask.

Final Thoughts: Strong Leaders Ask for Help

Leaders who avoid asking for help often become isolated and less effective.

Leaders who ask:

  • Get better information
  • Build stronger teams
  • Make better decisions

If you want to grow as a leader, this is a simple and powerful behavior change that can bring positive results.

Looking to grow your leadership skills further? Explore more leadership strategies here.

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Three Questions that Shape Your Leadership Trajectory

Leadership isn’t defined by every moment — it’s defined by how we react to defining moments.”

Give yourself a leadership score from last week.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how did you do?

1 — not so good | 10 — awesome

 

Now ask yourself another question: what influenced that score? I will guess with almost complete certainty, there was a specific moment that drove the number you chose.

As leaders, we experience these moments every day. Something happens. We react. Then there’s a consequence; positive or negative.

The key question a leader should ask is: What did I learn from that experience?

Here are three simple concepts to help you learn from those moments and improve your leadership every day: Reflection, Defining Moments, and Trajectory.

Reflection

This is where your leadership learning and growth occurs. If we don’t take time to reflect, we miss the opportunity to learn from our experiences. Many leaders move quickly from one event, decision, or challenge, to the next. Pause to assess what just happened and you will be rewarded with valuable lessons.

When and where do you reflect; Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly? In your office, car, or on a walk. A simple recommendation: reflect daily at a place where you capture your lessons learned.

A few minutes at the end of the day can help you identify what worked, what didn’t, and how you want to respond next time. Daily reflection builds awareness, and awareness is the foundation of leadership improvement.

Defining Moments

Leadership happens in the moment. Every day presents us with defining moments. Such as a; positive interaction with a teammate, difficult conversation, challenge with a stakeholder, or decision made under pressure.

The moment itself doesn’t define you as a leader. Your reaction does.

When you think back to the score you gave yourself for last week, what defining moment most influenced it?

Maybe it was a moment when you handled a situation exceptionally well. Or maybe it was a moment you wish you could backup the video and replay it differently. Either way, those moments matter because they shape your leadership performance.

Trajectory

This is the direction your leadership is moving. Every defining moment impacts its trajectory positively or negatively.

Did your response move things in a positive way? Did it strengthen relationships, build trust, or improve the situation? Or, did it push things in a negative direction and create frustration or setbacks?

Each defining moment becomes a point of inflection in your leadership journey. Over time, these moments big and small accumulate and determine the trajectory of your leadership effectiveness.

How are you tracking your trajectory to ensure you learn from each defining moment?

A Simple Daily Leadership Habit

If you want to improve as a leader, build a habit of daily reflection.

At the end of each day, ask yourself three simple questions:

  1. What was my leadership score today?
  2. What were the defining moments?
  3. What did my reaction do to the trajectory of my leadership?

These take only a few minutes and have the potential to dramatically increase your awareness and leadership growth.

They also reveal patterns in your leadership behavior. Armed with data you have the power to continually and intentionally shape the trajectory of your leadership.

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Your Leadership Brand: Are You Building It on Purpose?

Imagine building a house without plans; no blueprint, no clear vision of the finished result. Chaotic, right?

Yet many leaders do exactly that with their leadership brand. Your leadership brand is the experience people consistently have when they work with you. It shapes trust, credibility, and influence. And whether you build it intentionally or not, a brand will form.

The question is: are you designing it on purpose? There are three areas that help leaders deliberately build a strong leadership brand: your core, your fitness, and pressure testing.

Your Core Values Define What You Stand For

Everything starts with your values, it is the foundation of your leadership.

Most leaders can name values like respect, accountability, or integrity. Fewer can clearly define what those values look like in action. Strong leadership requires clarity.

Identify your top four to six values. Then define each one behaviorally so others know exactly what it means.

For example, if respect is a core value, your definition might be:

Treating everyone in the organization with equal deference regardless of position.

The definition becomes the behavior to fulfill that value and it becomes measurable. People understand what success looks like and so do you. Your leadership brand begins to move from intention to consistent behavior.

Leadership Fitness: Practice Daily

Once your core is clear, the next question becomes: Are you strengthening it every day?

Think of leadership like physical fitness. Values are muscles. They grow stronger through repetition or weaker through avoidance.

Every day presents small tests:

  • Addressing a missed expectation
  • Having a difficult conversation
  • Reinforcing standards when it would be easier not to

If accountability is one of your values but you occasionally let things slide, the muscle weakens. Not because accountability stopped mattering but because consistency did. Leadership fitness is not built in big moments. It’s built progressively through daily choices.

Now that we’ve defined the core, fitness is how you make it real.

Pressure Testing: When Leadership Gets Real

At some point, every leader steps into the heat; a high-stakes conversation, a tough decision, or a moment of conflict. This is the pressure test. In those moments, your leadership fitness shows.

You don’t rise to your intentions; you rely on your habits.

Maybe you’ve experienced this: a situation where afterward you thought, “That is not how I wanted to show up.”

That reflection is powerful. Instead of judging the moment, use it:

  • Where did I live my values well?
  • Where could I improve?
  • What will I strengthen before the next test arrives?

Because another test always comes and each one is an opportunity to reinforce your leadership brand.

Bringing It All Together

Take a few minutes this week to reflect on three questions:

  1. Core:What are my values, and are they clearly defined?
  2. Fitness:Am I getting stronger or weaker in living them daily?
  3. Pressure Test:When was I last tested, and what did I learn?

Leadership brands are not built by accident. They are shaped through clarity, consistency, and reflection over time.

Your leadership brand becomes your legacy. Build it deliberately and you will not only become more effective; you’ll rediscover why you love leading in the first place.

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How Do You Know What Your Leadership Brand Is?

“Have you ever wondered what people say about your leadership when you’re not in the room? That’s your leadership brand.”

Everyone has a leadership brand. Not just senior leaders – everyone.

The question every leader should ask themselves: “Is the leadership brand I think I project, the one other people actually experience?”

Defining Your Leadership Brand
When I say leadership brand, I am not talking about a title, a position, or personality type. I am talking about the two elements that form your brand. The first, what people experience when they interact with you. The second, how they feel after the interaction is over.

That’s it. Not what you intend. Not what you hope others experience and feel. It is a description of what it is like to work with you and how people walk away feeling.

Your Brand is Your Impact Rather than Intent
Many leaders spend time thinking about who they want to be as a leader. When they should spend time understanding how they are actually experienced.

As a leader we do not experience our own leadership. We know how we intend to have people experience us and how we intend to make them feel. Are you sure that your intent equals your impact?

The gap between intent and impact is a leader’s blind spot. For example: You might intend to be an assertive and direct leader. Yet others might experience you as intimidating.

You might intend to be an easy going, low intensity leader. Yet others might experience you as disengaged.

Intent versus impact. The difference is a blind spot. Which means your brand is being shaped erroneously and you don’t know it.

Why This Matters
Your leadership brand affects everyone in your leadership orbit; seniors, peers, and subordinates

It affects individual’s trust, candor, motivation, performance and more.

People decide how open to be with you long before you ask for their opinion.
They decide how much effort to give before you ever set expectations.

Those decisions are based on how they experienced you and how you made them feel over time. Your brand.

Leadership Brand Reflection
Suppose I have the time this week to ask those you work with; “What’s it like to work with you?” What will they say and how will they say it?

The answer is your brand.

Julie has been a great leader, organized, direct, and listens well. I have enjoyed the challenge of meeting her expectations. We have accomplished a lot this quarter. (spoken with positive energy)

Bob is a challenge to work for, he has high expectations however, he doesn’t set the vision at the outset. He communicates in bursts which has us constantly changing our direction. I am seriously frustrated with our progress. (spoken with a negative tone and body language)

What they say is how they experience you – how they say it is how you made them feel.

As leaders we don’t get to decide whether we have a leadership brand. We already have one.

What we get to decide is how deliberate we are about shaping our brand. That shaping requires us to understand the gap between our intentions and impact.

This week, gather feedback from others in your leadership orbit to understand how you are experienced and how you make others feel.

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The Remote Work Paradox: Why Your Most Engaged Employees May Still Be at Risk

In a world where remote work is no longer the exception but a defining feature of modern business, leaders are facing a surprising and urgent challenge: the Remote Work Paradox.

According to Gallup, fully remote employees report the highest levels of engagement—even surpassing their hybrid and in-office peers. But despite this, only 36% say they’re thriving in their overall lives. That paradox—engaged but not thriving—has serious implications for retention, performance, and long-term organizational health.

Engagement Is Up — But Thriving Is Down

Let’s look at the numbers:

  • Engagement among fully remote employees: 31% the highest compared the hybrid and on-site workers.
  • Thriving among those same workers: just 36%, six points lower than hybrid workers.
  • Even more concerning, 57% of fully remote workers are job hunting—either actively or passively.

While remote employees enjoy autonomy and flexibility—which often leads to deeper focus and productivity—they are also more likely to report stress, loneliness, sadness, and even anger.

It’s not just about where people work. It’s about how they’re supported.

Why This Matters for Leaders

Remote work isn’t the problem—unsupported remote work is.

Here’s what leaders need to know and do:

1. Autonomy Needs Structure

Remote workers thrive when they have freedom, but freedom without clarity can lead to burnout and frustration. Check in regularly—not to micromanage, but to help prioritize and provide guidance. Ask:

“What’s most important this week?”

“Where do you need help or clarity?”

2. Connection Is Strategic

Connection in remote environments doesn’t happen by chance. It has to be intentional. Build rituals of belonging—weekly team huddles, virtual coffee chats, shout-outs, or recognition practices. Strong connections reinforce shared purpose and reduce isolation.

Ask yourself:

“What’s my strategy for building team cohesion?”

“Where are we creating opportunities for people to feel seen and valued?”

3. Wellbeing Drives Retention

The biggest threat to keeping top talent isn’t just disengagement—it’s disconnection from their own wellbeing. When workers feel seen and supported as human beings, not just producers, they stay.

Make space for real conversations. One powerful way to start is simply asking:

“What’s energizing you right now?”

“What’s draining you?”

These aren’t just feel-good questions—they’re strategic tools for understanding your team’s state of mind and sustainability.

The Leadership Opportunity

Gallup’s data shows that when remote workers are both engaged and thriving, only 38% are job hunting—a significant drop from 57%. That means leaders have influence. Your actions directly shape how connected and supported your team feels.

If you lead a remote or hybrid team, now’s the time to shift from passive oversight to purposeful leadership—with clear structure, intentional connection, and a deep focus on wellbeing.

Because thriving teams don’t just happen. They are built.

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If You are a Leader in the Government, You are in a Transition; Embrace It

Congratulations you made the decision to stay in your role as the leader of a government organization. Want to succeed?  Embrace a transition mindset.

My view of a transition mindset:

  • Accept the uncertainty
  • Create new opportunities
  • Establish new limits

How significant were the impacts of the “Fork in Road” email on your organization and people?

The leaders I work with have seen a lot of angst, anger, and confusion. More is coming. The comfortable past is gone.

Right now, the government has many of the traits of a startup or an industry going through a disruption. How do leaders lead in those environments?

The successful leaders have a mindset that allows them to be agile, adaptable, and resilient. I believe the elements of a transition mindset allow them to accept uncertainty, seek out new opportunities and establish new limits.

The definition of transition: the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.

As we explore each of these elements define the transition your organization is going thru. What is its current state or condition? What do you think the new state or condition will be?

Accept the Uncertainty

For the past month you have felt the angst and discontent of your team. How much time and energy has been wasted talking about the uncertainty rather than taking action? What could you have accomplished using that time and energy?

Guiding principle

Control what you can control and prepare for likely scenarios. It is always better to have a plan to deviate from rather than be in the “react” mode.

How can you focus your team on what is certain? Start with projects, personnel and budget.

What projects you are certain are required to meet your mission? Identify them.

What is a staffing plan that you are certain will meet your priorities? Build it.

What is a budget you are certain will address your priorities? Create it.

How does this inform your path forward?

If the cuts come you have a plan to deviate from.

Create Opportunities

Every crisis has potential to reveal hidden opportunities.

Most crises send organizations into self-protect mode to maintain the status quo. What if you looked to remake your organization?

Guiding principle

Every crisis has the possibility to create new opportunities. Previous crises have created the concepts of rapid prototyping, agile programming, and the idealized design process to name a few.

What opportunities have you wanted to take advantage of in the areas of projects, staffing, and budget? Where can you gain synergies? Is this the time to look at AI?

Establish New Limits

What constraints were limiting you in the areas of projects, staffing, and budgets?

Guiding Principle

Think strategic. What if you took a more strategic look at your organization and its trajectory?

What other organizations does yours impact: internal and external? What other organizations could you positively impact? What would it take to build those relationships? Are you open to merging with other organizations?

How does the current organizational chart limit your impact? What changes would you make to the chart if given the opportunity?

If you want to make an impact as a government leader “Embrace the Transition”. Look at what you can control and take action to succeed in the new environment.

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Quantify Your Leadership

Today a team member overstepped their authority with a client that you had to repair. It took hours out of a critical project and damaged your reputation with the client.

The incident was the catalyst for several significant leadership errors by you later in the day.

First, you lost your cool with the team member. Later, in a meeting with a colleague you were distracted, misinterpreted a comment and became defensive and argumentative. Just before leaving for the day, you ignored a vendor who stopped by your office. Turns out the vendor went out of their way to personally deliver the prototype to you ahead of schedule.

That was quite the day.

In retrospect, you may assess you had a negative impact on three people. I think you had a much greater negative impact.

Why? Because as a leader your impact travels well beyond your direct interactions.

Let’s make it personal.

Imagine a split screen in front of you. On the left the best leader you ever directly worked with and on the right the worst.

How did each of them make you feel?

I will guess thinking about them brought up some emotions.

Did you ever talk about those leaders?

Where and when?

You probably talked about them at work, lunch, dinner, and social events. Individuals in the workplace love to talk about their leaders and the impact they are having on them. Positive or negative.

Leaders impact your thoughts, mood, and interactions in and outside of the workplace.

Here is a personal story about a negative leader I experienced. He was the leader of six high performing capable direct reports. We were all colleagues, with significant responsibilities. Our weekly meetings with the boss were a source of stress. We knew one of us was going to be made an example of at the meeting. It happened every week. One of us would get called out and put under a negative spotlight for not making numbers or some other challenge. He always focused on problems and negative events.

How far do you think his negative impact reached?

It was well beyond his direct reports. When we left that meeting, we would all go into our silos and talk to our counterparts.

For me, I talked to other folks in the organization and even my wife about his impact. Due to the treatment from this leader, it affected my mood and interactions. I know I uncharacteristically pushed my direct reports. Who may have pushed their direct reports.

Let’s estimate the scale of your leadership impact. Here is an exercise to visualize and quantify the breadth and depth of your impact.

 

  • Start with the number of your direct reports. Then the number of their direct reports. Quantify that number.
  • Quantify your colleagues and other stakeholders you interact with regularly. What is that number?
  • Now estimate the secondary effects.
    • Those secondary relationships are people your colleagues and stakeholders interact with such as other colleagues, associates, or family members. Estimate that number

You now probably have a good estimate of the number of folks you impact directly and indirectly.

When I do this exercise with a group of mid-level leaders the numbers always top one hundred.

As the top leader of an organization, you directly impact every member; Your direct reports most significantly. A small business owner impacts every employee and their family. They have an impact on investors, suppliers, and customers.

If you are a school principal your interactions impact your faculty and staff, students, parents, the board, and other administrators in your district.

You just increased your self-awareness around who you influence and how. Your circle of impact is similar to a pebble in a calm pond. The circles reach out very far with big waves in close and smaller further away.

Consider the impact you are making beyond your direct reports. Are the conversations about you and your leadership in the lunch room, in meetings, and at dinner tables positive? If not, how can you change that?

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