Leadership and Looking Within

Leadership is never about changing other people. It’s about being self-aware, and sometimes that may mean changing things about yourself. It’s challenging to think that to meet a goal, grow a team or improve a climate that the work begins with you. Blame is easy; self-awareness is hard.

The good news is we all have strengths that have served us in our life. Those strengths have helped us get to where we are today. We should be proud of what we have accomplished and celebrate our successes whenever possible.

Conversely, we also have constraints. I prefer using this word over weakness because weakness defined means lacking strength. A constraint describes a limitation. As leaders, we certainly aren’t lacking strength, but I guarantee we have limitations that get in our way when working towards a goal. Constraints are merely a reality.

I have been blessed to have a 360 profile completed about my leadership three times over the course of six years. Each time I learn something new about myself. I have also received incredible opportunities to work with coaches in my life that have challenged me to continue to grow in my leadership.

Because I want to serve others and be the best possible leader I can be, I use what I know about my constraints to make needed changes to myself. I know that in doing so, I’ll be able to make gains in regards to goals I set forth as a leader. Growing a team or building a culture has zero to do with making anyone else change. It has everything to do with making adjustments to myself.

It’s also important to realize that even our strengths can become constraints! Mind blown! I’ve always been a risk-taker, and this has been a strength in my life and served me well. But when it starts to get in the way of a goal, such as leading a building, it’s no longer helping me. Risk-taking now becomes a constraint that I have to step back and see what I can change, so it’s not a constraint.

Understanding your constraints and then making adjustments to yourself isn’t easy. In fact, it can be hard because our natural reaction as humans is to blame issues on others and feel like we shouldn’t have to change who we are. But the reality is, changing someone else is never going to happen, no matter how much you wish for it. Let me repeat; you will never change another person.

So, it is imperative we look within ourselves. We have to be willing to open to feedback that will help us to see how we can adjust to reach our goals for the bigger picture. What do the people I serve need from me to do for us to move together and achieve our goals?
I ask myself this question daily, and I’ve never regretted changes I’ve made for the greater good.

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