Becoming a Leader Is Synonymous With Becoming Yourself - Lead From Within

For the next few minutes, I am going to invite you to own your power as a leader in any group in which you participate.I'm going to encourage you to engage with the group as if your time was the most valuable resource you have--because it is! With that said, the most important journey a leader takes is a journey within. That's what this invitation is about.

Close your eyes and think of a time when you were in a meeting that was going poorly. What was going on? What were you feeling? What did you want to see happen? What do you wish you had done? Write about this for a minute.

The first step to leading from within is to shift to a greater sense of being, rather than doing or saying the right thing.

Be Your Message.

Once long ago, when asked by a reporter if he had a message he wanted the world to hear, Gandhi replied, "My life is my message."

Our "presence" is far richer and truer than what we say in words.When we "present" to a group, what we're really presenting is ourselves. In other words, who we are speaks louder, and often influences others more profoundly, than what we say. Our deepest,thoughts, feelings, fears, hopes, and aspirations come through as an unspoken wave of information that others pick up at a level often below their conscious awareness. This material influences others more powerfully than mere words. So in a sense, you are your material, and your life is your message!

What is your message, or your bigger vision as a facilitative leader? What you say is not nearly as powerful as how you say it and who shows up to say it. So get clear about your motivation and your message before you intervene as a leader or as a participant.Here's an example:

"As a competent and committed facilitative leader, I empower my people to be powerfully creative leaders to get powerful, positive results."

The Inner Game of Leadership

Now for the doing. Here are some tips to help you facilitate your"inner game" of leadership development in groups as either a facilitative leader or as a participant. We've developed a simple acronym we call "FACT" to help recall these actions in real time.

F: Focus-get a clear focus by establishing a positive intent for intervening in the group process. It's important to find an intention that is both for your own good and for the greater good of the entire group. Then when you do intervene, you do so from a place of compassion and support for all participants, including yourself.

A: Attitude- consider how you want to say what you have to say to the group. To come from a positive attitude, it may help to first internally acknowledge any emotion you have arising in the moment. You may fear the impact speaking out might have on your job if this is a work group. You may fear an emotional reaction from the leader or from other participants. You might simply fear the appearance of looking stupid. You may be angry about what's going on. Simply naming and acknowledging these feelings and accepting that they are natural and OK will help you gain the perspective you to use their energy for your next action.

C: Context and Content-with whom do you intervene? At times it maybe appropriate to address the whole group; at other times, an individual. Which approach is likely to achieve the best outcome and minimize negative reactions? Consider what you plan to say so that it comes out clear and concise.

T: Timing-where in the meeting should you intervene? Certainly you want to be diplomatic and not interrupt anyone if at all possible.You may choose to make your intervention after an official break orat a logical break in the session, possibly between agenda items.This may largely be a matter of trusting your intuition by simply asking yourself, "is this the right time to speak?" Don't let your concern over timing stop you, however, if you have strong feelings that something needs to be said. This is particularly true if it appears that time is simply being wasted.

Your Homework

What are your messages as a facilitative leader? Spend a few minutes to craft and write down a clear and simple sentence that says it all. Post it so that you can view it every day. Revisit it to refine it and make it more powerful over time. No matter what the message, you owe it to yourself and the group to give it your full attention and presence.

What will you do differently the next time you intervene as a group leader based on what you learned here?

Steve Davis, M.A., M.S., is a former electrical engineer turned trainer, facilitator, business and life coach, and infopreneur. He coaches small business owners, people in transition, leaders, and cultural creatives over the phone and Internet.Contact for facilitation, conflict in the workplace, leadership development program or presentation skills training.

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Created on Dec 31st 1969 18:00. Viewed 0 times.

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