If you ever come across a Leadership “expert”, what they’re really claiming, whether they’re fully aware of it or not, is that they have expertise in leading themselves. I’d bet you haven’t met someone who has fully mastered their inner world.
Leadership is not a destination; it’s a constant pursuit. And in that pursuit, we find the ongoing challenge of understanding ourselves at a depth few ever reach.
It tests us on all levels: mental, emotional, physical, and beyond.
The deeper we dive into our inner world, seek to understand it, and discover and develop who we are and what we’re truly capable of, the better positioned we are to lead without even trying to lead.
Before we go any further, let me be clear - I’m not here to convince you of anything. Don’t take my word as the absolute truth; this is simply a perspective shaped by my experience, introspection, and studies.
What I’ve come to understand is that leadership is more about being than it is doing.
Consider the
Cascade of Creation where everything starts with our
Identity, who we are for ourselves, and then our
Beliefs,
Thoughts,
Emotions, and
Feelings (all internal), which then influence our
Behaviour,
Actions and ultimately our
Results (which are a byproduct, uncontrollable).
Here’s how we frame it;
Internal…
Thoughts (narratives/stories)
Emotions (e-motion, energy in motion, physical sensations)
Feelings (the label we give the emotion, mental)
External…
Behaviour / Actions (attitude, what we do)
Results (what we get)
Our Thoughts create our Emotions, our emotions influence our Feelings, our feelings dictate our behaviour and Actions, our behaviour and actions create our Results.
What’s most interesting is that it’s our Identity and Beliefs that fuel the entire Cascade. Often, the version of ourselves we identify with is the very thing holding us back. If we see ourselves as “not enough”, it creates a limiting belief that then cascades into a limited result.
The more we invest in our inner world, the more powerful our outward impact becomes.
And here’s something fascinating… our beliefs are all made up. They aren’t absolute truths; we treat them like they are. But we are not our beliefs. We aren’t our results or performance either.
There’s a saying which captures this well… The you that you are for yourself is the impediment to the you that you wish to become.
We weren’t brought into this world with a manufacturing label of “not enough”. Any limiting beliefs were programmed into us, and we have the opportunity to take responsibility for creating more empowering ones if we want to live a more fulfilled, peaceful, and joyful life. And the byproduct of living from this state of mind is even better results.
Just think about it, coming from a place of more fulfilment, peace and joy, how could our results not improve?
● How much easier would life feel with empowering beliefs?
● As strong as your results may be today, what else becomes possible?
● What would it mean to your team and/or family if they believed they were enough?
You can consciously choose a more empowering belief that will have a direct impact on your mental state and results. It’s not easy because reprogramming will be necessary. But with consistent effort and intention, you can meaningfully reshape your life.
It starts with who you are for yourself, awareness around the belief, then challenge the validity of it, explore where it began, and then work on developing our mindset and mindfulness game to a point where it will help us reframe a limited belief into an empowering one and help us remain as present as possible instead of getting too caught up in past or future constructs.
Leadership is less about the doing—communication, problem-solving, setting goals, and motivating others— these come later in the cascade, and more about being grounded, humble, aware, and having energy, which is earlier in the cascade and then positively impacts the doing.
Meaning, it’s about being grounded in presence which allows us to truly listen and let the other person to be seen and heard, being curious enough to come from a place of asking questions to seek to understand instead of always giving advice or what we think, humble sufficient to elicit and receive feedback, being vulnerable enough to acknowledge when we didn’t get something right, being generous in sharing the wins and giving credit to the team, and so on.
The more we invest in our inner world, the more powerful our outward impact becomes. So, if leadership is anything, it is this: the daily practice of discovering and becoming more of who you truly are.
You got this!
