MiraNous Coaching & Consulting

Professional Development for Groups and Teams

Scent of a Leader: Which of the 7 is Yours?

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We are one-hundred percent responsible for the energy that we bring into a room, into our teams, and into relationships. Some individuals have titles that define them as leaders. In essence, we are all leaders because we influence others. Knowing our energy leadership levels provides us with the self-awareness that we need to become more effective in all that we do. It is worth considering the Scent of a leader: Which is yours?

“The energy of the mind is the essence of life.” Aristotle

 

What is Energy Leadership (EL)

The Dr. Bruce Schneider developed the concept of Energy Leadership and its accompanying assessment. The Forbes Coaches Council recommends the Energy Leadership Assessment in the article 11 Assessments every executive should take.

Essentially, Energy Leadership describes our attitudes, perceptions, and perspectives. It gives us insight into what drives how we think, behave, and act.

Luke Iorio, President, and CEO of iPEC coaching wrote this:

As individuals, we view the world through filters (based on our experiences, values, assumptions, etc.). Those filters will either limit what we see (like tunnel vision) or expand what we see (like a prism) and, thus, impact how we perceive and what we think about our circumstances. This, in turn, impacts how we show up in different situations.

As Your EL Goes so Does Your Climate

It is interesting that in 360 Energy Leadership evaluations, the way a leader is perceived (rated), mirrors what raters (supervisors, direct reports, colleagues) think about the climate overall. We have seen this most recently with leaders in education who are in the MILE program. This makes absolute sense. However, seeing the data on paper affirms the compelling call for leaders to manage their energy consciously. Does this mean that as a leader improves in his or her ability to shift to higher levels of energy, then the organization improves as such? Yes, that is what the data are indicating.

Scent of a Leader

Here are the 7 Energy Levels described in terms of core thoughts, core emotions, feelings, and core actions that are associated with each. The description also provides insight as to how winning is viewed at each level.

Energy Level 1 – Victim

A leader who resonates at Level 1 energy thinks that life happens to him. The leader’s core thoughts are that they are a victim to circumstances. The feeling that emanates from his thinking is that of apathy. Passion and commitment are depleted. What ensues from this level is lethargy. A leader becomes reactive, responding to crisis after crisis. Moreover, when not in crisis mode the leader is just doing enough to get by. He believes that he never wins, no matter what. The familiar words that are expressed at this level are guilt, fear, worry, self-doubt, lack of confidence, and low self-esteem.

Energy Level 2 – Conflict

A leader who is resonating at Level 2 energy thinks that life is replete with conflict. Her core emotion is anger (which can be anywhere in the spectrum from annoyance to rage). Being contentious and defiant is what ensues from this level of energy. Regarding winning, this leader believes that others must lose so that she can win. The dominant words for this level of energy are anger, pride, antagonism, struggle, resistance, blame, frustration, and defiance.

Energy Level 3 – Responsibility

A leader who is resonating at Level 3, has responsibility on his mind. When a problem surfaces he is able to reflect on how he contributed to the problem, what he could have done differently for a better outcome. His feelings are those of forgiveness towards self and others. The actions that ensue from this energy revolve around cooperation. Moreover, regarding winning, this leader believes that he should win and it is okay for others to win as well. The outcomes for this level are rationalizing, justification, tolerance, compromise, and cooperation.

Energy Level 4 – Concern

A leader who has resonating Level 4 energy has concern for others on her mind. The feelings that prevail are those of compassion. The actions that are evident from this type of energy revolve around serving others. This leader is always helping others. Regarding winning, this leader wants others to succeed. The words that describe this energy are collaboration, team-work, loyalty, selfless service, generosity, and servant-leadership.

Energy Level 5 – Reconciliation

A leader who is experiencing Level 5 energy thinks mostly about reconciliation, making things right. The feeling that prevails for him is that of peace. This level of energy leads to confidence. It would be common for a leader who has this level of energy to often say “there is no such thing as a problem, there are only opportunities.” Regarding winning, this energy aligns with the thought that we both win or we don’t play. The words and phrases that capture the essence of this energy are choices, positivity, taking chances, confidence, fulfillment, entrepreneurial mindset, opportunity, and peace.

Energy Level 6 – Synthesis

A leader tapping into level 6 energy is one who synthesizes things. She can see the bigger picture. The feeling that she enjoys most often is one of joy. Wisdom ensues from this energy. Regarding winning she feels that everyone always win. At level 6 the words that are common are innovation, big-picture-thinking, global-thinking, creativity, satisfaction, and joy.

Energy Level 7 – Non-judgement

Leaders who resonate this level of energy on a consistent basis are a rara avis. I often ascribe this level of energy to that of an athlete in the zone, a creative in the state of flow, a monk in a heightened state of prayer, a leader in complete sync with those around him and the activity he is leading. Regarding winning, he thinks that there is no such thing as winning or losing. The words that define this level are non-judgment, creation, absolute passion, and refined intuition.

Which Energy is Better?

There is no good or bad energy. There are advantages and disadvantages to all the levels. The intention is not to eradicate specific energy from our lives,   that would be unrealistic. Choose the energy that is the most productive, The goal is to “self-lead” ourselves to an energy that best serves the situation and those around us.

How to Shift Energy Levels

It is not easy to shift one’s energy. It takes a concerted effort, repeated over time to resonate at a different level of energy upon desire. Our brain is malleable and it will build new neuro-connections that make the higher levels more attainable.  Here is a simple way to begin to do that. Think about the energy level you are feeling. Then identify which level would serve you better. Third act accordingly, even if you do not “feel” it. Great character is built when we can choose to do the next right thing despite our emotions and feelings.

Want More?

If you want to go beyond gageing your energetic resonating level and are curious about your energy leadership levels on an average day as well as on a stressful day, you can take the Energy Leadership Index. To learn more about the individual assessment, the 360 assessment, and using the evaluation with teams, please click here.

Your Turn

What else can you do to shift your energetic resonating level? What can you do to change your scent of a leader to something more redolent?

 

References

 

iPEC Coaching (2013). Coach training manual. Shrewsbury, NJ: iPEC Coaching.

The Energy Leadership Index Debrief. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ipeccoachcommunity.com/Student%20Resources/ELIMP/TheEnergyLeadership

What Is Energy? Definition And Meaning … (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/energy.html

 

 

 

Without Clarity, You Cannot Lead Yourself or Others

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“We see in order to move; we move in order to see.”  William Gibson

 

Without clarity, you cannot lead yourself or others. I would like to invite you to think about the role of clarity in your leadership, your professional life, and your personal life.

Yo-Yo Ma, Special Forces, & Clarity

 I love the coincidence in this, just as I started to write this article and I was contemplating these words by Yo Yo Ma “If you don’t have clarity of ideas, you’re just communicating sheer sound” the Amazon “Classical For Focus” Playlist began to play Yo-Yo Ma’s rendition of the Unaccompanied Cello Suite No. 1 Major.

 

Clarity is beautiful. Clarity makes all the difference. Clarity is a matter of life or death. I have heard it said that men in Special Forces have lower heart-rates and cortisol levels when an attack is imminent instead of when they are partaking in “hurry-up and wait.” This is because they have clarity of what they will do in the attack situation, it is the ambiguity that creates doubt and thus tension.

 

So when you think about clarity, you can visualize Yo-Yo Ma on the cello and Special Forces troops on a mission. If your approach to something does not evoke either of those, then you might not be clear. If you want to be a high-performer, Brenden Burchard gives us this to think about: “Our research shows that compared with their peers, high-performers have more clarity on who they are, what they want, how to get it, and what they find meaningful and fulfilling. We’ve found that if you can increase someone’s clarity you up their overall high-performance score.” (p. 59)

 

Seeking clarity does not mean that you have to wait until you have it before acting. Sometimes as you act, ambiguity dissipates, and clarity ensues. Burchard tells us that “Clarity is the child of careful thought and mindful experimentation.” Moreover, he wrote that you generate clarity by asking questions, researching, trying new things, sorting through life’s opportunities, and determining what is right for you (p. 59).

 

How to Develop Clarity

One way to exercise and develop clarity is to journal about it. In this previous article, I wrote about the benefits of journaling and how you can use a systematic approach to journal and reflect. Every day I journal a few sentences about clarity, focus, and intensity in things that were important that day. I also have a practice of checking-in on clarity before, during, and after a task. This can take as little as a few seconds. However, I imagine that it saves me much time and energy.

 

Here are questions that help one become clear

 

  1. What do I want as a result/outcome of this?
  2. Why do I want that result or outcome? What will that do for the situation or for me?
  3. Is my approach the best way to achieve that result or outcome? Alternatively, what else might be more effective, easier, faster, or impactful?
  4. How is my clarity as I move into action, during the action, and at the end of action?
  5. What can I do differently next time, to have greater clarity and get better results?

 

I ask myself all or some of these questions. As I enter the gym, I want to be clear as to why I am there; what I want as an outcome. This often makes a difference between just going through the motions or pushing myself.

 

When interacting with individuals, I try to get clear on: how I want to come across? What does the other person need? How do I want the other person to feel/how do I want to feel? What is the outcome that we want?

 

Before starting a project, here I am more methodical, I take time to ask myself the five questions above. Yes, it takes time. Time and energy are precious, and I want to make sure that I am clear on how to spend those as I maximize what I want to accomplish. We do not want to be busy about things that do not matter, that do not make a difference, or that could have been executed more effectively in an easier way.

 

Peter Economy has this to say about clarity: “[Leaders] are clear and concise at all times–there is no question of their vision and what needs to be accomplished. This gives others the opportunity to digest their goals and decide whether or not they will support their cause. Generally, very few people know what they want, much less how to get there, so they will gravitate towards those who appear to have a clear picture in mind–good clarity leads to great achievement.”

 

I am curious, as you begin to engender more clarity in your life what image will surface? Will you hear the haunting sound of a cello, perfectly conveying human emotion? Or will you have the intensity and focus donned by someone on a mission.

 

References

Burchard, B. (2017). High performance habits: How extraordinary people become that way. New York, NY: Hayhouse Inc.

 

Economy, P. (n.d.). The 5 Essential Qualities Of A Great Leader. Inc.com.  Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/peter-economy/the-5-essential-qualities-of-a-great-leader.html

Journal to Increase Your Growth Mindset and Grit

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“Keeping a personal journal a daily in-depth analysis and evaluation of your experiences is a high-leverage activity that increases self-awareness and enhances all the endowments and the synergy among them.” — Stephen R. Covey

At this time of year, there is a plethora of advice on how to set and achieve your goals. Knowledge, motivation, intent, and desire serve as a weak catalyst for the changes you want to make and the goals that you want to achieve. You are guaranteed to face obstacles to the improvements that you want to make this year. The best weapons you have against those obstacles are having a growth mindset and having grit. Therefore, let us explore journaling to increase your growth mindset and grit.

I can almost hear a collective suspire and the words being spoken “who has time for that?” Try my structured journaling process for four to six weeks. Then you can compare your growth and progress to where you would be without that practice.

Growth Mindset & Grit

Dr. Carol Dweck, a psychology professor at Stanford University, brought us the concept of growth mindset. In her research, she discovered the impact of having a “fixed” versus “growth” mindset. Dr. Dweck summarizes her findings as follows: “Individuals who believe their talents can be developed (through hard work, good strategies, and input from others) have a growth mindset. They tend to achieve more those with a fixed mindset…” Because of that, it is important to explore how one can journal to increase growth mindset.

Dr. Angela Duckworth, is a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. She delivered a popular TEDtalk: “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance”.  She defines grit as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” It is important to know how to journal to increase grit.

Imagine what would be possible for you if you had an ingrained belief that you could grow, change, achieve. And imagine that you coupled that belief with an unrelenting passion and perseverance. I believe half of your success equation would be in place.

Further anneal your success with a daily, conscious, deliberate, reflective, experimental, and persistent effort towards achieving your goals. Now, any success that seemed elusive has transformed into success that is highly attainable. Daily journaling about your goals and how you are investing your time and energy in your priorities, forces you to align with and course correct as needed in order to do the small daily, weekly, monthly actions that your goals require present every single day.

If you still feel ambivalent about investing time to journal, it might help to know the numerous benefits that journaling affords. The benefits of journaling can be:  increasing cognitive abilities, increasing mindfulness, goal achievement, increase in emotional intelligence, boosting memory and comprehension, strengthening self-discipline, improving communication skills, healing, exercising creativity, increasing self-confidence, increasing clarity, deeper self-awareness, stress reduction, improvement in problem-solving, and helping with improving relationships.

 

Journaling Template

It is a lengthy template, but I journal twice a day. I rarely go beyond one page (front and back in my 9X7 journal). So it is not much writing. There are many areas, but my reflections are brief. I synthesize. I have adapted my template from the Michael Hyatt’s daily journal template.

Frist page of Journal: One of the first pages in my journal lists my goals in each key area of my life and at least three sub-actions (commitments) that must happen in order to achieve those goals. My areas for goals are Spiritual, SELF, Spouse, Children, Family and Friends, Home/Finances, Business, University Work, Coaching Skill Development

 

Morning Journaling Session

Sleep: I note how much sleep I obtained the night before. This compels me to ensure that I sleep the hours that I need to function optimally. Moreover, there are interesting correlations between sleep and outcomes of the day based on adequate or deficient sleep.

Word of Day:  – I am a logophile, and I love learning new words.

Spiritual Reflection:  A short reflection based on Scripture or a short spiritual reading.

“Yesterday I…”: I describe the events that happened yesterday…sometimes in as little as two or three sentences.

“What I learned…”: Here I reflect on the insights from yesterday. How can I leverage yesterday to be better today?

“Today I am grateful for…”:  It is always good to start the day with gratitude. I do this by writing one sentence of gratitude  (meaningful or seemingly inconsequential things that make life beautiful).

Today’s Goals: My daily goals are 80% informed by my goals for the year, which are recorded on the first page of my journal. As I create my daily goals, I look at my goals’ page and draw from there. I only allow myself three goals. I accomplish (work towards) more than three things. However, the ones designated as goals for the days take precedence over everything.

 

Evening Journaling Session

I write the word Examine and then reflect on the following:

“I am reading/learning about ….”: I always want to be learning, reading something, listening to a podcast, thinking deeply about concepts. Moreover, I record a couple of sentences for that.

Review of Clarity, Focus, and Intensity: This is where I reflect on my time and energy use. My three words for the year are clarity, focus, and intensity. So I reflect whether I approached my three goals with clarity, focus, and intensity.

“Tomorrow, I want to be mindful of …”: I desire to do better tomorrow than I did today. My intent is to grow. Therefore, I set an intention based on my insights of the day.

“Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.” — Thomas Edison

My win from today:  Always, always end on a positive note. So no matter how small or grand the win –document it.

Some people sleepwalk through life. When you are investing time to journal about life and reflect twice a day you will awaken. You will become conscious of all the unconscious things that are working against you. You will not only awaken to internal factors that hinder you, you will also awaken to external factors that hinder your progress. Moreover, you will be able to avert those.

Lastly, next year, it will be easy to closeout 2018. You will have your journal replete with entries documenting your life, how you gave of yourself to others and to your work, of your struggles, and triumphs. You will have your goals and the works that you did towards achieving them at your fingertips. Moreover, you will have documentation on the progress of those goals. I hope that your year-end synthesis and refection will amaze you and fill you with gratitude because you lived the year well…with a growth mindset and with grit.

References

Dweck, C. (2016). What having a “growth mindset” actually means. Retrieved January 9, 2018, from https://hbr.org/2016/01/what-having-a-growth-mindset-actually-means

Nguyen, T. (2017). 10 Surprising benefits you’ll get from keeping a journal. Retrieved January 8, 2018, from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/thai-nguyen/benefits-of-journaling-_b_6648884.html

Purcell, M. (n.d). The health benefits of journaling. Retrieved, January 7, 2018, from  https://psychcentral.com/lib/the-health-benefits-of-journaling/