Conscious Leadership

Conscious Leadership

Are you on automatic Pilot?

“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created It” – Albert Einstein

There’s no doubt that you need to be conscious to grow as a leader. We only learn when we are aware of what we are doing.

Have you noticed that much of your leadership happens automatically? It’s like when we learn to drive a car. Children have no real idea about cars or driving; they simply know that someone sits in a seat and does magical things that take us from one place to another. We are ambivalent and carefree about the actual skill of driving – some might say we are blissfully unaware.

As we get older and anticipate the prospect of driving, we become more curious about the process. We realise that we don’t know what we don’t know.

Fast forward to the age at which we can legally drive. The first time we get behind the wheel, it hits us. Wow, there are all these pedals, gadgets and dials, but we don’t know what they do or how they work. Suddenly we have to be aware of the other cars and people out and about on the roads. All at the same time! Sometimes it’s exciting, but it can also create feelings of fear or anxiety and perhaps overwhelm might creep in.

The next step is when we take driving lessons from an expert – someone who is already fully competent and can explain the mechanics of driving. We become conscious of what we are doing and when we are doing it. This stage of learning to drive can be tiring, frustrating and rewarding all at once. We know we will get better if we keep practising. We know we are not going to become masterful drivers through osmosis. We know we have to do the work.

And finally, we get to where you are now. Perhaps you have been driving for some time, but reflecting on the last journey in your car, can you remember how many traffic lights you stopped at? How many give way signs, roundabouts and pedestrian crossings did you navigate? All you know is that you left your starting point at a particular time, and now you have arrived at your destination.

     

The conscious/competence model has been developed and extended by various management trainers and coaches since the 1960s. It’s likely to be familiar to you with its path in learning a new skill that goes from unconscious incompetence to unconscious competence.
 
We need to catch ourselves when we find we are just going through the motions.  We need to catch ourselves when we feel resistance to something new or different.  We need to notice what we haven’t been noticing before.
 
You can’t want or expect to achieve better outcomes if you aren’t prepared to:
 

• Be open to new ideas and approaches

• Show up in such a way that says you are prepared to be accountable for your actions and your results

• Test possible new ideas and approaches before you dismiss them

• Acknowledge that the way you have done things in the past, may not be how you need to do them in the future
  

Growth is often on the other side of hard work and being prepared to explore and try new ideas.  Sometimes new ideas may not always land you the exact results you hoped for but you will have learnt something through the experience.  And, as the mind grows, so too does our ability to tackle the new challenges that come our way.
 
So, how conscious are you about how you are currently doing your leadership?
 
What do you want to change in your leadership?

Need some help . . .

If you have made 2022 the year where you want to see significant changes in your leadership, we should chat. Email or phone me so we can explore if working together makes sense.

Something to think about . . .

Lead with impact!