Leadership starts from within but when so much change is happening all around us, the noise can sometimes drown out the sound of our own inner voice.
The first step of Inner Leadership is to learn to amplify that voice. This keeps us cool in a crisis and when times are calm it expands our capacity to lead ourselves and others.
The first steps of Inner Leadership are to Centre and Ground ourselves, then Deepen our connection with ourselves:
— Centring means letting go of any inner churning we might be experiencing and regaining our focus
— Grounding means reconnecting strongly with who we are at our best
— Deepening means expanding and strengthening our relationship with ourselves, building a deeper connection with who we are and what we care about most
Without these skills we are forever in reactive mode — responding to the latest news or what someone else tells us our priorities are.
With these skills, we remain calm in any circumstances, focused on the priorities we have chosen for ourselves.
Together, these skills become our ‘oxygen mask’. We will not use them every day but you wouldn’t want to take a flight without them. And when you’re on a plane and the oxygen masks drop down, every single pre-flight safety check tells you exactly the same thing:
“Put on your own oxygen mask first, secure it, and breathe normally before helping others with theirs.”
How good are you at keeping calm in a crisis? How easily do you connect with who you are at your best? How much of your time do you spend focused on your own priorities? Would you like to build yourself a better oxygen mask?
Adapted from Inner Leadership: tools for building inspiration in times of change.
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