A senior leader who has been through our Evolve program and whom I have been coaching for two years recently shared something a colleague had said to her.
“I’m not sure what you have been doing, but you are showing up differently in your leadership.”
I’ve noticed that when coaching clients make meaningful changes, it often takes about six months before others notice. We just keep interacting with each other as the caricatures we’ve created in our minds. Her colleague not only noticed but took the time to pay her this compliment and learn about this transformation. This is an affirmation of her not only learning but living it.
She also openly shared the following commitments with her team, not because she has mastered them, but to name them explicitly for both role modeling and accountability.
Here is what she shared with them:
- Move from competence to strategic and visionary leadership.
- Don’t argue with reality. Engage with it.
- Self-awareness without self-management is an excuse.
- The lowest heart rate in the room wins.
- Practice adult communication.
- Lead up by reframing challenges as opportunities.
- My role is not to have the answer but to be a curious listener, take notes, and ask great questions.
Each of these is hard-won, earned through two years of challenges, honest reflection, and real coaching work. That is what transformation in leadership can actually look like.
If you’re a senior leader wondering what this kind of development might make possible for you, I do most of my coaching through Evolve. If you’d like to learn more about Evolve and what it can offer you, let’s connect. We have a free Discover Evolve session coming up. Please join us.
