“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future.” ~John F. Kennedy
This is what I wrote on the board on my first day in the office, after erasing the detailed instructions to the team from the previous departed leader, whose leadership style had done no small amount of damage to the team’s morale.
We spent the next year together as a team working through a complete cultural turnaround, changing almost every aspect of how the team communicated, collaborated, and encouraged one another.
We established solid foundations of psychological safety, in an environment that was previously run by fear.
When I left, I left behind an entirely different team than the one I took over.
The team morale was higher than it had ever been–and the office, in turn, was more profitable than it had ever been.
One major strength that I had as a leader, both in hiring and in developing my team members, was the ability to see someone for what their full potential was, rather than just their present state—even when these team members didn’t see this same potential in themselves.
We could then collaborate in growth opportunities designed to drive them toward their potential capacity, rather than only focusing on treading water and meeting business needs in the present.
Often, this growth-focused path led to the individual developing entirely new tools, which naturally also helped them better solve problems in the present.
The most important personal core value of mine is that **change is possible, and change is necessary**
I’ve worked with people at all stages of their careers, and a highly common theme is one of feeling “stuck” for one reason or another.
Here is what I’ve learned, in my short time so far on this planet:
Most of us spend most of our lives/careers underestimating our ability to change ourselves and our environments for the better.
Here are a few questions to chew on:
- What is one thing that I would change, if nothing was holding me back?
- What could be possible if I make this change?
- In addition to myself, who else in my life is being negatively impacted by me not making this change?
- What in my environment may be distorting my view of what I think is possible for me?
- What is one small step that I could make in the direction of that change, even if I don’t know the steps to take afterward?
- Who could I be 1 year from now, if I pursue this change? 5 years? 10 years?
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” ~Lao Tzu