Session One – Exemplary Leadership Pt 1

Welcome! As this is our first session, we got to know each other a little and knowing you come to this program brings different levels of experience and exposure to leading others. Many people find themselves in a leadership role based on their technical knowledge and expertise in a particular job. Regardless of the leader’s technical knowledge or expertise, people skills are integral to the leader’s success. We define success as utilising your technical knowledge, expertise, and great people skills that engage, motivate, and successfully achieve performance objectives.

I hope that you will immerse yourself in the program, share your thoughts and experiences and learn from each other.

In this session, we begin a new phase in your leadership journey by introducing you to the 5 Practices of Exemplary Leadership. Kouzes and Posner are the architects of The Leadership Challenge, of which the 5 Practices are the outcome of their research. They are Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and Encourage the Heart.  Interestingly, they align harmoniously with Energy Exemplars’ Core Values.

Kouzes and Posner have done extensive research into the Characteristics of Admired Leaders (CAL) and, over 30 years, have conducted more than 75,000 interviews. You will be asked the same question: We look for many special qualities in our leaders. Our research indicates that the attributes listed below account for most of these qualities. From this list of twenty attributes, please select the seven (7) you most look for in a leader—in someone whose direction you would willingly follow. We will review your data and see how it compares against the global results. The Leadership Challenge is one of the all-time great texts on leadership and is now up to the 7th Edition!

This session reviewed the first two behaviours: Model the Way and Inspire a Shared Vision.

Developing Increased People Skills

People skills include deep diving into understanding yourself through insights into your personality, the use of emotional intelligence, and superior communication skills.

You are rightly the centre of your universe, and so through our sessions (structured and one-on-one), you will learn more about yourself and how you function. This process is very empowering because it will give you greater self-understanding, enabling you to connect more meaningfully with others.

Leadership Challenge Cover

Today’s session set the stage for our program over the next six months. Let me summarise some of the topics we discussed.

Ground Rules

We spoke about ground rules and what they might mean. To reiterate, ground rules are often utilised in workplaces, in teams or on projects where people are working together, and they decide on how they want to work together. This means agreeing to behaviours they are prepared to engage in and hold each other accountable for. They are not set in stone and can be updated at any time.

Confidentiality. I’m glad you raised the issue of confidentiality!  You are the only folks to access the  Americas Gr2 web pages. One of the reasons why this information is going up on my website is that I believe doing so creates a safe space for you to express your thoughts and feelings.

Between Sessions Homework. There will be NO fixed homework to do in between sessions. Sometimes, we allow great discussions to continue during the session, which might mean a bit of catchup in between.  However, I hope you will allow yourself time to reflect on the topics presented. This allows you to think about the subject matter rather than race through it without giving it any contemplative thinking. It is often in the thinking process that we experience a sense of discovery, and I hope that will be the same for you.

Program Buddy. Your buddy was randomly selected and not very scientific! I encourage you to connect with your buddy to discuss how you are doing, your learnings and whatever you feel appropriate.

The Characteristics of Admired Leaders (CAL). The CAL data will be presented in Session 2.

Assessments. It would be appreciated if you could ensure you complete the Emotional Intelligence, MBTI and TKI Assessments as they come through.

In addition, we discussed some Personal Bests and Current Challenges.   There was some interesting personal best-sharing where you showed initiative and demonstrated great leadership. Conversely, we discussed intergenerational connection, one of the workplace’s most perplexing issues.  Philosophically, how does one bridge the generational divide and provide leadership where there are so many differing perspectives and expectations?

We also covered the importance of knowing what your Core Values are. I suggest this is a reflective private activity that might be useful as many people are rethinking their core values, particularly in light of  COVID-19 and significant changes to approaches to working arrangements. Have the things you value and hold most dear changed?

After looking at Barry Posner’s video on Credibility. In the video. Barry asks, ‘Why would anyone want to follow you?’ That is such a great phrase. So, why would anybody want to follow you, me or anyone else?  As a leader, what do you bring to the table?  The discussion that followed illustrated that leadership looks different for different people. It was particularly interesting to gain an alternative perspective from the conversation within the group, and it really shows the contrasting perspectives that we all may have over the same person or situation.

We talked about DWYSYWD – do you remember what that stood for? Simple yet powerful.

We are off to a great start, and I hope to keep you engaged and really looking forward to these sessions.

In addition, we discussed some Personal Bests and Current Challenges.   There was some interesting sharing of personal bests. Conversely, we discussed one the question of balance and the conflict between delegation and doing it yourself. Another challenge was about building consensus within a group. That can be hard work and is often about the processes used to reach an agreement. I’d like to share a theme that seems to surface from other companies and seems to be one of the workplace’s most perplexing issues: intergenerational connection.  Philosophically, how does one bridge the generational divide and provide leadership where there are so many differing perspectives and expectations? This may be something you encounter in your leadership journey.

We also covered the importance of knowing your Core Values.  I suggest this is a reflective private activity that might be useful as many people are rethinking their core values, particularly in light of  COVID-19 and significant changes to approaches to working arrangements. Have the things you value and hold most dear changed?

After looking at Barry Posner’s video on Credibility. In the video. Barry asks, ‘Why would anyone want to follow you?’ That is such a great phrase. So, why would anybody want to follow you, me or anyone else?  As a leader, what do you bring to the table?  The discussion that followed illustrated that leadership looks different for different people. It was particularly interesting to gain an alternative perspective from the conversation within the group, and it really shows the contrasting perspectives that we all may have over the same person or situation.

We talked about DWYSYWD – do you remember what that stood for? Simple yet powerful.

We are off to a great start, and I hope to add much value to your journey,  and really looking forward to future sessions.

Session 1 Videos

S1a-Welcome & Introductions
[23:03 min]

S1b – Credible Leaders Discussion
[25:15 min]

S1c – 5 Practices of Exemplary Leadership [22:47 min]

S1d – Personal Best / Current Challenges
[20:25 min]

Slide Deck – Session 1- Exemplary Leaders Pt 1

slide Deck Xemplary Leaders EMEA

Learning – Self-Direction ( getting the best out of the program!)

  • Review the videos and think about how you Model the Way and Inspire a Shared Vision.
    • Is there anything you would like to do differently to increase your effectiveness in this area.?
  • Connect with your Buddy and discuss what you learned during this session.

Credibility – Barry Posner

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