Week 36: The Self-Limiting Loop

Welcome to Week 36 of the Authenticity@Work Leadership Tool-kit! My intention for this series is to share a quick tool each week to help you lead with more authenticity, adaptability and inspiration so we can together create workplaces where we bring the best of ourselves and inspire others. So grab a journal and an accountability partner to make these practices even more powerful for you!

In last week’s post we discussed how to choose Be before Do and adapt while staying true to our authentic selves. Did you find a situation where you could be your most inspired self in that moment?

Ever face an issue where you find yourself ineffective in a goal that’s important to you? You’ve tried different approaches, but nothing seems to work. Oftentimes, the reason we’re unable to achieve a goal important to us is that we are looking at it from a limited perspective.

These are situations where our patterns and beliefs need to be broadened and we need access to a different part of ourselves.

Donna, a client, received feedback saying she needed to delegate more effectively, so she sought out training on how to delegate. Training isn’t often the answer. The issue is not that we don’t know what to do; it’s that we don’t do it. That’s because we have competing (often unconscious) agendas, usually driven by the saboteurs who keep us stuck. This is what often creates procrastination or just simply giving up on certain goals. What we need to do is get curious about our unconscious beliefs, choose to practice a different part of our being, and free ourselves to do something different.

Donna and I then explored other perspectives. She looked at values that were important to her like the value of learning and growth. Ultimately Donna chose the perspective of her inner improv comic who takes her out of her perfectionist, buttoned up comfort zone.

With her new perspective, delegation becomes lighter. She’s trying something without the fear of failure. Perfections doesn’t matter because she is jumping in to see what works, giving up control, and having fun the process.

This Week’s Tool:

Question to ask yourself: What is a situation you’re currently faced with where choosing be before do is critical in your leadership effectiveness? What opens up for you when you practice this exercise? What inner allies can you call on in your situation to give you a fresh perspective?

Get the latest resources for Authenticity@Work (this tab will get updated with all kinds of cool resources). Curious to know more about the book? Read the reviews about Wired for Authenticity here.