The only way to change your future is to step off the path and step into the forest. No one is going to do it for you.
The great tragedy of leadership is being so busy leading that you neglect your own development. A fixed mindset congeals your future in the past.
Where the path ends and the forest begins:
#1. Concept versus reality: The concept of growth is easier than the reality.
Growth requires:
- Not knowing. There’s nowhere to grow if you already know.
- Making mistakes. Success solidifies who you are. Failure changes you.
- Feeling like an impostor. You have to try on new behaviors to ignite growth.
We never grow until we do something we’ve never done.
#2. Relationship: You’re where you are today because you let someone change your leadership.
The people who change us:
- Often reach out to us first. We don’t find them. They find us. Be watchful and open.
- Seek our best interests. The people who change us aren’t self-serving.
- Speak uncomfortable truths. You wouldn’t intentionally hit yourself in the face, but it’s not unusual for leaders to sincerely hinder their own progress.
You grow in community. Growth always includes quiet reflection, but long-term isolation strangles your future.
- Hang with people who are growing.
- Say yes to someone who pushes you into discomfort. Growth results from engaging in new activities with someone. You behave your way into becoming the leader you hope to become.
- Evaluate experiences after, not during. Don’t judge quickly. Effective reflection and evaluation take time.
#3. Gaps: Growth happens in the gap between achievement and aspiration.
Most leaders want to grow, but not everyone wants to step from the known into the unknown.
Growth occurs where the path ends and the forest begins. You can’t grow and cling to the comfort of the status quo.
What has ignited your growth?
How might you ignite growth in others?
