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I was in a boat accident this summer.
While it was dangerous, everyone was ultimately okay.
Before the accident, I had an intuition.
It was simply that I should drive the boat.
In order to not hurt the feelings of the person driving the boat, I didn’t say anything.
I overrode myself to keep the peace.
Do you ever find yourself doing this in your leadership?
Suppressing your voice
People pleasing
Hoping that a sacrifice on your end will make things better
You, like me, likely learned these behaviors a long time ago.
Someone in your family valued you for taking care of them, managing the dynamic, diminishing your own needs, and trying to make the best of things.
Who we are as leaders today has always been informed by our personal histories.
Then you entered a system that also values leaders who put their own needs aside, don’t cause problems, and work hard to make everyone happy.
But at some point it costs us.
Maybe it costs us time with our own families, maybe our sleep, maybe our health.
What I believe is that great leaders do the work of personal development and healing so that they can grapple with the fact that they will disappoint people.
Ultimately, I believe this work sets us free from disappointing ourselves.
The number one regret of dying people is, “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”
I wonder this school year if we can have the courage to lead in a way that is true to ourselves.
Your coach in life and leadership,
Maggie
PS - If you are ready to dive into the work of uncovering your most authentic self in leadership, you are invited to a day of self attunement. We’ll mindfully move our bodies, connect in community with other leaders, and spend time reflecting on who we want to be now in leadership. Click HERE for all the details and to save your spot.
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