Leadership positions offer a remarkable continuous learning opportunity. For those of us who love challenging work, serving in a leadership role is guaranteed to provide a series of lessons in working with people, systems, structures, and circumstances. Thinking about my clients and my own trajectory as a leader, it seems to me that we each have one or two Big Leadership Lessons that are ours to learn. Looking back, I think mine was realizing that everyone isn’t like me. Yes, I know it seems obvious, but that truism was out of my awareness until I had a number of situations that taught me this lesson. Once I realized the error of my unconscious assumption, I had a much better chance of being a successful leader.

Food for Thought ~

I am sharing this in hopes that it will encourage each of you to ask yourself if there is a Big Lesson that you would do well to learn sooner than later.

Question for the day ~

What issues do you keep running into in your role as a leader? Have you identified your Big Lesson as a leader? How have you modified your approach as a result of this awareness?

Words of Inspiration on the Subject ~

Here’s one of my all-time favorite quotes, by journalist Edward R. Murrow:
“The obscure we see eventually; the completely apparent takes longer.”
And Albert Einstein said: “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”

Mary