Personality-ism
There have been plenty of discussion and writings about sexism, racism and age-ism. Have you noticed personality-ism, though?
Let me offer a few examples I have personally heard of or experienced…
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Strong leadership ≠ dominance
Recently I heard two cases where leaders with track records were unsuccessful for roles they applied for, and they were unsuccessful because the hiring manager was looking for a ‘strong leader’.
One of them wrote to me and said:
“I think they were looking for that [a dominating style of leader] because it is their current workplace culture. They fight, they push each other around…”
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War on Wasted Talent
Many have spoken and written about the War for Talent. I wrote an article Let’s stop the war for talent nearly 3 years ago. My thinking has evolved, but my message is largely the same. In fact, I shared at the EEON (Equal Employment Opportunity Network) lunchtime talk on 20th March that if organisations are serious about talent as a key driver of performance and growth, they need to focus on the War on Wasted Talent.
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7 ways a manager can crush team members’ confidence…
Speaking to a senior executive recently, he told me about a change he saw in a team member he ‘inherited’. He described how this team member had shifted from being pretty much mute, with no opinions of their own, waiting for instructions and lacking initiative to being quite feisty, unafraid to express their views and showing passion for their work. Discussing what had happened and exploring our own experiences, we saw a few common things managers do which crush team members’ confidence and ability to speak up and contribute.
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The dangers of leaders who appear confident but are…
Lately I have had many coaching sessions and conversations around aspiring leaders who wish to be more confident. Many have been told to ‘be more confident’, which is unhelpful (see Don’t tell me to ‘be more confident’). Others have been told that they appear confident but don’t feel so confident inside. I am excited to be working with these people as they are aware of and open to the need to develop their inner confidence.
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The definition of what good leadership looks like needs…
Quietly powerful was started as a movement to help quieter professionals to succeed on their own terms rather than having to ‘fix’ themselves (See Fixing people who don’t fit). The bigger intention behind the work was to challenge how we define what good leadership looks like.
Read more “The definition of what good leadership looks like needs an update”
Fixing people who don’t fit
I recently had an interesting evening where I went to two unrelated, separate events and came away with the one message.
We keep trying to fix people who don’t fit.
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Stop putting introverts in a box
One of the frustrating things about being more introverted is that you get put into an ‘introvert’ box. Introverts are regularly stereotyped as:
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We all want leaders who listen. So why don’t…
Time and time again I hear people in organisations say they wished their leaders listened to them more.
How would you feel working for a leader who:
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Stop faking till you make it!
Because it will burn you out. I’ve been there. I have heard from many people who have been there.
Quietly Powerful Women has now reached over 400 women and it seems that the ‘exhaustion from faking’ is one of the biggest challenges. Many of these women are successful. And many feel exhausted and don’t feel they appreciate and leverage their natural qualities enough.
Read more “Stop faking till you make it!”