BLOGS & RESOURCES
Higher Purpose Podcast 109: Becoming the Leader Your Team is Waiting For
Jonathan Raymond is the author of Good Authority: How to Become the Leader Your Team is Waiting For. He chats with host Kevin Monroe about his leadership journey and the core principles he discovered along the way.
Listen to the full episode
The Value of a Leader
Leaders commonly internalize the destructive notion that they need to have all the answers and solve all the problems in the company. In fact, we attach our sense of value to this idea, Jonathan says. This causes lots of problems at work. When it comes to the people part of leadership, a leader’s job is to ask good questions, to get answers you may not even think about. Rather than conducting meetings and presentations, have 1-on-1 conversations and listen actively.
Jonathan’s Journey Into Good Authority
Jonathan shares his gradual journey to becoming a good leader. He describes the moment he realized that things needed to change, and the steps he took from there. His wife asked him a question that would become the cornerstone of his life from that moment: what if professional and personal growth were two separate paths, but one journey? He now sees his life at work as daily opportunities for personal growth.
What is Good Authority?
Good authority is not command and control, as it has been historically accepted. It is also not no authority or hierarchy at all. Good authority is acknowledging and embracing that I am in a position of authority and that I use it respectfully and with two-way dialogue.
3 Core Principles
Kevin asks Jonathan to define the 3 core principles discussed in his book. Jonathan discusses these ideas:
- The deepest purpose of a business is to change the lives of the people who work there.
- The role of leaders and managers is to show people that personal and professional growth are inseparable.
- If you want people to be more engaged, you’ve got to be more engaged with them.
More Yoda, Less Superman
Superman’s whole identity is wrapped up in saving the day. He never mentored anyone. He was focused on solving all the problems on his own. By contrast, Yoda was invested in helping Luke to become the best version of himself. He asked Luke difficult questions, informative moments to empower him to self-reflect and make difficult decisions, instead of holding his hand at every step. Jonathan believes that the future of work is to give people more Yoda; in other words, a pathway to self-discovery and self-actualization.
Resources
Find Jonathan at Refound.com
Email: hello@refound.com
Book: Good Authority
Kevin@higherpurposepodcast.com
Phone: 678-744-5111
Higher Purpose Podcast Episode 86: Being a Brave Leader with Kimberly Davis
What does it mean to be a brave leader? This is our 10th installment in our HumansFirst series of heart-to-heart discussions on what it means to live, love, lead, and work in a
Being your authentic self
For many, authenticity means “I get to be what I want to be and it doesn’t matter what anybody else thinks.” But from a leadership perspective, it really does matter what people think and how they experience you. Authenticity is in the eye of the beholder, and the way Kimberly thinks of authenticity is: if we were seated together, would you experience this leader — from your lens — as someone who is genuine and worthy of your trust? Are they someone you can rely upon and believe in? Because that is what is going to allow them to lead and influence others.
How are you truly connecting with the human beings you’re trying to lead?
Leading in a humans first kind of way
Humans first is really about cultivating humanity in the workplace and bringing the whole person to work. So brave leadership is about bringing your best, most authentic and powerful self to every situation that you face, so that you can connect to the hearts of your team members, and be someone they don’t have to follow, but want to follow.
Reframing bravery
The traditional definition of bravery is to face and endure danger or pain. But you can’t work with that mindset. Kimberly reframes bravery as being her best, most authentic, and powerful self: the Kimberly she is when she is being respectful, responsible, and mindful, who pays attention to what other people need from her. It is stepping into your own power, that is, your ability to create change based on how you show up in the world.
We need leaders who are willing to take responsibility for the impact that they make in the situations that they face, and on the lives that they’re leading. We need leaders who are able to connect to the humanity in front of them.
Your best self
Your best self is you at your most positive and your most effective. It’s who you are when you’re at your very best — not who you’re told you should be. Your best self is your best you.
A caveat: many people will say “I’m just being myself” as an excuse for pretty crazy behavior. But if it’s hurtful to someone, it’s not your best self.
Qualities of a leader
One of the most important things a leader can do is see the possibilities in others that they may not even see in themselves. That bridges the confidence in their ability to do things greater than they didn’t even think they were capable of doing, and allows us to lift each other up and rise together.
You have the ability to have an impact in every situation that you face. So the question you should be asking yourself is: what impact do I want to have?
The comparison trap
When you feel yourself comparing yourself to others, remember: you matter simply because you’re you. Not because of anything you’ve done or achieved, but because of how you show up in the world and the impact that you make.
So take one small step toward having the impact that you want to have. One small action. Don’t think about the whole world, think about this moment right now. Who are you with? How can you make an impact on them? How do you want them to feel about their work, or what’s possible?
Heart and soul cannot be commoditized
You can mandate someone to come in to work, but you can’t mandate that they’re going to do it with excellence. You can’t mandate that they’re going to do it with care. You can’t mandate that they’re going to give it everything they’ve got. That’s something they get to choose, and if that’s something you want from people, you can’t treat it like it’s an exchange. It’s a gift they’re giving you, and they have to want to give it. What you can do is create the environment and the opportunity that allows them to flourish.
Want to grow as a HumansFirst leader and connect in meaningful conversations with other HumansFirst leaders?
Join me for the HumansFirst Book Club, where we do a deep dive into a book a month and often engage the authors in conversation.
Resources for Kimberly Davis
#BraveMoment Twitter Chat (8pm Central, Tuesday Nights)
Resources
The Abundance Loop: 8 Steps to Manifest Conscious Wealth (Amazon)
Higher Purpose Podcast Episode 85: How Leadership is Evolving with Sesil Pir
Is there a magic pill to make your team and organization work? Welcome to another installment in what it means to live, love,
Meaningful work for everyone
We all want to be seen. And in the context of organizations, we also want to be heard, cared about, and recognized for our contributions. We are all seeking a sense of belonging, and any workplace has the potential to be meaningful and to honor our humanity: who we are and what we bring to the table.
Finding out what’s important
People are often motivated by external factors like reward systems, upgrades, or even the opinions of others. But more frequently, people are motivated from within.
Sesil brings up the Self-Determination Theory, a broad framework for human motivation, and distills it into its three essential elements: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. There is a bit of self-interest there, but there’s also a need to be part of something meaningful and bigger than ourselves — and that’s where purpose comes in.
The best way for leaders to discover what’s important to the people in their organization? Ask.
Building an environment that allows people to flourish
Sesil helps organizations build environments of inspiration, meaning, safety, and joy, grounded in the core belief that all humans are worthy of dignity, clarity, well-being, and empathy.
There is no formula or magic pill or blueprint. No two organizations are the same, so the key is to translate or adapt these principles in ways that work best for each specific organization. You have to find what uniquely allows your people to show up and contribute. This must come from the organization itself. Sesil shares that they don’t touch anything as much as possible, they just show leaders the way, help them see things from a different perspective, and let them create.
The evolving workplace
Sesil shares a number of trends she’s observed that’s changing the landscape of the way we work now. Two things she highlights:
The world is changing so fast that 65% of our children entering primary school this year will ultimately end up working in jobs that don’t even exist today. How do we prepare them for that?
Leadership is evolving. The traditional notion of a leader is someone who does something well — but we see leadership now as having little to do with authority on a subject, and more to do with being a guide, putting up a mirror, and serving.
A message for you
Lean in and show up. There is a true contagiousness to our energy, mindset, and behavior. When we come in with a genuine smile on our face, consciously or unconsciously, the whole office will be smiling, too.
Final thoughts
When we say humans first, we are saying that we will always put people as the most critical factor in any decision-making process. Under no circumstances will people be secondary.
Cultural transformation is heavily influenced by design. The only time paradigms start to shift is if there is genuine intent and participation behind it.
Wanting to grow as a HumansFirst leader and connect in meaningful conversations with other HumansFirst leaders?
Join me for the HumansFirst Book Club, where we do a deep dive into a book a month and often engage the authors in conversation.
Resources
Get in touch with Kevin
kevin@higherpurposepodcast.com
(678) 744 5111
Higher Purpose Podcast Episode 82: Being a Chief Heart Officer with Claude Silver
What is it like to mentor almost 800 people? Claude Silver is the Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia, a global digital advertising agency. She was previously the company’s Senior Vice President, and was handpicked for the role three years ago by the CEO himself, Gary Vaynerchuk. Today on the show she’s talking about the immense ability we have to touch people’s lives, even in the smallest of ways.
Our power as human beings
The way we see a person is how we treat that person. And how we treat that person is what they will become. We have so much power as human beings to change lives, whether that’s helping someone get out of the gutter or, on the flip side, do harm.
Blind spots
Self-awareness is important. The more you’re aware of yourself, what you’ve gone through in life and what holds you back, the more you are able to see that in another human being — whether that’s the customer at Starbucks or the CEO. That’s empathy. And when we empathize, we can choose to relate to someone with softness and tenderness, telling them to come closer instead of pushing them away.
A day in the life of...
Claude is always on the offense: her job is to spot where there might be a fire and extinguish it before it gets out of hand. In her line of work, that means people problems like a lack of communication or team members feeling inadequate. Every day is different because she deals with humans — and humans have different issues. From time to time, she’s able to FaceTime with Gary V, which is fuel for her to give more of herself.
The magic of intentional micro-interactions
Looking someone in the eye is intentional. Giving someone a high five is intentional. At work for Claude, these micro-interactions might look like saying hi in the bathroom as they’re washing hands, or in her 15-minute sessions that she holds with people.Small moments like these light people up. Bringing the magic into the mundane starts by giving someone attention: when you’re able to make them feel like they’re the only person in the room and that is the only conversation you want to be having.We all want to be seen. Because of that, seeing people is powerful. This is a revolution of tenderness and of bringing humanity back into this life.
A message for you right now
I hear you. I hear that you have these beliefs that you are less than, that you don’t belong, that you aren’t connected to this world and that no one will understand you. But I want you to know something. You’re not alone. I got you. Kevin’s got you.Do something right now for me: I want you to think of three things that you’re grateful for. Just three things. It could be the blue sky, or the song you heard on the radio, or the high five someone gave you on the basketball court. It doesn’t matter.Get yourself to a place where you can think outside of yourself for a second. Think of something that makes you happy, that inspires you. Go to that place just for that moment, and remember how you feel in those moments.That’s magic. You DO belong to this planet because you had that experience. Because you’re able to have gratitude for that person in your life or the person who gave you a high five, that means you belong. You’re connected to that person.You’re not alone, my friends.
The beginnings of the HumansFirst Club
It began in her office when Mike Vacanti came in and they decided they wanted to work together. Mark LeBusque was someone she found on LinkedIn, and it was like finding a brother across the world. She connected the two, and eventually connected with Jill Katz, and they all began jamming.The first HumansFirst Club session was in New York, and it was an exciting moment because nothing was planned. It was just: “What can I say and share about myself to encourage people to take a bigger step in their life?”
Ditching the deck
Some people prepare what they’re going to say, and fail to prepare to show up. She shares the story of Dubai — where, ready to give a talk to a room of 60 to 65 people, she made a split-second decision to ditch her deck, have everyone sit on the floor, and jam together. It’s about asking: “What’s going to be best for this group of people? What’s going to bring them together?”
Final thoughts
Go and call or text someone who isn’t expecting a call or text from you. Let them know that they’re loved and appreciated and that you’re thinking of them.
Resources for Claude
LinkedInInstagramTwitterHigher Purpose Podcast Episode 77: Putting Humans First with Mike VacantiHigher Purpose Podcast Episode 78: Creating a ‘Humans First’ Workplace with Marcel SchwantesHumansFirst ClubHumansFirst Club: New York City, Reflection of the Kick-Off Experience