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"You have within you more resources of energy than have ever been tapped, more talent than has ever been exploited, more strength than has ever been tested, more to give than you have ever given." John Gardner, former Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
For over two decades, The Quality Coach!® has been engaged in helping to develop leaders. Mostly leaders inside our clients' organizations. From CEO to front line supervisor, there are times when these leaders feel that they do not have enough power to fulfill their responsibilities. I have certainly been there in my corporate days.
I remember a particularly rough time when I did not seem to have the power or authority I needed to make the organizational changes I was tasked with making. Demoralized but determined, I kept trying.
It so happened that I was finishing up my bachelor's degree in management at that time, and I was enrolled in a leadership class. The instructor offered an interesting leadership theory. He distinguished "position power" from "personal power."
"Position power" is defined by an individual's job description or title, and is capped. It is an outside-in kind of power.
"Personal power" is an inside-out kind of power and is darned near infinite. So, I latched on to this theory and began to experiment with it. I came to realize that I did not necessarily need "the title" to lead, and make things happen. It was as simple as "choosing" to lead, from any job title I held and any place I happened to be in the organization.
For example, you don't need a special job title to:
Take control of your life
Make your organization or community better
Seize new opportunities
Improve the service your customers receive
Bring out the best in others
Prevent and solve problems
Contribute to others
Focus on what's working and what's right
Focus on what you CAN do, rather than what you CANNOT do
Lead by example
Make the world a little better than you found it
There are many leaders among us, without titles. They may be our neighbors, fellow church members, colleagues, parents, kids, brothers or sisters. They are rarely recognized, and that is usually okay by them.
To make this our Best Decade Yet, we need to tap into and turn on our personal power, step up and step into leadership with or without the official title.
This week I was reminded of just how powerful this kind of leadership can be as I stood on the side-lines and watched Hank's daughter, Leah, lead her family through a very challenging time following the unexpected death of her Mother. Leah exercised a huge amount of personal power under extremely challenging circumstances. Thank you, Leah, for reminding me of that wonderful leadership lesson I learned so long ago from my favorite instructor.
Your Coaching Challenge this week, should you choose to accept it:
Take a few minutes and identify areas where you are already exercising a good amount of personal power.
Take a few minutes to identify where you may be waiting for someone else to take the lead or for someone to give you more position power.
In what areas are you ready to exercise your personal power?
It's Your Life. Lead It. Start by Making this Your Best Week Yet!
We'll see you on-line next Monday!
Cheers! Coach Jeanne
The Quality Coach!®..... Celebrating over 20 Years of Coaching Great Leaders & Teams.
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