These are unprecedented times. Whatever business we are in – we are still in the business of people. Our staff, our customers, our communities. A trifecta of responsibility.
COVID has turned whatever human resources plan we might have had, completely on its head and now suddenly companies are making community and government type decisions. This is an enormous responsibility.
Technological advances gave rise to globalisation and opened the world up for trade in the last forty to fifty years, combining that with changes in working conditions, legislations and flexible working on an entirely new level. How we operate today is like nothing we’ve experienced before.
Increased speed of business, social media pressure, and lack of time for self, family and friends are leaving people feeling helpless, hopeless, disconnected and exhausted. Many people are in survival mode, using an old road map and an outdated operating system for a completely new landscape.
As Stephen Hawking said, we have entered ‘the century of complexity’.
The more connected we become online, the more fragmented and disconnected we become in our interpersonal relationships and, more importantly, from the relationship we have with ourselves. Leadership is not just about skills in the workplace, it is about evolving our other level of experience in terms of blending knowledge with “knowing”. That sixth sense is the strongest compass of all.
In this new age of self reliance, we may have unwittingly removed any sense of self[1]. In essence, we are running our lives in a modern world with a very outdated internal set of decision- making frameworks.
It is of more importance than ever not to lose sight of our deep sense of connection that grounds conscious decisions for now and the future.
Here are 5 ways why learning to trust your intuition is one of the greatest assets in leadership. Reducing force and friction to create flow personally and professionally for sustainable success:
- True experience requires a blend of decision making – a gut feel, the facts and stats and the ability to trust your own decisions. It requires a quiet knowing and a moment to reflect before you respond.
- Our ego is not our amigo – making decisions and leading from fear, blame, shame and guilt creates a dysfunctional level of communication and performance. Instead create decisions based on vision, purpose, possibility and “what the next right step is”. Intent and integrity.
- Our world is organic, it is not finite and each action has a reaction. Working with your intuition as well as experience enables us to respond to challenges, projects and people with a higher vision approach. Not getting stuck in the semantics or reactionary = but rather creating space for a clear and conscious decision to be made.
- As leaders the greatest asset is to lead by example instead of lecture. This fosters trust, experience and modelling on best practices. It allows room for others to show up, learn and lean in without rushing a result or “fixing” issues.
- Aligned leaders listen – to their own intuition, to others, to a wider situation. You can pick up the energy, the tone and predict when you shut out distractions, internal dialogue and don’t fill the gaps. This is based on trust, and experience, knowing that there is ALWAYS a solution.
Overwhelm is a $300Billion dollar industry in the US alone – before COVID. It is an epidemic in itself. There is a need for a simple approach. To get back to basics and reset the place from which we make our core decisions. To regain our sense of self, trust and navigation. Whatever the conditions. Creating regular pit stops, not rushing through challenges but leaning into a deep sense of self sufficiency and inner confidence.
As leaders this requires us to change the HOW we show up. To lead from the front to reduce overwhelm, create tiny moments to connect before communicating. Not performing a role – but by being completely present and bringing your whole self to work – agile, experienced and connected.
Leadership is an evolution. It is this ability to lead by example, to recognise unique energies and situations. Demonstrating the important role our true intuition can play, empowers our teams to thrive and be agile in times of change.
