{"id":31063,"date":"2023-02-14T14:01:25","date_gmt":"2023-02-14T22:01:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=31063"},"modified":"2023-02-15T19:56:46","modified_gmt":"2023-02-16T03:56:46","slug":"get-ready-set-grow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/get-ready-set-grow\/","title":{"rendered":"Get Ready, Set, Grow!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reading Leadersmithing<\/em>, by Eve Poole took me down memory lane and sent me to my basement storage room searching for copies of Aesop\u2019s Fables<\/em> and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz<\/em>. The mere mention of these books brought back delightful memories of reading these stories to my children and sobering moments of clarity about myself and my leadership journey. Stories seems to be a powerful learning tool for me.<\/p>\n

In her research Poole asked leaders, \u201cWhat do you know now as a leader that you wish you had known ten years ago?\u201d Their answer, they wished they had known themselves better![1]<\/a> This is the key that unlocked my leadership journey. It began in 1997, while trying to get my bearings in a communist country in which our visa situation and constant surveillance were destabilizing certainties. I was struggling with the long-term impact of living in third world countries and suffering with chronic health issues that left me second guessing who I was and what I was called to do. I set out on a journey of self-discovery, reclaiming lost parts of myself, and uncovering aspects I never knew existed. It felt more like a deep pit I had to claw my way out of than a leadership journey. The beloved stories mentioned at the beginning of this post and in Poole\u2019s book made a lasting impression during that time. There were two key things I learned about myself when rest was required, my house was wonderfully full of children, and reading stories aloud was a favorite part of our day.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Tortoise and the Hare<\/em>: Lesson #1: I am a tortoise!<\/p>\n

Slow and steady wins the race. I wholeheartedly endorse Eve Poole\u2019s wise advice to, \u201cBe a tortoise!\u201d[2]<\/a> I am slow moving. I always thought there must be something wrong with me because I was incapable of making quick decisions. I finally gave myself permission to be me. I couldn\u2019t keep to a pace I was not designed for and adjusted accordingly. It was a key discovery that has greatly reduced my anxiety. As a nine on the Enneagram, I can easily see all perspectives and I can take a very long time to make decisions. This is a gift in disguise. My leadership roles rarely require quick decisions. Never-the-less, I am developing the tools to speed up the process when necessary.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The Wonderful Wizard of OZ<\/em>: Lesson #2: I am smart, loving, and brave!<\/p>\n

No amount of convincing by others was going to make me believe the above was true. I had to feel it to believe it for myself![3]<\/a> I find it confirming how emotional intelligence and neuroscience keep coming up in leadership. Working as a counselor I am very familiar with the connection between feelings, thoughts, and behaviors, and the fight-flight-freeze reactions to stress and trauma. My experiences and the stories I told myself about them had a negative impact on me physically, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually. Facing untruths set me free. Understanding how I hold untruths in my spirit, soul, and body continues to be life changing and leadership forming.<\/p>\n

Leader in Transition<\/em>: I asked someone close to me where they thought I fit on the Who are you?<\/em> chart at the beginning of the book.[4]<\/a> I was surprised by their response. Leader in Transition. After some reflection I came to the same conclusion. It was the question of what I fear most that convinced me. Taking Key Decisions<\/em> is my biggest fear and my intended focus.[5]<\/a> Poole suggests diarying critical incidents and curating our learning through intentional practice.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

Critical Incidents<\/em>: Practice makes perfect!? Practice is practice. My goal is competency not perfection. That is more doable and less intimidating. Poole highlighted 17 critical incidents to learn and practice. The idea is to give leaders \u2018muscle memory\u2019 about archetypical leadership activities, so our bodies instinctively know how to do them when needed.[7]<\/a> As I read through the list, I noted things of which I felt reasonably confident and quite a few that need more work. I\u2019m reflecting on how Leadersmithing<\/em> will impact my NPO. Working my way through this doctoral program is giving me ample opportunity to exercise and gain leadership muscle memory. Teaching some of the critical incident skills I possess may become part of my NPO. In the meantime, I am learning to learn.[8]<\/a><\/p>\n

Taking Key Decisions: <\/em>The title of this blog, Get Ready, Set, Grow!<\/em> [9]<\/a> is the name of the preschool curriculum I used with my children. It highlights where I am on my leadership journey. I\u2019m ready to grow. The first page of the curriculum begins with a Preschool Teacher\u2019s Pledge. I made modifications and created my personal Doctoral Student Pledge focusing on the critical incidents I need to practice.<\/p>\n

Jenny, I solemnly commit to practice these critical incidents. I hereby promise to:<\/p>\n

Give myself structured times for learning. (Effort – Habits – Numbers)<\/p>\n

Practice child-like trust. Let go of unknowns. Focus on the knowns. (Uncertainty)<\/p>\n

Wonder about possibilities. Offer suggestions and ideas. Hold them lightly. (Initiative)<\/p>\n

Imagine and pretend I am a genius: Alchemist, Observer, Fool, Seer, Sage. (Creativity)<\/p>\n

Believe several impossible things before breakfast. (Conflict)<\/p>\n

Slow down, do some belly breathing, work through the problem. (MECE)<\/p>\n

Remember I might need a snack and a nap (or a hug). (Fuel – Sleep)<\/p>\n

Be understanding and loving when things don\u2019t go right. Admit when I am wrong. (Character)<\/p>\n

Be encouraging and patient when I need to ask for help. (Role Models – Missing Persons)<\/p>\n

Give myself lots of free and unstructured time to have fun and grow. (Play \u2013 The missing 18th<\/sup> Critical Incident)<\/p>\n

Take to heart that leaders are made not born!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Eve Poole, Leadersmithing: Revealing the Trade Secrets of Leadership<\/em>. (London, UK: Bloomsbury Publishing 2017), 10.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Poole, Leadersmithing, <\/em>181.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Ibid., 181.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Ibid., x.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Ibid., 15.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> Ibid., 3<\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Ibid., 10-11.<\/p>\n

[8]<\/a> Ibid., 13.<\/p>\n

[9]<\/a> Morris, Eileen, and Stephanie Pereau Crilly. 1984. Get Ready, Set, Grow!<\/em> Belmont, CA: David S. Lake Publishers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reading Leadersmithing, by Eve Poole took me down memory lane and sent me to my basement storage room searching for copies of Aesop\u2019s Fables and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The mere mention of these books brought back delightful memories of reading these stories to my children and sobering moments of clarity about myself and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":184,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2310,1],"tags":[2616],"class_list":["post-31063","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-doctor-of-leadership-3","category-uncategorized","tag-dlgp02-poole","cohort-dlgp02"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31063","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/184"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31063"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31063\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31093,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31063\/revisions\/31093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31063"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31063"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31063"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}