If, as the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child then we might consider it takes a world to raise a leader.
And, in embracing the need for a better world, consciousness must become a core quality of our leadership. Starting to tap into a deeper and higher wisdom comes through deepening our reflective practice into something more meditative. With practice this connects us to our intuition and to the sensing that’s needed in complex systems and new/novel challenges that we haven’t encountered before and where our existing toolkit won’t suffice.
The demands of organisational leadership in an environment that’s uncertain, turbulent and seems to change almost by the minute, requires different mind and skill sets to the conventionally accepted wisdom on good leadership.
That’s not to say we ditch all the qualities we have already. Rather, we need to augment/lean more into some – self-awareness, agility, relationship-building and collaboration – and to cultivate others that may not be in the current leadership lexicon.
There’s a need to look outwards, beyond our organisation or even industry, to redefine our bigger picture and contribution to the system of which we’re a part – our world.
Engaging our heart is essential, so we can draw on its well of courage to make the less conventional moves that will be needed, to make decisions with greater discernment, compassion, and love for our fellow humanity, and to release, and make explicit and magnetic, the passion for a better world that will bring others with us.