Being a Leader in "Strange Times"
Amanda Cahir-O'Donnell, Managing Director, TIO Consulting
Entrepreneur | Executive Coach for C-Suite | Team Coaching Solutions | Virtual Options | Mentoring | Leadership Development Provider
Since Monday, I have had a full week of Executive Coaching (virtually) with Leaders across several organisations and time zones. It was wonderful to immerse myself into one core activity & get "in flow" for the week. As coaches, we must get ourselves into this calm, resourceful and creative zone, so that we can "hold space" for our clients.
This week got me thinking about Senior Leaders and Managers in organisations, many of whom are over-stretched at the moment and don't have the luxury of getting "in flow". Some of you may remember "Stretch Armstrong" (a toy) from your childhood........ The challenge was to see how far he could be stretched, and he always bounced back to his original form.
Unlike "Stretch Armstrong," I don't see Leaders bouncing back to their pre-Covid selves, in Executive Coaching sessions in 2021. I see lots of demands, distractions, gadgets, interruptions, texts, WhatsApps; a feeling of being "always on" without the typical boundaries between work and home. It seems like the attention span of Leaders has shortened; and the downside of this is that their ability (competence and commitment) to listen to their direct reports has reduced. Leaders can't support others when they feel depleted themselves.
Thinking about that, I started to ask myself this question:
What support do busy leaders need
in "overstretched" situations?
My conclusion is that every leader needs the following scaffolding right now:
- Time and space to think aloud.
- A different, independent perspective.
- A zone without judgment.
- Confidence boosting. - Who tells their boss that they are doing a great job?
- A challenging ally.
All of this scaffolding is achieved through 1:1 Executive Coaching. It provides a safe haven for leaders to explore where their approach is/is not working and how to move forward. There's no need to be a superhero - trying to survive without support! If this sounds like something you, your leader or your colleagues at work need, contact us today for an exploratory conversation: [email protected] or [email protected]
Leadership Development Facilitator - supporting leaders, teams and organisations to find space to reflect, reenergise and refocus.
3 年You are identifying a really important aspect of the experience of leaders these months. And the importance for them to have space to step out of their busyness to reflect, reenergise and refocus. Well said Amanda
? Neuroleadership ? Resilience ? Mental Health ? Leadership Development ? Emotional Intelligence ? Strategy Consultant ? Author
3 年Fantastic read, Amanda.
Accredited Coach Supervisor & Master Coach; OD & Career Consultant;
3 年Well put Amanda Cahir-O'Donnell, Managing Director, TIO Consulting. I am seeing the same theme with my clients. The importance of the role of the Executive Coach to provide "scaffolding" (great analogy!), time to think and space has never been so relevant and important. #executivecoaching #leadership
Executive Director, Communications & Corporate Affairs at Uisce éireann. Former CEO, IPG agency McCann Dublin. Fellow, Marketing Institute of Ireland, Fellow, Institute Advertising Practitioners Ireland, NED
3 年Great advice Amanda Cahir-O'Donnell, Managing Director, TIO Consulting ????????????