Do you ever feel like you are exactly where you are supposed to be in your life?
After almost three weeks of holiday, seeing family and friends and one LEAD training down, I can say, I feel magic after it...and I felt the magic in our Les Fontaines campus!
I am genuinely honoured and incredibly grateful to #capgeminiinvent for choosing me to take part in our LEAD training, designed for international leaders across our #Capgemini and #sogeti businesses, attended by lions and led and facilitated by even fiercer lions!
A few key learnings and anecdotes from my experience on the Capegemini LEAD training:
1. Don't just Lean In, take it one step further...climb up and stand on the chair...(Sheryl Sandberg's book Lean In)
As a young female in the IT/Technology industry, it has been incredibly hard to speak up, be heard and overall capture attention in the right way.
- If it isn't working, change it, and use the physicality of your body to exemplify the distinctions in perspectives (females often shorter, spend our days looking up at men), don't be afraid to make this point, either metaphorically or with the your body, stand up onto a chair or a table and see how the room and people engage with you- it can shift mindsets - try it and let me know how it goes for you...
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2. This time baby, I won't be bulletproof...I will be vulnerable (La Roux)
Often as a leader, I have found it difficult to express emotion and not be the miracle or cure antidote to all my teams and peoples problems feeling I need to have all the answers and sole responsibility.
- If you are feeling a certain way, say it, tell your team and be vulnerable, your team will rally around and support and help you as you are all in it together...say you don't know the answer, stop and let others lead you.
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3. There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half as much worth doing as simply messing about in boats (The Wind in the Willows)
In my time at University, I took part in rowing and was a cox for my college, TCBC (Trevelyan College Boat Club), and time and time again the number of boat and rowing analogies that come up is unreal, that and swapping a team of 8 rowers, for a team 50+ developers and designers is swings and roundabouts and the principles are the same, that and my favourite metaphor of bringing people on the boat with me...
- Overall, our background and experiences shape our lives, and we must draw upon them to give us our kit bag full of trusty tools with which to tackle what is in front of us, at the bow.
?I cannot say thank everyone enough who helped make the "pinch me" moment happen for me Oliver Heywood-Lonsdale Nia Roberts Dave Ord Ramit Jain Jonathan Chadwick
?And especially a bigger thank you for all my fellow LEADers, for running and taking part in such a magical programme, in a magical setting, with magical people <3
Amy Simpson-Grange Kelvin Bateman Peter Buijs Marion Chadail Magdalena Wo?niak (Doro?yńska) Axay Dutt John Formston Sabrina Gild Christian Haas , Mitalee Ingale, Tatu Isotalo Dominik Kolankowski Adrian Mastej Adam McInally Pierre Nguyen, Mercy Paul Esther Prats Nikhil Sen, Tobias Tholf Samantha Thompson Mike Tonge Emily Maas Wiemken Thomas Zimmer Harini Papanna Neil Findlay Kay Kielty
Emmanuelle Langlois (she/her) (PCC, CPCC) Arjan van der Haar Assia Vignanelli Zichella Ron Tolido Beatrice Delmas-Linel Ronald Peeters John Lyons
Overall, the LEAD training was a magical experience for me and I feel connected and more in tune to my body, my mind, my heart and my gut in my approach to not only leadership, but to life.
Senior Integration Architect | Integration Strategy and Architecture | Modernization | API Management | Microservices | iPaaS | Mulesoft | AWS | Azure | Kafka
1 年OMG Maria, captured so beautifully. I am transported back to our experience.
Experienced bid lead and Co- Chair of our (LGBT+) PLUS Network - I make things happen.
1 年Love this, always trust your gut and a two step ladder when needed ????
Head of Division Security & Technology Transformation | Member country board Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Talent developer
1 年Very beautiful and wise words. ?? It’s a honour to be part of your journey.
Director | Product Management
1 年Fabulous read and so pleased the training was such a success. We are lucky to have you, Maria
Managing Consultant at Sogeti UK
1 年Great piece. Was a pleasure to meet you and share the experience!. You rock!