The Leadership Fragility

When I started my career at a big multinational company many years ago, I learned that Leaders were supposed to be strong individuals, capable of supporting all kinds of pressure and delivering results at any cost, even if that cost indirectly affected the team's morale and organizational climate.?Above all, leaders could never demonstrate fragility.

I clearly remember when I was in my 20s and told my supervisor I wanted to become a people leader. I was discouraged and heard from him that I was "too soft."

Luckily, persistence is one of my characteristics. Some years later, in a different organization, I was tasked with the Team Leader role, and oh! I loved doing it. The feeling I experienced when I realized that through my words and actions, I could help people become better at their jobs was very satisfying to me.

However, as you know, life is not always a bed of roses, and pretty soon, I started to feel the weight on my shoulders.?The emotional responsibility of having to take care of everything made me feel under pressure and overwhelmed many times.

I wondered if leadership was a thing for me because I wasn't feeling strong or taking the pressure as I was taught I should be handling it.?

Sometime later, with more experience, I realized that my most significant achievements always started as my biggest challenges.?I could only overcome these challenges because, at that moment, I recognized my vulnerability. So, I began to question those old 'tough' leadership values.

If a leader cannot demonstrate vulnerability, how can they expect that the team shows vulnerability??And how will you help people if they won't ask for help??And how are you supposed to succeed in business if people don't feel supported and empowered?

It is OK to feel fragile sometimes.?However, it takes courage to embrace vulnerability and accept it as part of one's identity.

Sometimes, I feel incredibly fragile.?Sometimes, I need to be more.?Sometimes, as a leader, I feel tired.?And that is OK, I accept that.

Be kind to yourself, as you would be kind to one of your team members.

In today's fast-paced environment, where we are flooded with information all the time and are experiencing a world pandemic, successful leaders will be the ones who can provide their teams with direction by building bridges with empathy, gratitude, courage, passion, and vulnerability.

This article was inspired by Brené Brown – The Power of Vulnerability.