Are Listening to Yourself, or…

This past week, I had the honor of speaking to a group of 1200 amazing leaders. The topic was belief: what do we believe about what other people think AND what do we believe about what we can accomplish? It all boiled down to one thing…?

“Sometimes you just have to tell your soul what the deal is.” - Catherine Wolf (American author and speaker)

This Week's Edition

Listening to the voice in our head doesn’t always set us up to succeed. It often tells us what we can’t do and why we can’t do it. How do we break that cycle?

Clarify Your Thinking

What I shared with the audience was the following:?

What we tell ourselves, on a daily basis, becomes our truth.?

The problem is that most of us are lousy sources of truth for ourselves.? We are telling ourselves things that are not necessarily true… especially about our leadership.

As the owner/operator of a few businesses I ran with some partners, I felt ill-equipped as a leader. I had not been trained as a leader in law school or while practicing law. ?

The leadership responsibilities felt weighty as others looked to me for direction and answers to their day-to-day challenges. I felt out of my league. My inner voice was loud, and it did not set me up to be a successful leader.?

Old Thinking: I’ve not been trained to lead. I don’t think I can do this job like other leaders I see. I feel inadequate for the job.?

New Thinking: I can learn how to be a leader. I have strengths that are important for leadership. I can use those to be the leader I want to be without comparison to others.

Thoughts Lead to Actions

Feelings are real. They just don’t always tell us the truth. Those feelings also fuel our inner dialogue. Ask yourself:

Am I listening to myself OR am I telling myself what the deal is?

If you truly desire to be a leader who fulfills their maximum potential, take these proactive steps to reclaim your inner leadership dialogue:

Step 1: Make a list of thoughts you have about your leadership.

• Put a checkmark next to the thoughts that set you up to succeed
• Put an X next to the thoughts that are not helpful

Step 2: Tell yourself what is true about the thoughts that are not helpful

• Make declarations that affirm what you believe about your leadership
• Ex: I am a good leader. I can learn new skills. I have solid strengths.

Step 3: Write your leadership declarations on one piece of paper.

• Laminate it. Use it as a bookmark in the book you are reading.
• Put it on your mirror in the bathroom. Put it in your car.

Take control of the dialogue in your head by telling yourself what you can do.?

Boost Your Performance

Watch this week’s video for more information about how to tell yourself what you can accomplish.?

What's Your Opinion?

What truth do you want yourself to know this week about your leadership? Let me know: [email protected]

If you are going to be a leader, you might as well be a good one. Don’t let doubt count you out. Have a confident week!

Robin Pou, Chief Advisor and Strategist

We live to make bad leadership extinct so forward this newsletter to others who strive to be confident leaders.

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What is “The Confident Leader”?

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, I began a video series called “Panic or Plan?” It was designed to equip leaders to navigate the doubt they experienced and to rise in the confidence they needed to lead during turbulent times. It took off. I then started this newsletter to equip leaders in the same fashion each week for the doubt that crashes across the bow of their leaderSHIP.