Potting the Cactus - Framing Conversations in Leadership

This is perhaps not the most fascinating Blog I have ever written, however, I had a great coaching conversation with a leader the other day and we ended up talking about the metaphor of potting a cactus. This came about because his onscreen background was a hot house with lots of great colour and plants in the background. There was one plant that stood out, this cactus standing tall and confident in a well designed pot. It was potted beautifully and stood out with the rays of sunshine coming through the window behind the leader.

As we were doing our Masterclass on all things leadership, we started talking about the importance of framing conversations and when you pot the cactus it is important to talk about what type of soil to use, size of the pot, how much water and how to fertilise it. Then we discussed when we frame conversations we often get out of the frame of potting the cactus and talk about other things such as fixing the roof (also in the background) or the broken window.

This metaphor is important as we are short of time (as I overviewed in the last Blog - thank you to you all who have touched base about how helpful that blog was) therefore when you stop to buy back time, consider how you pot the cactus on a daily basis. Consider who is taking your time and not framing conversations all that well. When we frame conversations it saves time, we feel more in control of our day and don’t let other thoughts creep into the conversation.

Do you frame conversations well, or instead of talking about the cactus, go so far off track that the topic does not value add to the conversation? You may be thinking, well…. going off track is ok, and yes it is. However, when we focus conversations or frame them well, it contributes to our wellbeing. It takes pressure off our brain (our flight, fight centre) and it brings certainty, which we know is crucial to wellbeing. Framing brings purpose to the conversation and those involved in the conversation can feel there is purpose and they feel valued. It boundaries what is discussed and all parties are intentional in what is being discussed, how it is discussed and why the discussion is taking place.

Remember, our teams only have about 6.5 productive hours in a 7.5 work day so lets provide the support to be conscious in how we frame conversations and how we "pot the cactus".

#leadership #communicationinleadership #coaching #supervision