Reflections on Day Two of the CRF’s ‘Agility 2.0’ conference: self-talk, growing through trauma and expanding your circle of influence

On day two of the Corporate Research Forum (CRF) ’s conference in Madrid, we were blessed with two sessions to help leaders, HR and executives build their own “adaptive thinking muscle”.

英国伦敦政治经济学院 's Professor Connson Locke gave a compelling data-informed speech featuring tips for moving through challenging times. Weaving in her own life story, she shared why we experience imposter syndrome and stereotype threat , the latter being the fear associated with conforming to negative stereotypes of the community or social group you belong to.

Connson also unpacked the attitudes and abilities that underlie Adaptive Behaviour. This echoed the great session by Professor Scott D. Anthony of The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth during the first day of the conference on how we bust the corporate ghosts that prevent companies from innovating.?

Rupal Patel told her story of going from the CIA to CEO. She highlighted that it’s not our logical moves that propel us forward, but our values. This session was an important reminder of how leaders can impose limits on their thinking to enforce a decision. Rupal also spoke about the power of visualisation to unlock what we already unconsciously know.

My key takeaways from the final day of the CRF conference:

1. Self-talk is both a devil and an angel.

Many speakers highlighted how our internal monologue can hold us back from taking risks, squash our self-confidence and even limit our own potential. But self-talk was also commended as a tool we can use to reframe our thinking. Think of it as adopting one of the many different versions of ourselves (e.g., a leader at work, an expert in a specific field, a mother at home). One of our other ‘selves’ may serve us better in a given situation, or can allow us to reframe the conversation from “I can’t” to “how can I?” to self-talk our way to confidence.

2. There is no growth without trauma.

Professor Connson compelled us to think about Post-Traumatic Growth (as opposed to Post-Traumatic Stress). Looking for growth opportunities in hard times allows us to “greedily” take the lessons that are so often hidden amongst the failures.

Rupal challenged us to see the nuances in failure, as failure is rarely didactic. Past trauma can dictate how we react in a future situation; this “auto-response” is felt when we’re stressed, and can often mean we miss the opportunity to pick up on nuances.

3. Work your mind as you do your body.?

One of Connson's top tips was to compile a “smile file”, a folder with all the great feedback and comments you’ve received. When you’re feeling a little shaky in your sense of self and may be doubting your expertise, you can look at this file. This simple exercise of looking back over positive reactions to your work reminds you of your ability to succeed and staves off feelings of overwhelm. Instead, you can see the evidence in front of you, separated from the emotion.

Both Connson and Rupal spoke about taking time to reflect and sit with our thoughts by:

• Journaling: Creating morning pages by writing for 20 minutes about how you feel or think about a given situation to help you process it
• Reframing: Think “I’m here to teach, not perform”
• Visualisation: Have a conversation with your future self after reaching a challenging goal, to ask yourself how you got there

4. Our Circle of Concern often exceeds our Circle of Influence.?

Everything you worry about sits in your Circle of Concern (and these are often external factors we have no control over. Your Circle of Influence is often smaller and contains the things you can control. Acting on these things is the way to influence change and reduce your stress.

Alongside this was understanding that anxiety and worry can challenge (and encourage) us to stop and think: Why I am feeling like this? What information am I missing? What action do I need to take? What conversation do I need to have and with whom?

Different stakeholders might move on, or you could find a new way to open up a conversation. A “failure” might not matter in the grand scheme of things if you’re able to look up from the immediate moment and consider your longer-term view of success.

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Brilliant sessions and a lot of food for thought. Thank you to Corporate Research Forum (CRF) for bringing us all together – safe journeys home, everyone!

Read more on these thought-provoking ideas:

More of these great ideas can be found in these books by the conference speakers:

Making your voice heard, Connson Locke : https://connsonlocke.com/making-your-voice-heard/

From CIA to CEO: Unconventional Life Lessons for Thinking Bigger, Leading Better, and Being Bolder, Rupal Patel : https://www.entreprenora.co.uk/from-cia-to-ceo/

Eat, Sleep, Innovate, Scott D. Anthony , Paul Cobban, Natalie Painchaud, Andy Parker: https://www.innosight.com/insight/eat-sleep-innovate/

And if leadership growth is on your Christmas wish list, why not add Paul McCarthy ’s leadership book, The F.I.R.E.D Leader: https://www.paulmacleadership.com/the-book (out on 28th November, just two days before #WorkDifferent, the book I wrote with my 美世 colleagues Kai Anderson and Ilya Bonic !)