ARE YOU AN INSTINCTUAL LEADER? Take this quiz to see if you qualify according to Oprah Winfrey:

1.???? Are you humble?

2.???? Can you be vulnerable?

3.???? Do you take risks?

4.???? Are you proud of who you are?

5.???? Do others find you approachable?

6.???? Have you served as a mentor to others?

7.???? Are you a life-long learner?

8.???? Do others consider you to be a ‘doer’?

9.???? Do you consider yourself to be a planner?

10. Do you help others stay on task?

If you answered ‘yes’ to a majority of these questions, according to Oprah Winfrey you have the capacity to be an instinctual leader.

Oprah Winfrey is a confident leader; someone we all admire who studies the topic of leadership. Jeff Haden wrote about her concepts in the July 2024 edition of INC magazine quoting her statement: “Outgoing, charismatic, confident people tend to be seen as leaders. But seeming like a leader doesn’t make you a leader, especially in the eyes of the people you lead.”[1]

Does being an Instinctual Leader make you a good leader?? Let’s look at what it takes to be a leader today and why being an Instinctual Leader might be the leader we need.

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WHAT IS AN INSTINCTUAL LEADER?

Here is what I learned from 40 years coaching top business and team leaders globally with the insight gained from a few years on the trails with my sled dog team:

An instinctual leader is an inspiring role model and a mentor, a leader dedicated to developing others by building a leadership legacy for future leaders. Trusted and inspired, instinctual leaders accept the challenge to seek a new trail.

Leading through change requires confidence. ??Change is complex and often risky, often requiring we give up something familiar to take on the new. ?We carry our own vulnerabilities with us, sometimes feeling as though we are an imposter lacking the credibility to perform the task at hand.

Winfrey supports the assertion that confidence does not come from strength, but from vulnerability:

?“... leader humility involves leaders modeling to followers how to grow and produces positive organizational outcomes by leading followers to believe that their own developmental journeys and feelings of uncertainty are legitimate in the workplace.”[2]

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IS INSTINCT THE KEY TO EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP?

My interest in animal instincts was no doubt heightened from my experience as a musher, so I admit to being intrigued by the latest studies of the brain-gut relationship.? Questions about ‘logic flow’ and ‘creative intuition’ hint at things still unexplored. ?

“Trust our animal instincts: those gut reactions tell us something.

To grow, look within and around us, accepting and learning as we move forward.

We are all connected.”[3]

Maybe Winfrey is headed in this direction as she is quoted in one of her popular posters stating: “Trust your instincts, intuition doesn’t lie.”

“You already have what you need to lead: learn to tap into your experience, your history, your future, your story. ? Hearing the stories of others will build upon your experiences while reminding you that leadership is earned, leading does not require a loud voice or a big stick, that leading isn’t a race, and that your future is open to possibilities.”[4]

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WORK/LIFE HARMONY

There is harmony in nature that we need in our lives.? Years ago, the concept of work/life balance attempted to define that need. Today our reliance on high technology, the speed at which decisions are made, has compromised our ability to find balance.? Leaders today must connect with employees to ensure work environments are learning environments that create harmony between life and work.

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There is harmony in the relationship between mushers and dogs. The symbiotic relationship between dogs and humans benefits each other. ?On the trail, the relationship magnifies: the role of the dog becomes stronger as does the relationship between the dog and the driver. As Sally Helgesen writes about MOVING ‘ON BY!’: ?

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“I can’t think of a better or more underexplored frame for understanding leadership than observing and working with sled dogs... the intricacies of establishing your role in a complex society, applying the vibrant analogy of leading canine teams to inspire us to continue to move forward… show us how to move beyond blocks and barriers that undermine our confidence so we can embrace ambiguity, prepare for transitions, maintain morale, and balance fear with excitement.”

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To consider leadership in its truest, basic form, try envisioning decision-making when balancing on the runners behind a sled. In any physically demanding activity that moves at a fast pace, you are at risk. ?We may sense a loss of control on a project or with a relationship while continuing with our planned day.? Before traveling on a sled with your dog team, facing the swirl of changing weather and environment, you accept that your control can be broken by a dip in the trail or a wild animal approaching your team.

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VULNERABILITY

?“Anyone who has ever driven a team of dogs will tell you that you lead best when you are aware of your strengths and your vulnerabilities, when you stand behind your team, connecting with respect, openly and honestly.? The quiet on the trail is impactful: you hear the swish of the sled runners and the pads of the dogs’ paws on the hard-packed snow. All work in unison.[5]

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Winfrey describes vulnerability as “... the cornerstone of confidence. Allow yourself to take the risk, to be open, to live as a whole-hearted person. Do that, and you recognize that you're just like everybody else, and that gives you the confidence to be yourself. Which is all you really need in life: to be more of yourself.” [6]

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To accept this role is to be fully true to yourself: ?take action in a constantly evolving situation, accept your power, and connect with others. “You can uncover your own power and passion to get where you are going, to accept the risk, and challenge the new by moving ‘On By’ whatever blocks your path.? And, while you are at it, why not pause to enjoy the trail by taking a deep breath and perhaps inspire others to join you?”[7]

Instinctual leaders know they have the power and passion to create their message to bring to the team, to new employees, and to those hidden leaders waiting to be recognized.

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R-E-S-P-E-C T

Several of the LEADERSHIP CASE STUDIES presented in MOVING ‘ON BY!’ involve situations where choices must be made: to hire, fire, quit, or choose the trail that might lead to work/life harmony. ??

Consider the first case study: ‘R-E-S-P-E-C T’. This true event follows a TALE FROM THE TRAIL addressing risk, fear, and vulnerability for a new musher experiencing the open trails for the first time. Grappling with emotions and fears may prevent you from challenging unseen obstacles, from building your confidence through experience. The story of a team of women in a manufacturing plant will harken back to the patterns and behaviors from the last century, as they were denied respect, isolated, and trapped in an economic nightmare.

We learn from stories, as around the campfire, and we develop a greater understanding of the factors that influence our lives and decisions. Readers are inspired to think deeply about how they would assist real people caught in a situation of control and stress. As the case study unfolds there is an opportunity to imagine all possible options and trails that lead to discovering unique trail markers, indicators of what can be in the future.

HOW DO YOU HARNESS YOUR INSTINCTS?

Applying your instincts and trusting those instincts during a life-changing event is intimidating. Another of the eight LEADERSHIP CASE STUDIES is “Salvaging a Steel Plant,” introducing employees at a manufacturing plant following a labor dispute. A division of a multinational firm, the site was close to shutting down. ?Fear caused employees to resign: 300 of the original 500 workers remained.? Production goals were not met.? The remaining employees experienced depression as well as disappointment over the loss of their friends and worry about steady employment.

Addressing these issues on multiple organizational and personal levels was a challenge the remaining leaders could not handle. The change was a constant weight on everyone: the transition process was hindered by a lack of leadership, confusion, and fear. ?To move forward, a new, innovative, and connected form of leadership was required:

“... the emergent humility in leadership model informs a broad range of leadership issues, including organizational development and change, the evolution of leader-follower relationships, new pathways for engaging followers, and integrating top-down and bottom-up organizing.”[8]

COMMITMENT AND INSPIRATION

With many of my coaching assignments at production or construction facilities, the command-control style of authoritative management continued to exist just under the surface. During times of stress and change it was not unusual for team leaders to react to their team as a frustrated and angry parent would respond to a child by enacting strict rules and punishment.

Driving a dog team, mushers learn very quickly that the best dogs are the animals that perform their work without coercion. You cannot force a dog – or any animal on two or four legs -- to enjoy something that is forced on them. ?You can see joy as well as exhaustion when looking at a musher and dog team returning home after a long run. That same joy is on the face of employees who complete a complicated task well and who feel satisfied with their contribution to the team and project.

In the “Salvaging a Steel Plant” case study, you will meet disheartened employees in a losing situation, feeling powerless to control their future.? With company leadership in turmoil from illness and constant change, one person, Joey from HR, unexpectedly took the lead by asking for help.? People responded and leaders emerged. Working together to reorganize the processes, long-standing barriers between teams, departments, and individuals dissolved, replaced by humility and respect. ?The drive for change inspired everyone, from third-shift steelworkers to supply chain managers. A new commitment to connect brought about a renewed energy and drive to succeed.

This is the type of story we can all share to support individuals and teams disengaged by organizational change from their work or colleagues. It is an example of what can happen when one person takes that first step to accept a situation and unites those invested to seek a trail that builds a connected team.

SELF-COACHING

The underlying theme of MOVING ‘ON BY!’ is self-coaching.? Reading TALES FROM THE TRAIL or the LEADERSHIP CASE STUDIES, we are quick to recognize how just one person, or a united team, can discover a new trail marker to take the risk to face the unknown. Moving ‘on by’ obstacles, the teams may not have found the answer they initially sought -- by accepting the risk of exploring a new trail they uncovered a great deal about themselves and what they needed to find work/life harmony.

This book was written for the talented leaders I coach to develop future leaders among those who report to them. You can apply the concepts and tales presented here to build your own legacy. ?Become a role model and a mentor by discovering your trail markers through self-coaching.

Self-coaching is a simple process of examining our history, our current wants, and our future needs.? You will find an entire Appendix in MOVING ‘ON BY!’ guiding you to explore your perceptions and experiences. There is only one way to gain the confidence to overcome a barrier of fear: self-coaching.

?Self-coaching is life-long learning. It is the desire to stretch, apply what you know, and be inspired to achieve more. Self-Coaching is the trail we choose to achieve mindfulness, joy, and work/life harmony.

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[1] Jeff Haden, “Oprah Winfrey Says Uncomfortable Habit separates doers from dreams backed by considerable science.”? INC, July, 2024.

[2] Idem. Jeff Haden, “Oprah Winfrey Says Uncomfortable Habit separates doers from dreams backed by considerable science.”? INC, July, 2024.

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[3] Lucille Maddalena, MOVING ‘ON BY!’ Harnessing My Sled Dog Team’s Instinct to Win. Jones Media, February 2024. P.152.

[4] Ibid.? P.1

[5] Idem. Lucille Maddalena, MOVING ‘ON BY!’ Harnessing My Sled Dog Team’s Instinct to Win Jones Media, February 2024. P.12

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[6] Idem. Jeff Haden, “Oprah Winfrey Says Uncomfortable Habit separates doers from dreams backed by considerable science.”? INC, July, 2024.

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[7] Idem. Lucille Maddalena, MOVING ‘ON BY!’ Harnessing My Sled Dog Team’s Instinct to Win Jones Media, February 2024. P.12

[8] Idem. Jeff Haden, “Oprah Winfrey Says Uncomfortable Habit separates doers from dreams backed by considerable science.”? INC, July, 2024.