When I was in school, I was bullied for a period of time. Even now, many years after the fact, I’m embarrassed to share this (you may already know that bullied people tend to feel ashamed for ‘letting it happen.’) Only recently did I reflect back on those experiences. So why now?
The simple answer is: My clients. I am fortunate to work with incredible leaders. Some are CEOs, Presidents, executives running large functions or businesses, and they are all quite amazing.
They are also quite human. Call it a sign of the times. Leaders are recognizing the cracks in the system, as I recently wrote about, and are opening up and having more candid conversations about their own challenges than ever before. They recognize that to lead in the current COVID environment, the answer is not to have it all figured out or even to know what’s ahead, but rather, to prevent anything from interfering with their ability to think clearly, act decisively, inspire others, and above all, lead more courageously. How are they tackling this? Here are two ways:
They get rid of the baggage dragging them down. Consider the new CHRO who found herself unable to ask her CEO for more money when she was negotiating her compensation package. Turns out this HR leader had tried to negotiate a raise for herself earlier in her career and she still remembered the painful discussion. “My manager at the time accused me of being greedy and not acting like a team player. To this day, I struggle to ask for what I really want at work.”
Despite years of knowing she was likely being underpaid, it wasn’t until recently that she finally took a stand, added up the years of money she had likely left on the table, and had a candid conversation with her CEO. “I’m calling it COVID courage,” she said. “The current environment made me look in the mirror and realize that we only have so much time on earth. I was sick of this dragging me down and finally did something about it.”
They express and invite in more candor. A CEO known for his more traditional communication style opted for a more candid approach when he opened a recent all-hands meeting saying, “I was up half the night thinking about what I was going to share with you today. I’ve never found it more personally challenging to lead as your CEO than right now,” and was overwhelmed with the positive responses he received from employees. Or, consider the business president who became frustrated with his team’s lack of productivity and preparation at a recent meeting. Rather than let that frustration get the best of him, he instead paused the discussion and simply said, “I’m curious if any of you feel the way I’m feeling right now about how this meeting is going.” The result was an open conversation that yielded some of the best insights and recommendations the business president recalls ever hearing from his team in the past.
Carly Simon famously sung, “I haven’t got time for the pain,” and those words resonate today for leaders who can’t afford to be slowed down or held back when their employees and companies need them most. For some leaders, it starts with addressing baggage, reflecting on past experiences, and being open about them. What happens next? Maybe a better meeting, a better connection with your employees, more money, or something even greater – the opportunity to come out of COVID more courageous than you were before.
