5 Steps To Creating A Leadership Brand

I recently conducted some market research to learn from leaders how I can best support their leadership growth and development. I asked a series of questions and received great responses, food for thought, and feedback.

When I spoke with a man in the military, he said one of the most important aspects that he looks for in leadership is “keepin’ it real”. OK, he is quite a bit younger than I am! However, this message is ageless and timeless.

Most of us have a pretty good B.S. meter and can smell fake a mile away. This is especially important to us, as leaders, to tap into truth and stand in our authenticity. When we stand in authenticity, we stand in power. THAT is what makes us powerful leaders – authenticity.

And let’s face it; there is nothing more authentic or real than love.

When we lead with love and authenticity, we practice:

  • Truth

  • Mindfulness

  • Awareness

  • Non-judgment

  • Honesty

  • Integrity

  • Compassion

  • Service

  • Presence

  • Humanitarianism

Branding and image consulting are terms that we’ve no doubt heard before, typically in the context of marketing. Have you thought about your brand? No, I am not talking about the company for which you work—I am talking about YOU!

What is your brand, your leadership image? Are you keepin’ it real? Are you respected because you’ve earned it or are you feared because of your title? What is the first thing your team thinks about when your name comes up?

Some of us may say that we don’t care about what others think about us. Really, is that really true?

As leaders, our primary task is to motivate and influence others toward a vision and/or goal. If others are not buying our brand, then we don’t really have followers.How can we consciously create our leadership brand? Follow these 5 simple steps:

  1. Intentionally determine what you want your brand to represent.

  2. Reverse engineer the steps necessary to develop and create that brand image.

  3. Be accountable to doing the work – find an accountability partner or coach who will be honest about your progress and a resource when you are stuck.

  4. Be vulnerable and do spot checks with others to see if you are on the right track (in other words—ask!).

  5. Keep it real – Authenticity is a real attractor

I would love to hear from you. How would you describe an authentic leader, one who is keepin’ it real?

With love,

Maria

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5 Strategies Every Leader Should Model

As leaders, we often buy into the perception (more likely than not, a self-imposed perception) that we must know the answers, be strong, and just like the Energizer bunny, keep going, going, and going.

Enough already!

As leaders, the most important lesson we can model and teach others is that we are human.

As humans and leaders, we don’t always have the answers. This requires us to fess up and be honest. Big deal, we don’t have the answer. The difference between leaders and non-leaders is that we will find the answer…whatever it takes, we will find out.

This may require us to do some research or ask someone else, who may have the answer. We may also need to tap into our intuition for inner wisdom to solve the surface question. And, my favorite resource of all, ask Source, Spirit, or God, who is always available 24/7, always honest, and always right on target.

The perception that leaders are always strong is like saying it is always sunny. Just as nature has beautifully shown us, there are seasons to life. As living, breathing human beings, we too, have seasons. Our strength does not come by us always standing, our strength is our ability to get up again after we fall.Sometimes, this requires us to ask for help. Even the Beatles asked for help!

Here are 5 strategies to remember when asking for help:

– Try out your ideas first, and then if you still cannot figure it out reach out and ask.

– When you ask, present your thinking so far, including some possible solutions or outcomes.

– Don’t be a martyr or bad mouth yourself when you do ask for help– it’s not very attractive.

– Ask a clarifying question. If someone asks you something and you don’t know the answer right away, simply ask them, “Well what do you think?”

– Remember that asking for help could be a great developmental opportunity for someone else to also grow.

The beautiful benefit of our asking is that the helper receives a gift too, by serving. This is a win-win exchange. It can’t get much better than that!

We cannot keep going, going, going. This is unrealistic and quite frankly, dangerous to our physical body, emotional health, and spiritual growth. We are not super-human, so we must stop pretending to be…it is killing us! We need to learn to ask for re-charge time and then take it! Your mind, body, and spirit will thank you.

I would love to hear from you. What is the most challenging thing for you to ask for help?

With love,

Maria