Naomi Wilson, Founding Director
Late last month we had the pleasure of kicking off the second intake of our Lead with Focus program.
Leadership is a passion that has grown over time for me. It wasn’t an instant love affair, like HR was (yep, I’m that odd person who loves HR). Learning to appreciate the full power of leadership was more of a slow burn, but one that now rivals HR in my professional heart space. In fact, I now strongly believe that if we build our managers and supervisors into effective leaders, we reduce the need for traditional ‘HR’, because prevention is better than cure.
As part of the foundation session of Lead with Focus we share a TED talk video. And every time I watch it, it gives me goosebumps and reason to pause and reflect. It is a talk by Drew Dudley on Lollipop Moments. If you haven’t watched it, take 6 minutes out of your day – it is worth it – Everyday leadership – Drew Dudley.
Lollipop moments are real. They’ve happened to me and I hope that I give them to others. Drew’s point about telling someone when they’ve had an impact is also very true.
Positions of leadership can feel lonely. Believe it or not, leaders have doubts. They second guess themselves. They wonder if they are making the right decision, saying the right thing, having the right impact. And moments where someone tells them they are getting it right, doing a good job, having a positive impact, are rare. Not because others don’t care about them, but because we tend to think ‘that’s not my place’, or we don’t realise our leaders need feedback too sometimes.
Later that day, after getting goosebumpy watching Drew, I had my own version of a lollipop moment when someone gave me the gift of feedback about the impact I had on them. Those moments make me incredibly grateful. Grateful to the person who gave it (thank-you!) and grateful to have the opportunity to have a positive impact on others’ lives while doing what I love. This is what keeps me going, reaffirms my purpose, and gives me the confidence that, while I know I don’t always get it right, if my net impact on others is positive, I need to keep going.
My call to action if you’ve read all the way to here … think about who has given you a lollipop moment and tell them – it will make their day.