LEAD YOURSELF

By Laura Wallace  |  May 11, 2018

Whew! We’re coming off of an amazing ride from a successful Leadercast event! If you haven’t come across the details, Leadercast is a one-day leadership conference held live in Georgia and broadcast live all around the world. We paired up with HCC and brought 103 local leaders together for this extraordinary experience.

We couldn’t have asked for a better day and just when you think you’ve learned all you need to know, and event like this comes around and elevates your thinking and enthusiasm. When listening to the nine diverse speakers, everyone took away their own piece of knowledge. Depending on where you are in your life, an area you’re struggling with or a statement that gives you the energy or courage you needed to make a shift, each message hits home a little differently.

While I could talk about the event all day long, I’d like to share some of my key takeaways in hopes that one, (or all) of them speak to you on some level.

Your ultimate goal can only be threatened by the need for immediate needs.

Andy Stanley, I could listen to this guy all day long. As one of Leadercast’s most requested speakers, I never seem to have enough paper to write down all of his information. This year he talked about prioritizing what you value long-term over what you want now. Too often we make decisions that help us to get something we want now vs. investing or waiting for the long-term goal. How can you reprioritize your wants and needs to shift towards long-term success vs. immediate wins?

When you lose sight, you lose the fight.

Carey Lohrenz, the first female F-14 Tomcat Pilot talked a lot about the need to stay focused and work with the team with a clear mission. Everyone needs to know their place for the big picture to work. Under pressure, how do you handle? When she’s flying 1,500 mph, she doesn’t have time to freak out and give up. Same goes for business. When you lose sight of what you’re working towards, you lose the ability to achieve it. She reminded us to show up with a good attitude because a negative attitude kills our ability to adapt.

You have permission to change.

Kat Cole, COO of FOCUS Brands was no stranger, peeling back the layers and giving us a real-life scenario of taking a risk to better her life. Too often we’re afraid that if we grow or evolve, people will think we’ve changed. Kat says, “You have permission to change.” She encouraged us to define what success means to us and give ourselves and those around us permission to change, too. Having a different thought or opinion today is a sign of growth and is essential to achieve your level of success.

Self-neglect can’t be part of the equation if you want success at work AND at home.

Oh, Michael Hyatt. I think this man spoke to every person in the audience. He assured us that you can indeed be successful at work, make all your ambitions reality, and have a healthy body and home life. When we’re busy or working towards a goal, we often let ourselves go first. It’s the easiest thing to let down because it doesn’t affect anyone but ourselves. But what we don’t take into account is that it eventually does. If we’re not rested, eating well, taking care of our bodies and building in exercise or down time, we can’t operate on our best level. Eventually we get too tired, too weak or just simply lose momentum, and if we can’t take care of ourselves, we certainly can’t take care of others. Bottom line, if you want to achieve success at work and home, you MUST take care of you, first.

Protect your energy.

Dr. Mae Jemison is the first female of color to go into space. This lady is a legit astronaut. This was one of my favorite messages because she encouraged us to protect our energy, regardless of other people’s opinions or comments. If you’re excited, challenge yourself not to let others bring you down. If you’re focused on a goal, protect your time to achieve it. If someone asks you to do something but you know you can’t or don’t want to, say no. It can be challenging to work towards something when people start to doubt you, but that’s often the time you need to protect your energy most and stay focused on your mission.

Understand who you are and how it affects others.

Ian Cron was simply funny. He had a laid-back personality infused with humor and relatable moments. He introduced us to the Enneagram, a test to determine which of the nine distinct personality types you possess. By knowing your strengths, weaknesses and tendencies, you can better control your self-awareness and know when to pull back or add more of you. He encouraged us to ask those around us, “What do you know about me, that I need to know about me?” Some deep stuff that makes a lot of sense!

Leadercast is by far my favorite event of the year. It’s key to not only listen to these messages, but decide when and how you’ll fold it into your life. The good news is, if this interests you, you can join us on Friday, October 12^th at HCC for Leadercast Women or next year on May 10^th, 2019 for Leadercast Live. Contact Courtney@worxgd.com for more details! Until then, keep being a leader worth following.