Do you judge yourself?
Today’s leadership kick: It’s hard to show up in leadership if you’re full of judgment.
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I had a doozy of a day last week. I was in a coaching session with a client who generously provided some feedback and my ego had a heyday. Before I knew it I had a pit in my stomach, I started to sweat, and my speaking sped up. I started talking too much, which is always a sign that I’m working way too hard trying to prove something. I’d lost my way, clearly, and it felt crappy in the moment and even crappier when I got off the call.
Fortunately for me, I had my weekly call with two coaches I work with directly after. By this point, I was in a giant shame spiral and wishing I’d handled it differently.
One of the coaches gracefully reminded me about a concept from one of my favorite leadership books, ‘Getting Real’: the idea that I can go out and come back in.
As soon as she said it, my little voice went: ‘my clients, friends, and children get do-overs, but I certainly don’t.
Then it hit me. Why the heck not?!
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I realized I have a pattern. When I don’t get something right, I beat myself up about it, leaking energy all over the place, which in turn keeps me from “going back in” and giving myself a do-over. And because I had little-to-no self-forgiveness for how I’d shown up, I had zero capacity to see what was possible by going back to the client and cleaning it up.
” It’s hard to show up in leadership if who you’re BEING in the moment is full of judgment.”
So I got to work on the self-forgiveness bit – I’ll share practical pro tips on that in the coming weeks. I found compassion for ‘not getting it right the first time.’ Then I was empowered to go back to my client and have the conversation again but from a place of responsibility and accountability.
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