I want my client to be transparent, authentic, and play to his positivity strengths. And, I want him to hide his fears and tune into his body language when he’s feeling overwhelmed and having, in his words, that “Oh, shit!” moment. I want him to lean against his tendency and fight his natural, hard wiring. I want him to remain cool, calm, and collected when his brain tells him it’s catastrophic and time to go all defcon 4.
I want my client, in other words, to live in some state of tension where he’s transparent and holds his cards close to his vest too. I want him to be his authentic, emotional sleeve wearing kinda fella too until he senses he’s headed to shut down and then I want him to fake it until he “feels” better. I want him to understand this is the price of leading anything. I want him to understand he is alone and he has a team all around him. Makes no sense, does it?
Paradox.
Embrace paradox, leader. If this is easy for you at the moment, leader, remember it won’t be for long. Embracing paradox sounds all well and good until you realize the confusion that comes along as as unintended consequence. So, leader, you’ve gotta make your peace with how you authentically, transparently, lead your team and at the same time shield them from the “Oh, Shit!” moments you have along the way.
Good…
BUILT TO LEAD 