Most of my coaching clients have made it near or to the top of their profession. They have the 3P’s that the world tends to value. Power. Position. Prestige. And, an often unintended consequence is another pair of not so popular P’s. You see, my clients are mostly positional leaders and with the high perch comes large doses of pain. Nothing hurts them more than this sense they’re alone. Study any significant leader in recent or ancient history and you’ll see the high price they paid. It hurts doesn’t it, Mom’s? It hurts doesn’t it Presidents? It hurts doesn’t it…
And, another unintended “P” hits us harder the stronger you and I become. You see, the stronger we become the more likely we are to become proud. The problem with pride is it attacks each of us in our sweet spot. For instance, I’m not proud of my handyman skills. I suck at fixing anything. Mechanical man, I am not. Say what you like about my ability to draw, make music, or find the structure and order in a system like the Gurue. You won’t catch me feeling hurt at all. I’ll laugh along and agree. Tell me I’m wrong about anything I believe I’ve studied, however, and you’ll see it. Tell me I’m not good at putting my thoughts to paper, you’ll see it. Tell me you don’t think I’m a master of my craft, you’ll see it. Tell me you don’t think my daughter is a lot like me, or that my bride is not a strong Greek-Comanche, you’ll see it. There is a fine line between a strong sense of self that produces the confidence to perform and an inflated sense of self that is the seed of self destruction.
There is a reason that the 12 essential of excellence playbooks have building your humility as the second in line. We want our clients to build CORE strength within and once they have a strong sense of who they are, what they believe, why they’re here, and where they’re going, we slow them down and have these strong, clear, positional leaders take a pause. We ask them to look for their pride problem. Together, we build some humility. I never cease to see the need – at least for me.
Power. Position. Prestige. The unintend pair – Pain & Pride. Maybe, just maybe, working on your pride will alleviate some pain. God, help me look up and see you. God, help me gain your perspective. Funny, as long as I’m looking up at You, it’s hard to get all bold and bent about looking down. God, help me…
BUILT TO LEAD 