What is an encompassed leader?

Over the years, many people have told me I’m the best leader they’ve worked with. It’s SOOOO not British to brag like that, so I’m going to embrace my confident American self and say it again… nope that’s a step too far.

It has however made me reflect on what leads people to say that… what was it that I did or didn’t do that people liked and respected. I suppose firstly, for those I led, I never let myself forget what it felt like on the frontline. I spent time sitting in my teams, talking to social workers and sharing stories so that I never forgot the tough often relentless job they were doing each day.

And during those times, I shared bits of myself. I shared my own memories of home visits where I felt anxious or the first time giving evidence in court when I thought it should feel like an American court drama (my manager’s face said otherwise!) or the time I couldn’t get a car seat fixed in my car and was stressing while the family was shouting abuse at me. We connected through our shared experiences of social work.

I certainly grew as a leader over the years. At first, I thought it was all about power and control. Eek, I wouldn’t have wanted to work for me then! But I softened over the years and realised the power of connection, empathy and kindness in creating a culture of psychological safety where people could share their worries or share when they got things wrong without fear of being ridiculed, blamed or shamed.

It’s important that as leaders we bring clarity to the vision for the team or service so that people know where they’re going and why they’re going there. But I learned that the vision for the service is stronger the more involved the service is.

My own vision may neglect to consider it from a variety of different perspectives, but by including the perspectives of others, we are stronger together. I think it’s easy as a leader to feel like you need to have all the answers and you need to be in charge, but actually, by realising the power of the collective, you can retain your leadership position but also empower others to grow around you.

Finally, the more confident I grew in my leadership style and the more people shared how it felt to work with me, the more I was able to take off my own mask and lead with greater authenticity.

It’s been my own recipe for success. I wonder what your recipe for success is?

We cover all of this and more on our Encompassed Leader series:

Enhancing your self awareness

Connection

Masks, Psychological Safety and Authenticity

Support and Supervision

Empathy

Developing your path

If you’re interested in support on your improvement journey,
book a free consultation here.