Authentic Leadership

The five essential dimensions of “authentic” leaders are purpose, values, heart, relationships, and self-discipline  according to, Bill George in his book, Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value.
Authentic leaders demonstrate a passion for their purpose, practice their values consistently, and lead with their hearts as well as their heads.  They establish long-term, meaningful relationships and have the self-discipline to get results.
According to Michael Hyatt, the five marks of authentic leadership are insight, initiative, influence, impact and integrity.  Authentic leaders need to be able to look at complex situations, gain clarity, and determine a course of action. They lead by example, move people to act and create real and lasting change.  Authentic leadership is built on a foundation of integrity.
We believe that authentic leadership is critical during times of change. Last week we shared three tips to be authentic when leading change. Here are two additional tips for leading through change authentically:

• Discard –      negative feelings or frustrations about the change need to get unloaded periodically or they get dumped on your people.  Whether it’s exercise, massage or a punching bag, you must have a way to regularly unload your burdens.  Last week we also suggested finding a trusted confidant to talk with.
• Detach –      in the midst of change there is a lot of chaos swirling about.  It’s critical to take time alone to align your thoughts and emotions. Build in time for quiet contemplation to ensure that you are working through your internal transition process and making good leadership decisions about the change.  Detaching can involve taking a walk, engaging in a practice of mindfulness or going for a drive.

Be a trustworthy, authentic leader through change by taking time to delineate, describe, designate, discard and detach.  You will be more effective as you lead others through change.