New Year, New Leadership Possibilities

At the risk of sounding cliché, it’s hard to believe another year is almost in the books.  

Year end is the perfect opportunity to do some self-reflection. I’m inspired to celebrate and learn from 2017, and also dream forward to 2018 with all of its possibilities. There are two questions I ask:  

• How did I challenge myself and grow as a leader this year?  
• How will I challenge myself and grow as a leader in the coming year?  

One of my coaches has this brilliant phrase: “It’s hard to read the label from the inside of the box.”  

It always feels more comfortable at the time to stay on the current path, to keeping doing things the way they’ve always been done. But that puts us into a box. A box of our own design, and it’s tough to see beyond it.   

Each of us has an individual leadership path, but the one thing we all share is that leaders step out of the box and into possibility. Accepting possibility as your norm is the only way to get beyond the status quo to achieve more success and significance. 

This year I pushed myself out of my box and into possibility by becoming an author. It’s something I’ve dreamed of for a long time, and this was the year I made the commitment. The first decision was to decide. Once I decided, it helped me to accept possibility as the norm. From there it was taking the next best action, one step at time. It challenged me to grow as a leader, by sharing my ideas on a bigger scale and platform. I’m excited that The Modern Seller will be published in 2018 – and the next possibilities that come with that.  

Usually, we’re our own worst enemy when it comes to limiting our possibilities. To grow ourselves as well as those around us, we need a growth mindset; we need to choose habits that continually challenge us to live in possibility. 

I’ll share with you a few of the habits that have helped me create a growth mindset– to get out of the box and into possibility. 

• Vision boarding. Vision boarding has helped me to dream of the future I want to create both personally and professionally. It’s a visual reminder I keep all year long, and having that vision in front of me makes everything more tangible and actionable.  
• Examine your decision-making process. For example, do you ask advice from people with a box mindset or a possibility mindset? Get a different perspective by changing your physical scenery, brainstorming all outcomes, or asking a trusted advisor that can help you look at the possibilities and not just the limitations. 
• Have a plan to handle negativity. When I’m taking on something that I know will have lots of “growth moments” it helps me to be aware of my inner voice. If the voice is saying things like “I could never” or “I shouldn’t” or “Who am I to do this,” I know I’m in the box. It’s my cue to decode the negativity, figure out where it’s coming from and then figure out a positive trigger. Past successes are positive triggers for me, and reminding myself that leadership is taking the next best step – without all of the answers.  

What will you do in 2018 to get out of your box and transform your possibilities into reality? 

For more tips on becoming your best leader, I invite you to read my ebook, Leadership Lessons: Five Strategies for a Leadership Identity with Impact.