The UNTHINKABLE articles were first posted on Linked In.
I smile as I recognise that the speed of change and evolution now means that I’ve put developing this leadership model on hold for now. I am, however, leaving these 7 articles up as I feel they do illustrate core source issues and opportunities for leaders to look at in themselves prior to developing and practicing their own evolution of their leadership.
(The sixth in a series of articles inspired by a Sep 26, 2017 Workshop for Entrepreneurial Scotland)
Of all the books I read and recommend to others, top of the list is Man’s Search for Meaning. There is so much in this short volume to recommend, and at the core of it is Frankl’s philosophy that our core driver is to find meaning in life (which ties back to the Japanese concept of Ikigai, written about a number of times on my site, including here)
Today’s article focusses on the third of the elements under the them of “Let Go“. Once we have self-knowledge and then focus that on managing the energy, what level of ability do we have to be “response-able” when needed as leaders?
As Frankl puts it :
“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
and
“The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.”
I’ve heard leaders argue that they are under stress, they have too much to do, that others don’t understand what it is like. The first half of Frankl’s book tells his story of surviving in a nazi concentration camp. He was able to respond.
On a perhaps more relatable level for us, yet still literally unbelievable for many, an astonishing ultra-endurance athlete called Mark Beaumont in September 2017 smashed the world record for cycling around the world, beating the mythical “Around the World in 80 days” by riding 18,049 miles in 78 days and 14 hours. Do your own calculations on this. Unthinkable indeed !
After completing the ride, Mark did a 35″ interview with Global Cycling Network and a lot of it was about the physical endurance needed for the ride. Amazing though those elements of the interview were, what really struck me was Mark’s mental approach.
Listen from 5:54 to 7:15 here , where he talks about : “once you are fully committed….your ability to complete is your ability to suffer…..”
Also from 14:13 to here, including “after you are two or three weeks in…the body has an amazing ability to adapt…if you’ve not broken down and had to stop after the first two or three weeks”. Yes, he is talking about ignoring injuries and the mental fortitude of getting through the first TWO OR THREE WEEKS with injuries etc. Unreal.
I’ve known Mark for some years and always been inspired by him. Inspirational level of self-knowledge gained through his global adventures. I can imagine Mark would only very rarely react, rather than be response-able, whatever comes his way.
How about you, looking honestly at self, are you able to respond or do you react? If you have worked for or with a leader who tends to react, what is the impact on you and others?