I know what you’re thinking right now! I don’t have time. What’s Winter got to do with Leadership? I reckon there’s a link between leadership and the seasons for sure. If nothing else a season gives us a focus for leadership and I support Winter as the season for Rest, Reflect, Review and Reset. Many see Summer and the new year as the time for this. I’ll argue it’s better in Winter and leave your Summer months for holidays, family and fun!

“The Winter months are about resting and not pushing through. They are about recognising that you might be running close to empty or experiencing overwhelm. They are about resting and resetting your day, your health and your energy. Winter is about returning to and making more time for the things that warm and nurture you.” 
Jo Eady

Today, I want to share some practical ways to support your leadership wellbeing through Winter. These are practical things for you to lean in to for the cooler and slower months. Feeling warm from the inside out is the goal. I often say leadership starts from the inside out so this is even more reason to put in place some Winter wellbeing rituals.

1. Rug up and take a walk – Take a walk. Sitting inside working all day with the heater going and a lack of fresh air doesn’t create a healthy environment. Take time to get outside. Even on the coldest of days, a walk will warm you.

2. Read a book – Grab one of the books you’ve been meaning to read all year and actually open the pages. Curl up on a chair near the window and rest and read at the same time.

3. Go to bed when you’re tired – Bank up some sleep and energy. Listen to your body and head off to bed when you feel tired, even if it is at 8 pm!

4. Eat a warm breakfast – Have a slow morning and make a warm breakfast.  Try rolled oats, a poached egg on toast or smashed avo!

5. Make three nights a week home nights – Block out three nights per week where you stay home guilt free.

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful as you head into Winter days, weeks and months?

The post Wrap Up for Winter Wellbeing appeared first on Ruralscope.

Let’s pause for a minute. I know that the ability to back yourself comes easier to some personality types than others. Regardless, backing yourself is a commitment to putting your best self forward and this is important for anyone wanting to develop their leadership. I saw fabulous examples of leaders doing this and there was much to learn.

“Backing yourself is a commitment to putting your best self forward and this is important for anyone wanting to develop their leadership. It’s about developing a deep trust in yourself, quietening your inner critic and taking action even when things are uncertain. It requires you to live comfortably in the grey and not the black or white of life”
Jo Eady

Today, I want to share some practical ways of backing yourself. No time here to get caught up in your own thinking or listen closely to your imposter. Instead take some actions that really do move you from passive to active, become assertive, support you to take control of your leadership image and become your own loudest cheerleader. Your leadership will shine.

1. Create Your Own Proof Portfolio – Track your wins. Recognise and write them down daily or weekly. The facts don’t lie. Read them often. This will counter feelings of imposter syndrome.

2. Nurture Your Internal Narrative –  Give yourself permission to grow, to make mistakes, to try something before its perfect and to learn. Instead of wanting to be perfect, learn to be imperfect and do it anyway.

3. Stop Saying Sorry – Swap out phrases like “Sorry I just …” to be more assertive ones like “I want to add…..” And never ever apologise for taking up space. If you’re at the table then this is where you are meant to be.

4. Move Comparison to Motivation – It’s so easy to compare yourself to others. Channel your motivation and treat their success as a lighthouse for you and that your goals are achievable. Take lessons from them for your own journey.

5. Hold Your Head High – I remember being told this by my beautiful Mum and I am often reminded of it! It’s similar to hold your ground. It’s all about being proud and showing this pride by how you show up – strong shoulders, sit up at the table and maintain an open facial expression.

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful to back yourself better today than you did yesterday?

The post Back Yourself Big Time appeared first on Ruralscope.

In today’s Newsy, let’s take some time to more fully understand the traits that contribute to being a great mentor / mentee. Knowing yourself. This means being self aware. Being aware of your strengths and how you show up in a relationship, conversation, a challenge and when under pressure or when asked to think strategically. Here are some of the key traits that effective mentors and mentees bring to the mentoring relationship.

You can use this list is a Checklist for yourself and then the mentee or mentor you’re working with. Share it and use it for discussion. These traits will give you a jumpstart to your mentoring partnership.

“Mentoring should be a fulfilling relationship between somebody with more experience and somebody with less, with the goal of helping both individuals become elevated versions of themselves” 
Janice Omadeke

And now here are some tips to kickstart and maintain your effective mentoring partnership.

1. Get to Know Each Other. Remind yourself to take time to connect and get to know each other. Strong mentoring relationships need strong foundations.

2. Buy In with Boundaries. Be clear that this is a mentoring relationship. It’s not a friendship or mateship, it’s a coming together to work on a shared vision and develop knowledge and skills along the way relationship.

3. Meet with Purpose. There’s no room for friendly have a chats ONLY in mentoring. Always set a purpose and develop shared purpose for your mentoring sessions. Even if this happens in the first 5 mins of the mentoring session, it’s super important that you commence with a shared purpose for your meeting. My top tip would be to not continue until you have this!

4. Maintain a Productive Process. Establish and maintain processes across your mentoring partnership and sessions. These should include templates, session timelines etc

5. Maintain Positive Energy. It’s likely things might go off track at some stage in the partnership. Maintain your energy during this time and build in a session to reset or re-goal so you both come back on board with shared expectations

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you?  Could any be helpful in your mentoring relationships today?

The post Mentoring is Not Magic appeared first on Ruralscope.

As part of the Australian Grain Leaders Program, we facilitated a short workshop about ways of managing Imposter Syndrome last week. It affects around 82% of people and occurs more for women than for men. This means it’s something to watch out for as leaders set visions, challenge how and try new things. If you’re stretching yourself, out of your comfort zone and are worried about how something is going to land with others– then watch out – this is a perfect time for an Imposter to appear.

“Imposter syndrome is a psychological phenomenon where high-achieving individuals doubt their accomplishments and fear being exposed as “frauds,” despite evidence of success. Symptoms include chronic self-doubt, attributing success to luck, perfectionism, and fear of failure”.
– American Psychological Association

If you want to go into detail about the types of Imposter Syndrome and why they show up for leaders then take a read of anything that Dr Valerie Young writes on the subject. Based on research, she talks about their being 5 common Imposters;

• The Perfectionist
• The Expert
• The Soloist
• The Natural Genius
• The Superhuman

If you’re interested to see which ones might be showing up for you then Click Here for more information.

A few years ago in the Australian Future Cotton Leaders Program, a researcher dedicated their time to how Imposter Syndrome shows up and most importantly what leaders can do to prepare for it, normalise it and take responsibility for working with and through it each and every time.

We know that people who feel like imposters, hold themselves to unrealistic, unsustainable standards of competence and expectation. It’s a no / never win situation. It’s really important that you adjust your beliefs about what it takes to be competent. And to accept that perfect isn’t always possible.

Here are some practical tips to help manage the Imposters when they show up in your leadership role and space.

1. Recognise the Facts. When Imposter Syndrome hits, breath and look at the bigger picture. Jot down the facts that support the out of comfort zone activity you’re doing eg on stage presenting. And monitor your self talk and override the not true things that are coming up. Facts never lie.

2. Cultivate Self Compassion. This is about shifting from external to internal validation. It’s linked to self worth. Mindfulness is key as it’s all about comfortably being yourself regardless of what’s happening around you and your accomplishments. It’s about knowing and feeling you are enough just the way you are.

3. Let Go of Being Perfect 100% of the Time. As Brene Brown says, it’s about progress over perfection. Accept you don’t (and can’t) know it all and greet each leadership challenge as something to work through, rather than something to get “right”.

4. Share Your Failures.  We usually see all the good bits and not the ‘failures’ or the things that didn’t go so well behind the scenes. Take some time to chat with colleagues about what’s happening for you, and I guarantee you, they will share right back things that didn’t work for them. There’s real power in knowing that the people you may have thought knew everything or deliver a perfect speech actually don’t!

5. Accept It! Imposter Syndrome isn’t a disease but it is something that may pop up each time you take something on or are challenged outside your comfort zone. Normalise it. And accept, it’s another leadership tool. Something to use and not something to fear or run away from.

Over to you.

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful in the way you think about yourself, your inner chatter, in your work and relationships today?

The post Imposter Be Gone appeared first on Ruralscope.

Last Newsy I wrote about boundaries. Today, it’s important to really exercise your boundaries so you see the glass as half full (and not half empty). This will see you take time to identify what you can control and what you can’t and to focus on the things you can. And then to put your energy towards these things and not towards the things you can’t control. This is a really positive way to implement your boundaries and to ensure you give yourself the best chance of not becoming overwhelmed by the things you can’t control. Here’s a reminder….

I hear you – this is all very well and good when you are feeling on top of things, and so very much harder when you’re not. I find it a challenge scrolling through social media and seeing posts about things that can’t be controlled. I wonder how many people absorb this. Right now, it’s important to put your mindset into the hope and optimism gear!

“The best leaders tap the optimism of their teams. They strengthen confidence, broaden perspective, and remind people that the future can be better, and that we can help build it together. In uncertain times, people look to leaders for optimism and for a clear vision of the future.

That is why realistic and infectious optimism matters so much in leadership. The infectiously optimistic leader does more than set strategy. They lift the team’s spirits. They bring steadiness in difficulty, confidence in uncertainty, and energy for the work ahead. They help others believe that progress is possible and that their contribution matters.” 
– Victor Perton. The Centre for Optimism

Here are some practical tips for moving into the gear of optimism…..

1. In Your Control / Out of Your Control. Remind yourself and others – especially those in your teams about what’s in your control and what isn’t.

2. Don’t Buy In. Scan your social media ,online news, newspaper and TV news reports using the In Your Control and Out of Your Control radar. Give more time to what’s in rather than what’s out of your control.

3. Redirect Your Thinking / Energy. We all have off moments / times. Take extra care to recognise when you become fixated on things you can’t control and remember to move your mindset into the gear of optimism. Put your energy into the things that you can influence.

4. Be Consistent. You will know when you’re becoming overwhelmed by what you are seeing and hearing – especially on social media and in the news. As soon as this happens remind yourself of and turn your energy to what you can control.

5. Radiate the Energy of Optimism. Tap into your own as well as the optimism of your team. Lift your spirits and bring confidence in uncertainty.

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful in your work / relationships today?

The post Dial Up Your Optimism Today appeared first on Ruralscope.

Setting and exercising boundaries is critical for maintaining healthy relationships, protecting your mental wellbeing, and creating a balanced life. To be honest, given the mental loads people carry these days, I wonder what or how effective the boundaries are that people set. So what exactly is a boundary?

“Boundaries are the limits you set to define what you are comfortable with and how you expect others to treat you.”

Without clear boundaries, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, taken advantage of (which I know leads to resentment or as we call it in our family the Capital R), or emotionally drained. Learning to establish and maintain boundaries is a powerful form of self-respect. This extends from respect for yourself to your work / job, business, family, community etc. Yep, it’s boundaries all round.

One of the key reasons boundaries matter is that they help preserve your energy. When you constantly say “yes” to others without considering your own needs, it can lead to the Capital R as well as burnout.

“Boundaries allow you to prioritise what truly matters. This ensures your time and energy are spent in ways that align with your values.”

Boundaries improve relationships because when you clearly communicate what’s OK and what’s not OK to others it fosters trust and respect. People know where they stand. If you don’t set and exercise your boundaries – physical, emotional, mental and material it’s highly likely frustrations and misunderstandings will build up. This can then lead to tension, conflict and even a breakdown of the relationship. Boundaries help to maintain self respect.

Here are some practical tips for setting effective boundaries…….

1. Know what’s OK and what’s not OK for you. Set your limits. This extends from what time you start / finish work, to how long phone calls are or even if you take a call, how many times a day you check your emails or social media or when / if you lend family / friends money. Some people refer to them as your “rules”.

2. Availability to others. Have you noticed how easy it is for people to ask you for or to do something and how difficult it can be to say “NO”? Have some one-liners up your sleeve to help like “I can’t be in Queensland on that date” “I’m not available for that right now” “I’m leaving at 10 am”. Value your own wellbeing by saying NO.

3. Emotional availability to others. Support others without taking on their emotional load. I find this important when coaching and facilitating. Knowing I’m not responsible for other people’s happiness has been a game changer for me.

4. Be consistent. You will know when your boundaries are being tested. Be consistent. Consistency reinforces what’s OK and what’s not OK for you and shows that you are serious about them. People will get the message if you maintain consistency and you will maintain your boundary = happiness.

5. Habits and rituals. I use habits and rituals to maintain boundaries, and especially so when travelling. This includes a stash of my own herbal tea bags, taking my morning greens, heading to bed around 10 pm, setting agendas for the following day the night before, completing a mental SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) scan after each meeting / facilitation and reading a couple of chapters of a good book before lights out.

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful in your work / relationships today?

The post Boundaries are a No Brainer! appeared first on Ruralscope.

My challenge, as trusted coach, is to make the time in our coaching sessions useful and most of all transformative. To act as a resource and introduce just in time information, constructs, stories, questions and of course some theory too to generate enough interest to support you to “do” leadership and to act, implement, try, stumble and put in place a change – no matter how small – to grow and enhance your leadership. No amount of leadership theory on its own is going to get you to this point but some carefully crafted questions that generate an understanding of leadership and how it plays out in your everyday life and work will. I can say this with confidence as it’s played out to be true time and time again in the leadership and coaching programs I and many of my colleagues facilitate.

Making leadership relevant to the everyday is the focus of these newsies. This issue is all about how to lead with heart. And here are some ways to do just that. No Uni degree needed, no 3 day workshop, no 40 page workbook, just some things that you can consciously do with commitment that  are certain to make a change. You’ll know as people will relate to you in a different way. Watch out for it. Would love to know which of these make sense for you right now (if any) too.

Be 100% present – show up with focus on others.

Bring 100% focus to conversations – listen, listen, listen and then talk.

Listen deeply – listen first to understand and only then to be understood. 

Speak with integrity – say what you mean and be clear about it. Luv the quote from Brene Brown. “Clear is kind, unclear is unkind.”

Work ‘with’ people – talk and work ‘with’ people rather than doing things ‘to’ or ‘for’ people. This one is about respect and shared power.

Be a role model – walk the talk.

Ask of yourself what you ask of others – this gives we are in this together vibe.

Be kind – acts of kindness are easily noticed. It can be as simple as saying “you did a great job today” as you walk past a team member.

Tell the truth – say no more – there is no room for lies in leadership.

Show empathy – this is about connecting with emotions. A great place to start is to show you recognise the emotions of others.

Over to You

Do any of these resonate for you? Could any be helpful in your work / relationships today?

The post Lead With Heart Everyday appeared first on Ruralscope.

During this time, I played with a beautiful wood Martina racquet (tucked a few tournament and Saturday championships in my pocket) And when I wasn’t playing tennis, I raced around our concrete tennis court, over the cracks and under the net like I was speed skating at the Olympics on my trusty bright yellow skateboard. As I look back, and my family will attest, I’m lucky there were no emergency trips to the hospital with all my skateboarding antics. A couple of skinned knees and elbows for sure.

There were lessons I learned then that I’m sure have contributed to my leadership. Here’s a round up.

1. Persistence – Keep your eye on the target. I spent hours hitting balls (volleys) against the 10th board of our weatherboard house. And weeks perfecting a fast corner turn on my skateboard.

2. Go for Better and Best – Erase expectations from your thinking. Improvement comes from striving to do better, not expecting or going for the win, but doing your best. The wins follow.

3. Technique Matters – Being coached is the way to go. We went to a tennis coaching clinic for country kids in the Summer holidays. I learned a technique for a slice backhand – awkward to start but pretty fast and effective once I got my eye in. Be open to change.

4. Capability – Know you’re enough just the way you are. Know what you’re capable of. How hard can you push yourself, how close to the line can you serve that ball and how close to the corner can you skate before having to turn it hit the grass.

5. Conditions – Know when the conditions are favourable and know when they aren’t. Have patience, your turn will come again. Sometimes you get one chance to make that shot – make it, even if it spins in off the edge of the racket.

Over to You

Do any of these lessons resonate for you and your job, business, leadership role today? Have you leadership lessons from when you were younger? How do they play out in your work and life today?

The post Leadership Lessons from When I was 10 appeared first on Ruralscope.

I’m prompted to share this with you today because it’s the beginning of the year and I want to encourage you to reflect on who you are and how you’re going to lead this year. Take a minute to stop and ask yourself these three questions about your leadership;

1. What are you going to continue doing?
2. What are you going to stop doing? and most importantly
3. What are you going to start doing?

Go on, stop reading and answer these questions, just one thing for each is enough for now! This will help you sit with your leadership more comfortably for yourself and those you lead. You know when you’re in the presence of a leader – you feel comfortable, at ease, respected, connected and valued. This is what I want for you. Leadership is an everyday thing for all of us, so it makes sense to become as consciously aware of yourself as you can. And everyone benefits.

More to come in a future blog post, but here’s a heads up for you. Two books have got my hear t racing in recent times. The first is Ben Crowe’s new release, Where the light gets in and the other is Neale Daniher’s The power of choice. I hear from others they are both life changers so check them out if this resonates.

Here are 5 ways we know work for those of you wanting to lead yourself better.

1. Become more self aware. Identify what your strengths are – what are you really good at? What are your strengths? And with this comes the opposite, what are you not so good at? Start reflecting on who you are, what your default style is and how you show up.

2. Deepen connection. This is with yourself and with others. Take time to really connect and get to know yourself and others. Connect with others via heart and then head – feeling and then thinking.

3. Be kind. Speak as kindly to yourself as you do to others. Go with strengths and positives first every time.

4. Know your values. Really get to know your values and lean into and live them. They are your guideposts for life and will help you stay on track to being your best self.

5. Take note of others. Other people give insights into who we are and how we lead everyday. Watch how they connect (or don’t) with you. Listen to what they share and say to you (or don’t). As leaders, how we think of ourselves matters and so does how others see and think of us.

Over to You

Take some time to think about what you’re going to do in the next couple of weeks and get cracking. Ohhh and if you haven’t, scroll back up and answer the three questions above!

The post Lead Yourself First appeared first on Ruralscope.

A week later as I reflect on the topics, activities, participation and feedback from the day, I felt compelled to share with you. My key reason is to motivate and inspire you to consider a team day at least annually. A day where you can come together offsite, without phones, with a well planned agenda of activities to really support, nurture and grow your team.

Some questions to ask yourself right now….

1. When was the last time we came together to work on ourselves and our team?
2. Do you have a team workplan that guides energy, effort and activity?
3. Could your team benefit from learning about the predictable stages of group development?
4. Are you willing to create a safe place for your team to engage, support and challenge each other?

Soooo, are you feeling inspired / motivated to facilitate a team session / day / retreat? 

If so, here are the top 5 things I suggest are ‘must haves’ for a successful time for you and your team.

1. Environment Matters. Choose a spot at the beach or in the mountains where you can experience that ‘away from it all’ type feeling. That place where you see people exhale when they open the door at the venue for the first time.

2. Activate Early.  Share what you are doing and why way in advance.  Ask the team to prepare so they know the expectations and are ready to go with pre/ during and post event activities.

3. Quality Food. Plan this well. Healthy all the way. A cook your own meal is a great way to go – from a BBQ to a roast – everyone can help out and the conversations when preparing food can be relaxing allowing for some great personal and professional sharings.

4. Plan, Plan, Plan. Ensure everything you plan relates easily to your team members and their work. Select activities, speakers and experiences that are going to add value by building confidence, knowledge and commitment.

5. Try Out. Develop some new working together better team ideas that you can then take back and put in place as the year progresses. Eg a Team Charter

Over to You

Take some time to reflect on these. Are any helpful to you right now? Do you feel inspired to get your team together soon?

The post Is Your Team Ready for the Year Ahead? appeared first on Ruralscope.