Why Do You Lead?
Tuesday, July 21, marked the centennial of the birth of violinist Isaac Stern. That week, NPR broadcast a brief remembrance of his life and career:
In listening to the remembrance, I was struck by something Stern said in an interview with NPR in 1999:
“In the process of learning, look for the answer, the real answer, not how to play, but why. Why do you play? Why do you want to be a musician? What do you want to say? Only a human being can speak with a certain individual voice. And that’s what every musician has to learn.”
TBG’s mission is to help our clients “Make Their Leadership Matter.” Making your leadership matter begins by asking and answering Isaac Stern’s questions: Why do you lead? Why do you want to be a leader? What is the unique impact you want to make on your employees, organization, and society?
A leader can be very successful at maintaining the status quo and keeping “the trains running” without answering these questions. But you will never make the unique impact you are capable of without having answered the questions Stern challenges you to learn.
It is not easy to answer these questions, and the consequence of knowing the answers can also be difficult. Inevitably, making your unique impact will require making and acting on tough, unpopular decisions. No leader is perfect or without sin, but people like Lincoln and Churchill made history because of their unique personalities, how they saw the world, and their willingness and courage to act on their vision for what was right and necessary.
The best leaders I have known and worked with came to understand what they, uniquely, could accomplish in their time as a leader. Each came to see that their personal histories, talents, and weaknesses combined to bring a personal perspective to their vision for their organization. It also formed the basis for their burning passion to realize their personal potential and to maximize the impact of their firms
Executive coaching can be a critical lever for helping you to learn how to make your leadership matter. Assessment results, conversations, assigned readings, insatiable curiosity, and a coach 100% committed to you and your success combine in a coaching relationship to lead you to the self-awareness required to make your leadership truly matter.
Are you ready to commit to making your leadership matter? If your answer is yes, The Bailey Group has a roadmap and passionate, experienced coaches to support you in your personal journey. Simply email me directly, or sign up for a no cost consultation.
