"LEADERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE PEOPLE ARE AT THEIR BEST".

I love this quote from Simon Sinek. But concretely, what does this mean? What kind of environment should a leader foster, and more especially in an ever-changing world?

There has been a lot written about Leadership in uncertain times. Over the last months, I have had the pleasure to interview and have conversations with many leaders. We supported many others and their teams through these times of uncertainty.

COVID-19 and the resulting pandemic have reminded us that the world is "VUCA,"(Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) and it’s likely to continue. In these times of uncertainty, where Covid-19 is sweeping the workforce, those in leadership positions are forced to adapt and flex new leadership muscles. They face challenges for which no playbook is defined. The current pandemic will end, and a “New Normal” will emerge from it.

According to leadership experts, leaders will face new challenges that do not have existing solutions, in the face of which they will have to make sound decisions. This raises the question of the critical leadership skills required to thrive and succeed in an uncertain and complex environment.

In my recent series, "Leading In Uncertain Times," it became apparent that while different companies came up with other solutions in the crisis, there were crucial similarities between leaders' approaches.

In this article, I share five essential skills that emerged throughout the different interviews and conversations I had with senior leaders worldwide.

I recently have been coaching a senior leader who wanted to boost an innovative spirit within his teams and was struggling to have his teams taking that shift. This challenge is by nature an “adaptive” challenge and requires from the leader a capacity to drive a change of behavior and mindsets.

As stated in the excellent book "Immunity to change" (written by psychologists Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey), lot's of barriers to change initiatives are internal ones. Shifting our mindset and behaviors typically requires to first instill a more conscious and constructive set of beliefs. Kegan and Lahey designed a four-steps approach guiding people through a process of self-examination, thereby helping them identify and adjust assumptions that may be holding them back.

In tis article I highlight this 4-steps approach by 1) stating the questions you can ask yourself, and then 2) illustrate it based on the example used by the authors of the book.

In current times of Covid-19 it’s key to foster one’s resilience. In below infographic we have summarized some concrete actions you can take to grow your personal resilience.

Have a look, and see which ones you want to build in into your daily routines.

Symbolically, Autumn is a time for reflection and gratitude. A time to slow down and look back where we are coming from and where we're going. As a leader it is key to regularly step “on the balcony”, and take some perspective on things. With Autumn, we invite you to reflect on below questions to further grow your response-ability in face of the situations in your life. The current Covid19 context is showing more than ever that the world is calling for conscious and response-able leaders.

Samedi matin, 6h….comme tous les matins mon réveil biologique s’active et je suis prête à entamer ma journée avec un petit jogging matinal. Quel plaisir de sortir à l’éveil du jour, pas âme qui vive, retrouver la nature, le vent frais sur mon visage, le chant des oiseaux…Une belle journée qui s’annonce !

Et voilà qu’une pointe aiguë me lance le genou. Je réduis le rythme, essaye de reprendre ma course, mais cette sensation d’aiguille qui transperce mon genou m’amène à opter pour la marche.

Changement de rythme…et je prends conscience de la beauté qui m’entoure : les champs parsemés de fleurs sauvages, les prairies avec les chevaux, les vues imprenables. Et je baigne dans toute cette splendeur.

Je ralentis encore davantage, et m’émerveille devant les détails que nous offre la nature : la rosée du matin, les gouttelettes d’eau en équilibre fragile sur une feuille, des structures cristallines. Et je contemple cette perfection de la nature.

J’ai toujours été émerveillée par l’équilibre des gouttes.

Aujourd’hui je me suis demandée pourquoi. Quel sens ces gouttes et leur fragile équilibre représente pour moi? Qu’y vois-je ?

The latest confinement measures decided in several countries requires all of us to work from home for the next coming weeks. You might thus wonder what is the best way to maximize productivity and maintain a good physical and mental health throughout this period. As well as how to best collaborate with your colleagues?

Below I am sharing some concrete tips based personal experience, insights from my clients and highlights from neuroleadership.

In these uncertain times, strongly marked by the coronavirus and its economic impact, I looked into the question of how to better manage your mind in the face of the current crisis situation.

En ces temps incertains, fortement marqués par le coronavirus et son impact économique, je me suis penchée sur la question de comment mieux gérer son mental face à la situation de crise actuelle.

Only two days until 2020!

As we shift gears towards the New Year, it's important to take some time to acknowledge and celebrate the wins and accomplishments of 2019. Temptation is high to already look forward and set intentions for the year ahead.

Slow down....and take 10-15 minutes to look back to your year. To do so, we have listed some questions to help you look back at your year to celebrate your wins, show gratitude to those who supported you and review your own contributions.

Finding your leadership purpose is not easy. Since childhood, we have been overwhelmed with powerful messages about what we should be and how to lead. We have an established blueprint that influences our thinking and behavior. In this blog, I’m sharing with you three steps to find your purpose.

In my latest blog posts, you found out how to grow your self-awareness and explore your values, strengths and talents, while discovering how your belief system is working. All together, these elements are essential to understand your current leadership style. In this article, we’ll go through your leadership purpose.

Articulating your purpose and finding the courage to experience it is key for any leader. Unlocking it will allow you to grow and develop to a more effective leader.

Bringing unconscious thinking pattern out, understanding your beliefs, and transforming them are the three steps to make your beliefs effective for leadership purposes. 

In this post, you’ll find out how to grow awareness in relation to your thoughts and how to shift your mindset to further grow as a leader.

Beliefs determine any leadership behavior. Therefore, it becomes very important for leaders to really spend the necessary time to understand their underlying values and beliefs of human behavior and interaction. Whether or not you are an effective leader depends on it.

In this post, we’re exploring the mechanisms of your beliefs and how they affect leadership.

This week we are giving 7 tools to boost your self-awareness. The starting point for leadership transformation is self-awareness and like any other skill, it requires regular practice to train this new capacity. Find out how to cultivate your self-awareness and grow your consciousness about your thinking patterns, emotional reactions and behaviors.

Find out the 6 steps to identify your core values and live in alignment with them. Start your self-leadership journey, take the exercises.