{"id":107,"date":"2018-10-02T17:07:27","date_gmt":"2018-10-02T17:07:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/?post_type=chapter&p=107"},"modified":"2019-01-18T17:43:47","modified_gmt":"2019-01-18T17:43:47","slug":"boyder-a-personal-journey-of-discovery","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/chapter\/boyder-a-personal-journey-of-discovery\/","title":{"rendered":"A process of discovery, evaluation, and change"},"content":{"raw":"I was standing in the parking lot after a late night strategy session with one of my mentors.\u00a0 We had just worked through a possible new organizational structure to accomplish our vision.\u00a0 At the top of one of the columns of responsibilities, the team decided to put my name.\u00a0 Questioning my fit for the role, my mentor responded, \"You can do the job.\u00a0 You just need to be sure that you want it\". \u00a0Five years later, I understand why he was warning me.\u00a0 Since that moment, my life has been on the job learning with each passing year, increasing my level of comfort and confidence in my role.\u00a0 While I have gained technical knowledge, I have not had the time, energy, or drive to develop myself.\u00a0 It is because of this, when situations arise, I default to some specific behaviours.\r\n\r\nOrganizationally, we experienced several challenges causing a reactive response often resulting in me stepping in to fill the gap.\u00a0 This requires absorbing additional responsibilities for an extended period until we reach a healthy point or find an alternative solution.\u00a0 As a fixer and developer, I also have suggested projects and taken on tasks that are not of strategic importance.\u00a0 I allowed my interests and the passion of others to influence decisions around the use of my time.\u00a0 Thirdly, I have not truly prioritized my work.\u00a0 As I manage the majority of the staff in our organization, I allowed my time to be dictated by their needs and development priorities.\u00a0 Therefore, I became a very short-term oriented leader who has not protected the time needed to focus on personal or organizational strategic development.\r\n\r\nDue to this harried pace, there are ample opportunities for moments of stress and frustration to rear its ugly head.\u00a0 Emotions are a powerful gift, but they are not always right.\u00a0 Consequently, there is a danger when you allow them to influence your choices.\u00a0 It is this balance of emotions and critical thinking providing stronger outcomes in my decision making.\u00a0 In times of extreme frustration or overwhelmedness, I have a choice to be informed by what I am feeling or what I know. \u00a0Thinking without emotional intelligence, can be cold and distancing. \u00a0Likewise, it is necessary to discern when your emotions cloud your understanding.\r\n\r\nSelf-awareness provides another tool for helping me to manage my emotional responses.\u00a0 By having a greater understanding of who I am, my core capabilities, values, and how my experiences influence my thoughts and emotions, I can strengthen my strategic decision making.\u00a0 With this filter, I become more focused on others as I endeavor to remove personal biases and preferred methods. It is then possible to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome through collaboration and learning.\u00a0 This flexibility in adapting to situations is essential in developing necessary strategic skills for a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambitious (VUCA) world (Ungerer, Ungerer, & Herholdt, 2016, p. 3).\r\n\r\nWhile I identify and develop some areas of much-needed growth, I recognize there is a tension between being a transformational servant leader (TSL) and prioritizing my own needs.\u00a0 On the one hand, the investment and development of others requires a substantial amount of time and energy.\u00a0 It depends on a level of accessibility that is hard to turn off, and not all boundaries are well received or interpreted correctly.\u00a0 However, these changes are necessary as I need time to focus on my development to become a more effective, strategic leader.\r\n\r\nMy biggest responsibility, the management of staff, is also the most significant source of my stress.\u00a0 My stress behaviour surfaces when I feel situations are overly emotional or I have spent a considerable amount of time working with people.\u00a0 In these moments my communication becomes more direct, I disengage and become impatient.\u00a0 Unfortunately, my private and personal life is often intertwined as I work at a church that serves the community where I live.\u00a0 As a result, I made some choices to provide balance in my life which reduces the chances of my stress behaviour making an appearance.\r\n\r\nThe first is finding a core group of friends who are not a part of the church in which I work.\u00a0 As strong women of faith, my friends challenge me spiritually and provide the social relationships I need without requiring any church-related things from me. \u00a0Secondly, as previously mentioned, I have started to protect my time.\u00a0 Each week, I block off two days for meetings, two days for my work, times for school, and between 2-4 extended family or friend times a month.\u00a0 This structure provides a balance between team and individual time as well as work and personal time. \u00a0One does not overpower the other.\u00a0 The third, and probably the most important and challenging step is understanding the role my natural behaviour has on influencing the emotions of those with whom I engage.\u00a0 By identifying their needs, I can consciously modify my natural behaviour to reduce things becoming overly emotional.\u00a0 This discernment provides the context in which I can focus on practicing transformational leadership, as well as the necessary support to develop trust and a stronger cooperative environment (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 64).\r\n\r\nThe development of transformational leadership skills in the moments of stress is an area I would like to pursue. \u00a0It is one thing to work to control emotions and identify the facts of a situation.\u00a0 It is quite another, to use each connection as an opportunity to raise the motivation of direct reports to help them achieve more than expected (Northouse, 2016, pp. 161-162).\u00a0 While I would claim to have a high level of discernment in these moments, I often stop at identifying short-term goals, challenges, and opportunities, and fail to link them to the bigger vision.\u00a0 Hughes, Beatty, and Dinwoodie (2014) would call this ability to keep long-term goals in mind, Duration<\/em> which is a key characteristic of strategic leadership (pp. 14-15).\r\n\r\nAdditional strengths and weaknesses are rooted in my thinking.\u00a0 I believe critical thinking is a personal strength.\u00a0 As a natural developer, I am constantly evaluating and looking for opportunities to improve within my context.\u00a0 However, I struggle with my tenancy to quickly move from the big picture to delving into the practical details of implementation.\u00a0 As well, I have many learned constraints making paradoxical thinking a challenge (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 44; Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 17).\r\n
Mission, Vision, and Values<\/strong><\/h6>\r\nMy faith in Jesus is foundational to all aspects of my life.\u00a0 It informs and shapes my decisions and my worldview.\u00a0 This faith directs and aspires me to live a life that is holy and pleasing to God so one day when I am standing before Him, I might hear \"Well done, good and faithful servant\u201d Matthew 25:21 (New International Version).\u00a0 It is this mission and vision I hold onto tightly.\u00a0 Out of this foundation, some values have surfaced over the years.\r\n\r\nTruth is a defining value for me.\u00a0 I believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the source of truth.\u00a0 Scripture provides me with the ethical and moral guidelines that influence my understanding of virtuous leadership (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 41).\u00a0 As well, the pursuit of truth drives my critical thinking so I can make evidence-based decisions.\u00a0 I strive to establish authentic relationships built on trust.\u00a0 Communicating the truth in grace and love is a skill I am working to develop as my natural style tends to be very direct and blunt.\r\n\r\nA second value is relationships.\u00a0 As a person created for community, I value my family and friends, and I am intentional in investing in these relationships.\u00a0 As a leader, I must balance my drive to get tasks done with the benefit of collaborating in teams. \u00a0I have a high level of relational capital in my organization which is built on trust and supporting the leaders around me.\u00a0 However, I must increase my relational persuasion (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 180) to lead change (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 47), and create a collaborative culture which values honest and real conversations (p. 43).\u00a0 In the middle management environment, differentiated tactics are discovered but only if we are willing to change and adapt and not be enslaved to the familiar and comfortable.\r\n\r\nAt the risk of sounding like a typical Type A person I also value a hard work ethic, order, and excellence. \u00a0I have come to understand these values need to manifest themselves at the appropriate time and in the proper measure.\u00a0 A friend best described me when she coined the phrase \"Lazy Type A.\" \u00a0While I like to work hard, I recognize the importance of rest.\u00a0 While projects require order and administration, it is sometimes in the unstructured time, the best work happens.\u00a0 Further, I strive for excellence but recognize perfection is not the equivalent nor is it always obtainable, and sometimes, things are just worth 10%.\u00a0 To move forward in my development, it will require hard work, order, and excellence but in balance with my personal life.\r\n
Personal Strategic Drivers<\/strong><\/h6>\r\nThere are two strategic drivers when prioritized, will allow me to increase my potential.\u00a0 The first is Strategic Personal Development<\/em>.\u00a0 I must adopt a learner\u2019s heart with the understanding of what I can be the best at and the areas worthy of developing (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 28). \u00a0Secondly, it is the ongoing Evaluation<\/em> of my development.\u00a0 The use of a 360\u00b0 evaluation focuses on developmental objectives and provides useful feedback from a variety of perspectives.\r\n\r\nTo implement these strategic drivers, there are four initial steps I need to take.\u00a0 The first is to schedule time within my weekly calendar to be set aside strictly for personal and organizational strategic development.\u00a0 This protected block of time must be consistent and substantial. \u00a0Secondly, I must become less reactive to the whirlwind responsibilities and focus only on what is Wildly Important<\/em> (McChesney, Covey, and Huling, 2012, p. 12).\u00a0 My time cannot be controlled by what is unimportant and urgent or what others consider to be important if it is not. \u00a0Within this protected time, I must shift from being a specialist<\/em> to a generalist<\/em> and from a warrior<\/em> to a diplomat<\/em> (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 31).\u00a0 Only the important and urgent should supersede this time, and even then, it can become a point of negotiation with my superiors.\r\n\r\nA final step is the development of a learning plan where key objectives are clearly defined.\u00a0 Out of the nine core leadership competencies used in the MA LEAD program, I am striving to excel in Team Leadership<\/em> and People Development<\/em> (Leadership Integration Project Manual 2017-18<\/em>, 2017, pp. 8-9).\u00a0 I am further wrestling with adding either Innovation<\/em> or Relationship and Collaboration<\/em> as a third area of focus.\u00a0 Innovation is very intriguing to me. However, I have never considered myself an \"out of the box\" thinker, and so I am wondering if this is one of my limitations.\u00a0 Further exploration is needed to determine if skills can be developed to grow in this area. \u00a0From this plan, checkpoints are established to focus on accountability and evaluation.\r\n\r\nEverything I do to benefit my professional life will positively influence my personal.\u00a0 There is minimal separation because my job is strongly aligned with and compliments my mission and vision.\u00a0 As a result, the skills and knowledge I gain professionally are relevant to my family and social relationships.\r\n
Culture<\/strong><\/h6>\r\nDeveloping culture is a long-term undertaking which requires careful selection of the values you desire to become part of your DNA.\u00a0 From a preliminary consideration, I believe there are three underlying values I would choose to focus on weaving into the DNA within my context.\u00a0 The first is the value of learning.\u00a0 As Hughes et al., (2014) points out, strategy involves constant change and that change requires a desire to learn, adapt, and progressively build on decisions and ideas (p. 21).\u00a0 It is necessary to have a frame of mind that understands the future goal and is continually molding and developing strategies based upon feedback and evaluation (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 19).\u00a0 This also translates to a personal level as I want to continually grow in my faith and have a teachable spirit.\u00a0 There are always things I can learn in any interaction I have with my family or friends.\r\n\r\nSecondly, I believe it is necessary to learn within a collaborative context.\u00a0 When you bring teams out of their silos and into collaborative situations, you have a higher chance of innovation with the sharing of ideas and perspectives.\u00a0 Strategic development is best informed when you have a cross section of the organization involved as the middle and lower levels often have a better understanding of the customer, trends, and needs (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 19).\u00a0 Additionally, if done well and consistently, a collaborative culture feeds the growth of relationships and trust and provides natural opportunities to increase strategic alignment. \u00a0In a personal and professional context, collaboration is essential as it ensures everyone has a voice and not one specific voice overpowers everyone.\r\n\r\nA final cultural value is fun.\u00a0 It was a privilege to work in a couple of organizations putting a high value on having fun together.\u00a0 This looked very different for each context, but the premise was the same.\u00a0 By creating opportunities to enjoy one another's company outside of the work environment, you develop a deeper level of relationship that moves past the day to day pleasantries and tasks. \u00a0When you enjoy where you work and the people you work with, you begin to care more about your contribution to the community.\u00a0 A greater awareness increases the consideration of the impact of decisions and how best to move forward.\u00a0 The organization becomes more of a family with deeper relationships.\u00a0 I experienced how having fun together strengthened teams and opens up the doors of communication, trust, and understanding.\r\n
Shifting My Thinking<\/strong><\/h6>\r\nAccording to Ungerer et al., (2016) and their imperatives for old economy thinking, I can identify three areas instilled in me and require adjusting to becoming a more effective strategic leader (p. 15).\u00a0 The first two are combined, the aristocracy of power<\/em> and hierarchic power<\/em>. \u00a0I believe this comes from the military influences in my parents' and grandparents\u2019 lives where you recognize the power each level of authority has to make unilateral decisions about your life.\u00a0 As a result, I made decisions within my authority but inadvertently and unknowinglycentralized the power around my position.\u00a0 Instead, I must change my thinking and practice to, relinquish control and empowering and equipping leaders to make decisions.\u00a0 This shift to diffusing power parallels my desire to transition from being a specialist to a generalist (p. 31). \u00a0I started to articulate my direct reports their defined areas of authority, so they have the freedom and responsibility to make decisions.\u00a0 Additionally, I am making myself a little less available to them, so they can make decisions with the information they have.\u00a0 Finally, I am careful not to answer their questions directly but looking at each conversation as an opportunity to give them more knowledge, understanding, and confidence to make decisions.\r\n\r\nA final old economy thinking driver I tend to default to is turf protection and control<\/em>. \u00a0I believe my inclination for control is rooted in a lack of trust.\u00a0 While sometimes my distrust is substantiated; it is misplaced.\u00a0 In keeping control, I prevent opportunities for the development of others.\u00a0 Further reflection suggests my motives are focused on making the best decisions possible for the sake of the organization and the individuals it impacts.\u00a0 However, similar to the previous shift, I must decentralize control as this will result in longer-term sustainability of the organization.\u00a0 As we determine and solidify our organizational structure, like my direct reports, I must understand the area of responsibility I have and give the appropriate time and energy to drive big-picture strategies forward and leave the details to those who are responsible for them.\u00a0 One straightforward step to begin addressing this is to discuss it with my supervisor and my direct reports.\u00a0 I acknowledged this area of concern and welcome accountability when I am stepping into unnecessary areas.\u00a0 Additionally, I am focusing on adjusting my thinking to be more collaborative.\u00a0 I am not perfect, nor am I the expert in everything.\u00a0 It is only through using the strengths of others to offset my weakness, that extraordinary results can occur (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 11).\r\n
Final Thoughts<\/strong><\/h6>\r\nI am convinced as I reflect on my future development, the journey of learning must be transformative.\u00a0 New skills, knowledge, and experiences are nothing if there is an inability or unwillingness to change as a person.\u00a0 Hughes et al., (2014) states strategy is a learning process (p. 23), which requires leaders to be in a continual state of discovery (p. 28), involves evaluation and assessment (p. 37), the ability to manage change (p. 47), and influence that engages hearts and minds (p. 40). \u00a0Knowing these are some of the competencies I need to master, I realize my general sense of complacency will be my most significant barrier to moving forward.\u00a0 Additionally, my natural linear and often rigid way of thinking an ongoing constraint unless I work at shifting the framework.\r\n\r\nArmed with my critical thinking and the ability to interpret data and assess situations, I recognize I am well on the road to becoming a more effective strategic leader.\u00a0 With these skills, I will begin to identify the specific areas of weaknesses I have in the leadership competencies of People Development, Team Leadership, Innovation, and Collaboration.\u00a0 Using this evaluation, I can build a personal development plan to complement the current organizational strategic work happening simultaneously.\u00a0 Additionally, I am continually discerning the application of the theories and concepts learned in my MA LEAD studies to my professional context.\u00a0\u00a0 This is a learning process requiring ongoing discovery, evaluation, and change.\u00a0 It is a creative dance with set steps but an undefined dance partner.\u00a0 It is the art of leadership.\r\n
References<\/h6>\r\nHughes, R. L., Beatty, Collarelli-Beatty, K., & Dinwoodie, D. L. (2014). Becoming a strategic leader: Your role in your organization\u2019s enduring success<\/em>. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.\r\n\r\nLepsinger, R. (2010). Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results<\/em>. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.\r\n\r\nMcChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2012). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals<\/em>. New York, NY: FranklinCovey Co.\r\n\r\nNorthouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice<\/em>. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.\r\n\r\nStrong. H. (2017). Leadership Integration Project Manual 2017-18<\/em>. Unpublished manuscript, Master of Arts in Leadership, Trinity Western University, Langley, Canada.\r\n\r\nUngerer, M., Ungerer, G., & Herholdt, J. (2016). Navigating strategic possibilities: Strategy formulation and execution practices to flourish.<\/em> Randburg: KR Publishing","rendered":"

I was standing in the parking lot after a late night strategy session with one of my mentors.\u00a0 We had just worked through a possible new organizational structure to accomplish our vision.\u00a0 At the top of one of the columns of responsibilities, the team decided to put my name.\u00a0 Questioning my fit for the role, my mentor responded, “You can do the job.\u00a0 You just need to be sure that you want it”. \u00a0Five years later, I understand why he was warning me.\u00a0 Since that moment, my life has been on the job learning with each passing year, increasing my level of comfort and confidence in my role.\u00a0 While I have gained technical knowledge, I have not had the time, energy, or drive to develop myself.\u00a0 It is because of this, when situations arise, I default to some specific behaviours.<\/p>\n

Organizationally, we experienced several challenges causing a reactive response often resulting in me stepping in to fill the gap.\u00a0 This requires absorbing additional responsibilities for an extended period until we reach a healthy point or find an alternative solution.\u00a0 As a fixer and developer, I also have suggested projects and taken on tasks that are not of strategic importance.\u00a0 I allowed my interests and the passion of others to influence decisions around the use of my time.\u00a0 Thirdly, I have not truly prioritized my work.\u00a0 As I manage the majority of the staff in our organization, I allowed my time to be dictated by their needs and development priorities.\u00a0 Therefore, I became a very short-term oriented leader who has not protected the time needed to focus on personal or organizational strategic development.<\/p>\n

Due to this harried pace, there are ample opportunities for moments of stress and frustration to rear its ugly head.\u00a0 Emotions are a powerful gift, but they are not always right.\u00a0 Consequently, there is a danger when you allow them to influence your choices.\u00a0 It is this balance of emotions and critical thinking providing stronger outcomes in my decision making.\u00a0 In times of extreme frustration or overwhelmedness, I have a choice to be informed by what I am feeling or what I know. \u00a0Thinking without emotional intelligence, can be cold and distancing. \u00a0Likewise, it is necessary to discern when your emotions cloud your understanding.<\/p>\n

Self-awareness provides another tool for helping me to manage my emotional responses.\u00a0 By having a greater understanding of who I am, my core capabilities, values, and how my experiences influence my thoughts and emotions, I can strengthen my strategic decision making.\u00a0 With this filter, I become more focused on others as I endeavor to remove personal biases and preferred methods. It is then possible to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome through collaboration and learning.\u00a0 This flexibility in adapting to situations is essential in developing necessary strategic skills for a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambitious (VUCA) world (Ungerer, Ungerer, & Herholdt, 2016, p. 3).<\/p>\n

While I identify and develop some areas of much-needed growth, I recognize there is a tension between being a transformational servant leader (TSL) and prioritizing my own needs.\u00a0 On the one hand, the investment and development of others requires a substantial amount of time and energy.\u00a0 It depends on a level of accessibility that is hard to turn off, and not all boundaries are well received or interpreted correctly.\u00a0 However, these changes are necessary as I need time to focus on my development to become a more effective, strategic leader.<\/p>\n

My biggest responsibility, the management of staff, is also the most significant source of my stress.\u00a0 My stress behaviour surfaces when I feel situations are overly emotional or I have spent a considerable amount of time working with people.\u00a0 In these moments my communication becomes more direct, I disengage and become impatient.\u00a0 Unfortunately, my private and personal life is often intertwined as I work at a church that serves the community where I live.\u00a0 As a result, I made some choices to provide balance in my life which reduces the chances of my stress behaviour making an appearance.<\/p>\n

The first is finding a core group of friends who are not a part of the church in which I work.\u00a0 As strong women of faith, my friends challenge me spiritually and provide the social relationships I need without requiring any church-related things from me. \u00a0Secondly, as previously mentioned, I have started to protect my time.\u00a0 Each week, I block off two days for meetings, two days for my work, times for school, and between 2-4 extended family or friend times a month.\u00a0 This structure provides a balance between team and individual time as well as work and personal time. \u00a0One does not overpower the other.\u00a0 The third, and probably the most important and challenging step is understanding the role my natural behaviour has on influencing the emotions of those with whom I engage.\u00a0 By identifying their needs, I can consciously modify my natural behaviour to reduce things becoming overly emotional.\u00a0 This discernment provides the context in which I can focus on practicing transformational leadership, as well as the necessary support to develop trust and a stronger cooperative environment (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 64).<\/p>\n

The development of transformational leadership skills in the moments of stress is an area I would like to pursue. \u00a0It is one thing to work to control emotions and identify the facts of a situation.\u00a0 It is quite another, to use each connection as an opportunity to raise the motivation of direct reports to help them achieve more than expected (Northouse, 2016, pp. 161-162).\u00a0 While I would claim to have a high level of discernment in these moments, I often stop at identifying short-term goals, challenges, and opportunities, and fail to link them to the bigger vision.\u00a0 Hughes, Beatty, and Dinwoodie (2014) would call this ability to keep long-term goals in mind, Duration<\/em> which is a key characteristic of strategic leadership (pp. 14-15).<\/p>\n

Additional strengths and weaknesses are rooted in my thinking.\u00a0 I believe critical thinking is a personal strength.\u00a0 As a natural developer, I am constantly evaluating and looking for opportunities to improve within my context.\u00a0 However, I struggle with my tenancy to quickly move from the big picture to delving into the practical details of implementation.\u00a0 As well, I have many learned constraints making paradoxical thinking a challenge (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 44; Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 17).<\/p>\n

Mission, Vision, and Values<\/strong><\/h6>\n

My faith in Jesus is foundational to all aspects of my life.\u00a0 It informs and shapes my decisions and my worldview.\u00a0 This faith directs and aspires me to live a life that is holy and pleasing to God so one day when I am standing before Him, I might hear “Well done, good and faithful servant\u201d Matthew 25:21 (New International Version).\u00a0 It is this mission and vision I hold onto tightly.\u00a0 Out of this foundation, some values have surfaced over the years.<\/p>\n

Truth is a defining value for me.\u00a0 I believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the source of truth.\u00a0 Scripture provides me with the ethical and moral guidelines that influence my understanding of virtuous leadership (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 41).\u00a0 As well, the pursuit of truth drives my critical thinking so I can make evidence-based decisions.\u00a0 I strive to establish authentic relationships built on trust.\u00a0 Communicating the truth in grace and love is a skill I am working to develop as my natural style tends to be very direct and blunt.<\/p>\n

A second value is relationships.\u00a0 As a person created for community, I value my family and friends, and I am intentional in investing in these relationships.\u00a0 As a leader, I must balance my drive to get tasks done with the benefit of collaborating in teams. \u00a0I have a high level of relational capital in my organization which is built on trust and supporting the leaders around me.\u00a0 However, I must increase my relational persuasion (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 180) to lead change (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 47), and create a collaborative culture which values honest and real conversations (p. 43).\u00a0 In the middle management environment, differentiated tactics are discovered but only if we are willing to change and adapt and not be enslaved to the familiar and comfortable.<\/p>\n

At the risk of sounding like a typical Type A person I also value a hard work ethic, order, and excellence. \u00a0I have come to understand these values need to manifest themselves at the appropriate time and in the proper measure.\u00a0 A friend best described me when she coined the phrase “Lazy Type A.” \u00a0While I like to work hard, I recognize the importance of rest.\u00a0 While projects require order and administration, it is sometimes in the unstructured time, the best work happens.\u00a0 Further, I strive for excellence but recognize perfection is not the equivalent nor is it always obtainable, and sometimes, things are just worth 10%.\u00a0 To move forward in my development, it will require hard work, order, and excellence but in balance with my personal life.<\/p>\n

Personal Strategic Drivers<\/strong><\/h6>\n

There are two strategic drivers when prioritized, will allow me to increase my potential.\u00a0 The first is Strategic Personal Development<\/em>.\u00a0 I must adopt a learner\u2019s heart with the understanding of what I can be the best at and the areas worthy of developing (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 28). \u00a0Secondly, it is the ongoing Evaluation<\/em> of my development.\u00a0 The use of a 360\u00b0 evaluation focuses on developmental objectives and provides useful feedback from a variety of perspectives.<\/p>\n

To implement these strategic drivers, there are four initial steps I need to take.\u00a0 The first is to schedule time within my weekly calendar to be set aside strictly for personal and organizational strategic development.\u00a0 This protected block of time must be consistent and substantial. \u00a0Secondly, I must become less reactive to the whirlwind responsibilities and focus only on what is Wildly Important<\/em> (McChesney, Covey, and Huling, 2012, p. 12).\u00a0 My time cannot be controlled by what is unimportant and urgent or what others consider to be important if it is not. \u00a0Within this protected time, I must shift from being a specialist<\/em> to a generalist<\/em> and from a warrior<\/em> to a diplomat<\/em> (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 31).\u00a0 Only the important and urgent should supersede this time, and even then, it can become a point of negotiation with my superiors.<\/p>\n

A final step is the development of a learning plan where key objectives are clearly defined.\u00a0 Out of the nine core leadership competencies used in the MA LEAD program, I am striving to excel in Team Leadership<\/em> and People Development<\/em> (Leadership Integration Project Manual 2017-18<\/em>, 2017, pp. 8-9).\u00a0 I am further wrestling with adding either Innovation<\/em> or Relationship and Collaboration<\/em> as a third area of focus.\u00a0 Innovation is very intriguing to me. However, I have never considered myself an “out of the box” thinker, and so I am wondering if this is one of my limitations.\u00a0 Further exploration is needed to determine if skills can be developed to grow in this area. \u00a0From this plan, checkpoints are established to focus on accountability and evaluation.<\/p>\n

Everything I do to benefit my professional life will positively influence my personal.\u00a0 There is minimal separation because my job is strongly aligned with and compliments my mission and vision.\u00a0 As a result, the skills and knowledge I gain professionally are relevant to my family and social relationships.<\/p>\n

Culture<\/strong><\/h6>\n

Developing culture is a long-term undertaking which requires careful selection of the values you desire to become part of your DNA.\u00a0 From a preliminary consideration, I believe there are three underlying values I would choose to focus on weaving into the DNA within my context.\u00a0 The first is the value of learning.\u00a0 As Hughes et al., (2014) points out, strategy involves constant change and that change requires a desire to learn, adapt, and progressively build on decisions and ideas (p. 21).\u00a0 It is necessary to have a frame of mind that understands the future goal and is continually molding and developing strategies based upon feedback and evaluation (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 19).\u00a0 This also translates to a personal level as I want to continually grow in my faith and have a teachable spirit.\u00a0 There are always things I can learn in any interaction I have with my family or friends.<\/p>\n

Secondly, I believe it is necessary to learn within a collaborative context.\u00a0 When you bring teams out of their silos and into collaborative situations, you have a higher chance of innovation with the sharing of ideas and perspectives.\u00a0 Strategic development is best informed when you have a cross section of the organization involved as the middle and lower levels often have a better understanding of the customer, trends, and needs (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 19).\u00a0 Additionally, if done well and consistently, a collaborative culture feeds the growth of relationships and trust and provides natural opportunities to increase strategic alignment. \u00a0In a personal and professional context, collaboration is essential as it ensures everyone has a voice and not one specific voice overpowers everyone.<\/p>\n

A final cultural value is fun.\u00a0 It was a privilege to work in a couple of organizations putting a high value on having fun together.\u00a0 This looked very different for each context, but the premise was the same.\u00a0 By creating opportunities to enjoy one another’s company outside of the work environment, you develop a deeper level of relationship that moves past the day to day pleasantries and tasks. \u00a0When you enjoy where you work and the people you work with, you begin to care more about your contribution to the community.\u00a0 A greater awareness increases the consideration of the impact of decisions and how best to move forward.\u00a0 The organization becomes more of a family with deeper relationships.\u00a0 I experienced how having fun together strengthened teams and opens up the doors of communication, trust, and understanding.<\/p>\n

Shifting My Thinking<\/strong><\/h6>\n

According to Ungerer et al., (2016) and their imperatives for old economy thinking, I can identify three areas instilled in me and require adjusting to becoming a more effective strategic leader (p. 15).\u00a0 The first two are combined, the aristocracy of power<\/em> and hierarchic power<\/em>. \u00a0I believe this comes from the military influences in my parents’ and grandparents\u2019 lives where you recognize the power each level of authority has to make unilateral decisions about your life.\u00a0 As a result, I made decisions within my authority but inadvertently and unknowinglycentralized the power around my position.\u00a0 Instead, I must change my thinking and practice to, relinquish control and empowering and equipping leaders to make decisions.\u00a0 This shift to diffusing power parallels my desire to transition from being a specialist to a generalist (p. 31). \u00a0I started to articulate my direct reports their defined areas of authority, so they have the freedom and responsibility to make decisions.\u00a0 Additionally, I am making myself a little less available to them, so they can make decisions with the information they have.\u00a0 Finally, I am careful not to answer their questions directly but looking at each conversation as an opportunity to give them more knowledge, understanding, and confidence to make decisions.<\/p>\n

A final old economy thinking driver I tend to default to is turf protection and control<\/em>. \u00a0I believe my inclination for control is rooted in a lack of trust.\u00a0 While sometimes my distrust is substantiated; it is misplaced.\u00a0 In keeping control, I prevent opportunities for the development of others.\u00a0 Further reflection suggests my motives are focused on making the best decisions possible for the sake of the organization and the individuals it impacts.\u00a0 However, similar to the previous shift, I must decentralize control as this will result in longer-term sustainability of the organization.\u00a0 As we determine and solidify our organizational structure, like my direct reports, I must understand the area of responsibility I have and give the appropriate time and energy to drive big-picture strategies forward and leave the details to those who are responsible for them.\u00a0 One straightforward step to begin addressing this is to discuss it with my supervisor and my direct reports.\u00a0 I acknowledged this area of concern and welcome accountability when I am stepping into unnecessary areas.\u00a0 Additionally, I am focusing on adjusting my thinking to be more collaborative.\u00a0 I am not perfect, nor am I the expert in everything.\u00a0 It is only through using the strengths of others to offset my weakness, that extraordinary results can occur (Ungerer et al., 2016, p. 11).<\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/strong><\/h6>\n

I am convinced as I reflect on my future development, the journey of learning must be transformative.\u00a0 New skills, knowledge, and experiences are nothing if there is an inability or unwillingness to change as a person.\u00a0 Hughes et al., (2014) states strategy is a learning process (p. 23), which requires leaders to be in a continual state of discovery (p. 28), involves evaluation and assessment (p. 37), the ability to manage change (p. 47), and influence that engages hearts and minds (p. 40). \u00a0Knowing these are some of the competencies I need to master, I realize my general sense of complacency will be my most significant barrier to moving forward.\u00a0 Additionally, my natural linear and often rigid way of thinking an ongoing constraint unless I work at shifting the framework.<\/p>\n

Armed with my critical thinking and the ability to interpret data and assess situations, I recognize I am well on the road to becoming a more effective strategic leader.\u00a0 With these skills, I will begin to identify the specific areas of weaknesses I have in the leadership competencies of People Development, Team Leadership, Innovation, and Collaboration.\u00a0 Using this evaluation, I can build a personal development plan to complement the current organizational strategic work happening simultaneously.\u00a0 Additionally, I am continually discerning the application of the theories and concepts learned in my MA LEAD studies to my professional context.\u00a0\u00a0 This is a learning process requiring ongoing discovery, evaluation, and change.\u00a0 It is a creative dance with set steps but an undefined dance partner.\u00a0 It is the art of leadership.<\/p>\n

References<\/h6>\n

Hughes, R. L., Beatty, Collarelli-Beatty, K., & Dinwoodie, D. L. (2014). Becoming a strategic leader: Your role in your organization\u2019s enduring success<\/em>. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.<\/p>\n

Lepsinger, R. (2010). Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results<\/em>. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.<\/p>\n

McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2012). The 4 disciplines of execution: Achieving your wildly important goals<\/em>. New York, NY: FranklinCovey Co.<\/p>\n

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice<\/em>. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.<\/p>\n

Strong. H. (2017). Leadership Integration Project Manual 2017-18<\/em>. Unpublished manuscript, Master of Arts in Leadership, Trinity Western University, Langley, Canada.<\/p>\n

Ungerer, M., Ungerer, G., & Herholdt, J. (2016). Navigating strategic possibilities: Strategy formulation and execution practices to flourish.<\/em> Randburg: KR Publishing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"menu_order":19,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"A Personal Journey of Discovery","pb_subtitle":"A Personal Journey of Discovery","pb_authors":["boyder"],"pb_section_license":"cc-by-nc-nd"},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[96],"license":[56],"part":44,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/107"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1441,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/107\/revisions\/1441"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/44"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/107\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=107"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=107"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.twu.ca\/strategic-discoveries\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}