I’ve been thinking this week about what it is that we need as Leaders. The saying is it takes a village to raise a child but I reckon it takes a village to support a leader.

As I work with leaders one of the things that I find most rewarding in our work is not only the different types of support that I can provide to them, but that also I receive from our relationship – the energy flow is two-way.

So who’s in the Village that supports you?

What kinds of people, practices and energy do you need to have the confidence and the motivation to lead as you hope to lead? As you want to lead?

There are some different ways we can think about the structure of our Village:

Tuning In: These are sources of support and energy that take us in and help us become insightful about who we are and how we are in the world.

Reaching Out:  There are other types of support, people and processes that take us out; help us put things into perspective, expand our view of the world and our place in it.

Thinking Clearly: There are sources of energy, people and support that help us think more clearly. They’re about our ‘head’ and helping us get the spaghetti thinking out so we can see things with greater clarity.

Feeling Deeply: There are people in my Village that help me to connect to how I’m feeling. What is it that I’m experiencing and how I feel about that in a way that perhaps I wouldn’t explore on my own. In talking with them I’m able to hold a space for myself as they hold a space for me and deeply connect to and acknowledge the feeling side of my experience.

Who’s in your village?

Who helps you reach out?
Who gives you time and space to tune in? Who’s the sounding board for your thinking and the singing bowl for your feeling?

We all need a Village.

It takes a Village to support a person; it takes a Village to support a leader. Because a Village helps us connect to our knowing.

Our knowing is there all the time, it’s with us, but sometimes we’re so focused on being out in the world through our socialised selves that we don’t connect to who we are; what’s true for us.

Our Village, and the energy that we can draw from the conversations we have, and practices like journaling that we can do, help us connect to who we truly are and our knowing. And from there we can lead with more clarity and confidence.

So, who’s in your Village?

Are there ‘gaps’ in the people, the practices, the energy that you need right now?

How could you take some time today to connect to your knowing – what you know to be true – and then reach out and ask for the support that will help you lead, exceptionally?