Our Unique Value Proposition
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We have a highly facilitated methodology that drives DEEP Self-Awareness in non-leaders (and those early in their careers) who look to personal more than professional stories to drive insight to lead self. The value of deep self-awareness is that until one truly knows self at his/her inner most core level, one cannot build genuine trust with others. Without trust, one cannot successfully lead, especially in a digital and hyper-VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity) world in which rapid changes are frequent and constant, and another crisis potentially just around the corner. The faster non-leaders become deeply self-aware, the better leaders they will ultimately become.
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Leaders look to professional more than personal stories to drive insight to lead self and others as they reach the inner most core of their being.
Definitions
An Effective Personal Leader is anyone who views self-leadership as a pre-requisite to public leadership, critical to one’s long-term success and a conscious and purposeful way to enhance oneself through deep self-examination and self-reflection.
A Public Leader is anyone who leads a team of people in business, government, sports, academia, etc.
About the book
To lead, as in any endeavor, requires one to have a rock solid foundation. Effective personal leadership is that quintessential and stable platform for responsibly and effectively leading individuals and organizations.
This book then is about the need for people to employ a logical progression of leadership, beginning with self and then graduating to lead others. This critical foundational stage of leadership development is what many (including those already in leadership posts) have missed before assuming positions that require them to, among other things, lead others, leaving them without the fundamental experience or preparation to become successful leaders. Hence, the global leadership crisis and the state of our worldwide economic, business, social and ethical climate.
The consequences of not generating effective leaders (as evidenced especially, in recent years) can be exceedingly destructive for any business, community and nation. Take for example, $34.4 Trillion (or 54%). This was the value of world’s publicly traded organizations that eroded during the global financial crisis between October 2007 and March 2009 from its highest value of $63 Trillion in March 2009. The $34.4 Trillion was at the time greater than the combined GDP (Gross Domestic Product) value of the United States, the European Union and Japan. In addition, 202 million people were unemployed globally at the end of 2013 (4 Million more than at the end of 2009 even though the great recession had officially ended in January 2009). In the U.S., the economy lost 8.8 million jobs and household wealth of $19.2 Trillion from 2007 to 2009. To counter the consequences, organizations spent $31 Billion in 2016 on leadership development globally only to have 56% of the executives report that they are not ready to meet today’s leadership needs. In other words, $17.36 Billion and a full year worth of effort were squandered without realizing a return on their investment. As a result, they must now search for a more effective approach to their leadership development efforts while hoping to keep their businesses competitive instead of thriving and long surpassing their competition.
If the magnitude of these unprecedented global consequences do not serve as the greatest wake-up call for human civilization then I do not know what will. The need to construct a critical missing foundation of effective personal leadership that includes DEEP self-awareness, I believe, has been one of the most significant confirmations and a substantial opportunity to have resulted from our extraordinary troubled times. But, we must collectively, as a global community, act to capitalize on this chance if we want to avert a similar crisis and see a vastly different future.
Personal leadership therefore is paramount because it trains people to make more sensitive, logical, egoless, comprehensive and effective decisions and judgments that benefit not only the leader but also, more importantly, those s/he has or will have the privilege of leading. The qualities and character developed here will position individuals to transfer and exercise the fundamental principles when s/he graduates to public leadership, thereby making her/him a worthy leader of others. Primarily, the absence of a self-leadership foundation (not just greed, pomposity or inadequate leadership development programs) has, inevitably, led to the collapse and severe devastation that we are traveling through today.
My manuscript’s goal therefore is to prevent a repetition of our current times caused by a lack of foundation and our individual and collective unconscious actions with the aim of generating enduring responsible, genuine, trustworthy, conscious and effective leaders. The proposed five behaviors set the foundation for enabling individuals to advance toward this goal by helping them become valuable leaders of both themselves and others. In the end, these professionals and their organizations also will have positioned themselves to realize their own potential.
Given the demanding and complex world in which we live and operate, having a robust platform gives public leaders a reference point to draw from, to think and make sound decisions that benefit all concerned and remain resolute during trying and tempting times of committing wrongdoings. This foundation (known as the “front door” to leadership development) can also prevent leaders from making terrible errors that end up severely costing them, those who rely on their leadership and their organizations. Further, this structure will also give leaders the needed confidence to prevent any self-induced turmoil from repeating in our individual and shared futures. The book then offers a comprehensive tool in the form of 5 critical behaviors to construct that vital foundation so that individuals can successfully lead and function in their rigorous current and future environment. Personal leadership then is irrevocably the most logical and true path to constructing responsible, genuine, trustworthy, conscious and effective leaders of people and businesses for whom the world is in desperate need of NOW.
Reasons for Authoring Book
- Missing critical foundation of effective personal leadership
- Without self-leadership, one cannot become an effective person, let alone a leader of others (logical progression of leadership development)
- True and enduring leadership begins with self
- Unprecedented global leadership crisis
- Leadership programs focus on enhancing technical skills and generating managers not leaders, hence the global leadership crisis
- Prevent economic, moral, social, etc. structures from collapsing again
- Desperately need responsible, trust-worthy, genuine & conscious leaders
- Increasingly non-team leaders are thrust into leadership roles and responsibilities without possessing experience or preparation
- Organizations struggling to generate leaders despite spending billions annually
- Focus on behaviors not just skills
- Movement from individual contributor to team leader
- Prepare individuals to successfully fulfill business leadership roles and responsibilities
- Develop profound self-awareness (key to self-transformation & social change)
- Increases emotional intelligence (a necessary component for becoming a successful leader of self and others)
- Provides a mature understanding of self to effectively respond in different situations
- To create a better world & enable it to realize its own potential
- Make leadership development accessible to all not just the few at the top (today, everyone needs to be a leader)
Mission
- To create enduring, responsible, genuine, trustworthy, conscious and effective leaders of self and others
Vision
- To have everyone construct a critical missing foundation of effective personal leadership
Goal
- To prevent not only an economic, but also, moral, social and ethical structures from collapsing again in our collective futures
Importance of Self-Leadership
- Provides a stable foundation
- People will otherwise continue to engage in wrongdoings and commit unnecessary errors, thereby severely costing them, their organizations and individuals who rely on their leadership
- Gives one confidence to lead others
- Demands more than ever exercising appropriate behaviors
- Individuals and organizations are ultimately judged by their behaviors (all the more reason they need to exhibit proper conduct)
- Life behaviors are needed to cope with hardships, constant change and their associated challenges
- Provides a mature understanding of self to respond effectively in different situations
- Increases emotional intelligence – A necessary component for becoming a successful leader of self and others
Benefits to Individuals
- Prepare them for success in global leadership roles and responsibilities
- Develop strong character (essential for today’s leadership)
- Discover the very core of their being
- Develop a mindset of collective advancement versus just self-gain
- Effectively respond to constant change and situations
- Be more understanding, compassionate and mindful of others
- Reach greater heights and accomplish more
- Enhance decision making and problem solving capabilities
- Develop a collaborative approach for better teamwork
- Develop comprehensively as a total being
Benefits to Organizations
- Distinguish itself domestically and globally as an organization that helped its professionals construct a critical missing foundation of self-leadership
- Better business and financial performance
- Enhanced ability to accomplish organization’s goals and vision
- Surpass competition
- A more positive and productive organizational culture
- Roots of generating responsible, genuine, trustworthy, conscious and effective leaders can be traced back to your organization
What people have said about the book
“Personal leadership should precede public leadership and it is a critical foundation for leading in the 21st century.”
— Leadership Development executive of a premier Automotive organization
“Leadership begins with you since you directly impact the entire ecosystem (your team, organization, community, nation and universe).”
— Pharmaceutical firm executive
“The premise and content of the book are aligned with what we want to offer.”
— Telecommunications firm executive
“Statistics cited in book confirm that starting with public leadership instead of self-leadership does not work well for all concerned.”
— Independent reader
“You are speaking not as a CEO or C-Level leader but more like Everyman in an organization. You have a ‘humble’ voice.”
“This is the personal story of what you’ve learned. It is story-based. You have chosen to be reflective about what’s happened to you and have documented the process, including the questions you’ve asked yourself that have yielded the most self-awareness and insights.”
“These are leadership habits for a lifetime. They are foundational for especially, Millennials who say they want to make a difference. Figuring out who you are is step 1 on the path to making a difference.”
“This book moves people from Making a living to Making a life. The big question each of us should be asking ourselves is: Do I want to make a living or do I want to make a life? If the answer is that you want to make a life, then this book starts the journey.”
“One key underlying message is that being a leader requires grit/perseverance. Your stories and your methodologies/tools make it clear that leaders are made, not born. Each of us has the capacity to become leaders. We have to make the choice and then persevere.”
— Leadership Development Curriculum Designer and Facilitator
“Personal leadership should be part of every organization’s leadership architecture.”
— Independent reader
“The message of the book is timely for our world.”
— SVP of a Human Resources Membership organization
Links to Book Video and Articles Published in Industry Magazines
- Video with The Conference Board
- Leaders: Take One Step Backward To Take Two Steps Forward
- Self-Leadership: Bringing Personal Leadership to Relevance
How to order the book
Kindle and paperback editions are available on Amazon.