By piercing your Self Shield™ you can bring your fully centered self to work

When establishing goals and objectives for their leaders and leadership teams, organizations often experience disappointment in the leader’s ability to meet lofty visions. Often this has nothing or little to do with individual or team dedication, effort or being ‘on-board’ with the plan. What we have consistently found is that it usually has to do with individual team members being out of sync with their self-centered leader – the person they show up as on the team and the person they are within.

The Third Zone’s extensive work with leaders and leadership teams has repeatedly revealed that the strongest, most accomplished and BOLDest leaders are at peace with themselves. They are at peace because their job, goals, requirements and rewards are compatible with the internal characteristics (values) that drive them. Self-centered leadership is about the individual’s willingness and ability to get to the heart of the matter – their heart. Read More Here.

It’s no surprise that individuals within a company strive to understand and mesh with the organization’s culture. Most people want to ‘fit in’.  If the culture demands a 60 to 80 hour work week, individuals must be willing to work accordingly in order to be accepted and move ahead. If the organization walks, talks and thinks profit as the ultimate goal, then individuals must also make this their priority in order to be successful. And if the culture does not acknowledge or celebrate personal and team ‘wins’, the individual quickly learns to minimize their success and the intrinsic value of their personal ‘wins’ diminishes.
 
An unspoken company policy is adopted and gradually the culture and the individuals are almost subconsciously affected. Individuals of that organization begin wearing their personal version of an invisible company ‘uniform.’ This ‘uniform’ allows them to fit in with the organization’s cultural rules and roles.

Imagine your body encased in a large balloon made of tough, transparent latex material. This is the ‘uniform’ we’ve learned to wear at work. This is the ‘uniform’ we believe we need to wear in order to be successful in our organization. The Third Zone calls this 'uniform’ the Self Shield™.  This shield prevents us from accessing those intrinsic characteristics (values) that naturally drive us. Often, the more we attempt to access them, the tougher and thicker the shield gets – and we stop trying. As a result, we turn away from our true greatness – that powerful leader within.

Appropriately dressed, we play the role; often effectively. So successful are some that they become leaders inspiring others to succeed as the culture has defined it. Some of these leaders get to work with a team to lead the overall organization because, in part, they wear the ‘uniform’ which allows them to ‘act’ the culture-defined role.

Leaders at all levels are advised and expected to uphold the organization’s culture. What happens when that culture conflicts with an individual’s core values – what they believe to be intrinsically important?  What happens when a team member’s values – whatever they may be – are ‘locked away’ while they fulfill their responsibilities to the organization?

Over time, during which we have experienced the success of playing the role, the uniform gets old. It doesn’t fit so well anymore – and it’s obvious. Perhaps family or friends question the change in you … you’ve lost your playful spirit, your sense of humor or you just seem uptight and tense. Perhaps you realize how little time you have for people, activities and events that used to be so important to you. Or, perhaps you just don’t feel “yourself” and, in spite of your “success,” something wants to change.

Being masters at playing a role that does not honor what drives us at our core is limiting at best. We find ourselves unable to effectively play this role for long. It seriously impacts what we could achieve if our core values and needs were more closely aligned with the organization’s culture. Imagine how much more successful (and satisfied) we would be if we were operating daily from total alignment with our values. The Third Zone asserts that individuals reach greater – and more sustainable – professional success because of rather than in spite of it.

The moment we successfully pierce the protective membrane of the Self Shield™ we begin to rediscover and release awareness of our personal values that are core to all aspects of our lives. We reunite with what is most important to us. We discover our capacity to fulfill professional responsibilities, while staying connected to those values. When we actively and consistently do this, a boundless power and energy is unleashed.

Imagine being on a team where all individuals are operating with this power … and you will see a team move from forced success to sustainable excellence.

Something is changing! The “uniformed” culture, previously defining the individuals, cannot survive in this new environment.  As the Self Shield™ dissipates and the authentic leader within is released, the individual leaders have the ability to consciously create a powerful new culture. This is when BOLD leadership happens.

Through our unique brand of coaching, clients in organizations of all sizes have discovered the power that lies within them, behind the Self Shield™.  The Third Zone coaches are experts at working with business leaders to access their full potential and increase their impact on others. We hear again and again that personal growth and change are very hard because of the culture or work environment. When we hear this, we continually point leaders toward themselves.

While leadership is about impact on others and driving results in your business, the path to building leadership muscle begins within the core of the leader. Personal power exists within the leader and, when accessed, can truly change cultures. So the next time you hear yourself say, “That’s just how things are around here,” or “It is just our culture, we can’t do anything about that,” step back and notice your Self Shield™. Then think about which of your values you are denying. Can your business afford to have less than your 100% showing up?

By piercing your Self Shield™ you can bring your fully centered self to work and help create a culture in which you and your business will thrive.

What will it take to pierce your Self Shield™ today?
 

Behind Your Mask

Looking behind your mask to find the self-centered leader!

(click on image to view video)