Since 2008, it has been my privilege to certify and mentor hundreds of coaches and other human development professionals to use The Leadership CircleTM assessment instruments. In this role, I'm often asked questions about how to interpret the differences between the self-scores and the scores given by evaluators. For example:
My response, largely unsatisfying to some, to all of these questions is the same:
“It depends.”
Depends upon what? Role? Length of time in role? Ind...
This is a reprint of a blog article I wrote two years ago. It is as relevant to me today as it was back then. In it are the seeds for our end of October energy experiment, for those who are members of This Human Being Community.
Enjoy!
Shahmeen
My younger son is in his last year of elementary school. This morning I was reflecting on how grateful I am to his school for supporting him, and his peers, as they prepare to transition to high school. The teachers, guidance counsellors and Principal are wonderful human beings who care so deeply about these young people and really want to get them launched well for their next chapter.
You know what? We all need circles of support. Even those of us who appear so competent, capable and together.
L...
By Shahmeen Sadiq
These women never get featured in movies, magazines, on Instagram or LinkedIn or anywhere else. They don't get invited to sit on panels or speak to media personalities about their lives. They are the women who quietly, doggedly, with grit and resilience, hold up their respective pieces of the world.
These are the faceless nameless many who toil day and night in fields, in homes, in classrooms and clinics, in boardrooms, offices and stores, doing what needs to be done to care of their families. They may be young or old, single, married, divorced or widowed. They pay the rent, the mortgage, the bills, buy food if they can, clothe ...
"You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves."
- from Wild Geese, by Mary Oliver
My one wish for you this year, is that you will let yourself love what you love.
Growing up, my family loved all things intellectual. Thinking, intelligence, being smart...these were the things that mattered most. The arts were good (I learned to play the piano for years), sports were tolerated, but academic pursuits of the mind were of primary importance; indeed they were the only things that were really of value.
This served me well! I built my first career in the public service largely on the strength of my intellect. My de...
by Juan Madina, Management Consultant and Executive Coach
I have been wanting to post this for quite some time but did not muster the courage until now. My daughter who is now 10 made this picture a little over a year ago. We have it posted in her room and it is a humbling reminder of the innocence and beauty of a child's mind.
Last night I watched this movie called “The Kite Runner” on Netflix. This movie does not have very famous cast or great special effects, but it was REAL. It combined the beauty, simplicity and innocence of children with the harsh reality and cruelty that the world is plagued with today. It was both uplifting and heart wrenching.
In looking at this image again today I wondered, what kind of world would we live in i...
I wanted to dispense some sage advice for those who have experienced any type of “failure” recently. But every time I tried to write, the words seem somehow inadequate…not the sort of thing that would be heralded as the next hot trend in leadership!
My mentors have kindly reflected to me that I'd be much more effective if I could sit still for even a few minutes, instead of jumping into action the minute an idea comes to mind. So I gave it a try. I set aside any need to offer wisdom to the world, for a few days at least, and got involved in the fun of life with my children. I let that be enough.
One night I was on my way home from dance class, knowing I’d be alone when I returned as the boys had gone to their father’s home, where they liv...
I wrote this blog a few years ago, right at the start of a multi-year engagement with an elementary school to work with the students. It describes the beginnings of our Power Circles for Youth program, and I thought you might enjoy reading about how it all started. Enjoy!
Recently I was graced with the opportunity to work with elementary school-aged children. What began as a simple idea to take some leadership development into a school is proving to be one of the most unexpected gifts I ever could have hoped to receive. Indulge me if you will, as I share a little about what happened and the teaching these children offered me.
The plan was to co-convene four-35 minute sessions with each grade, separately, from Grade 1 to Grade 8 over the...
Time is sliding by so quickly these days, isn’t it?
My vision was to release our advanced coach training that week, but life intervened. Despite the frustration that simmered under the surface at times, I chose to smile kindly at myself and trust that the program would launch when everything calmed down.
“Man proposes, God disposes,” my late grandmother always said.
My younger son had been unwell, you see. With one of those lingering colds that moved down into his chest accompanied by incessant coughing and a recurring fever. All of the priorities that seemed so important that week fell to the side as I put my focus onto him and his well-being.
When my children were younger, I used to play an unconscious game with myself. I call it “Bea...