Leadership Voice | Ep #69

Hey, I'm Chris Plackey, host of the Lead you'd Team podcast. Running a million dollar business is not easy. And whether you're just getting started with building your team or you've been at this for a while, I'm going to bring you honest, specific and clear practices you can use right now, today to improve how well you lead your team. Let's go ahead and get.

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How are you? And welcome to this episode. This week, I'm doing something different. I have decided to share with you a recording I made actually for my clients in the Q2 pivot program that I've been doing with them every week since quarter two started and we will continue to do through the end of June. And the timing of this is not by accident, and it's in line with all of the incredibly turbulent but frankly, powerful moment that we're in. I think a lot about leading leadership. It's what I've studied and tried to practice and teach for 20 years. And what I know to be true in moments like now is that we all are looking at the leaders.

For insight, direction, answers.

But the very.

Systems that we've built that prop up these leaders are the systems that need to be transformed. And so.

What do we do if we're in charge of a business or a team or a company?

How do we lead? And so I talk about in this recording, that leadership has to come from your own wisdom, your own voice.

But in order for us to.

Have the kind of awareness we want to have around our voice and wisdom, we have to be willing to evaluate what it is and know it and see it. And I think so many of us are in the throes of really that, of really contemplating and evaluating that. And that could be in your family, in your community, in your company. Because I know, I firmly believe, I don't say this even sheepishly. I know this to be true. We are in the middle of massive transformation. But if we are going to be leaders who. I like to think that women, and I know there's a few of you guys out there who listen to my podcast, I like to believe that you're part of the transformation, that you were called to even find me because you are aligned in this thinking. I believe that in order for us to truly transform as a nation and have the kind of practices in place and systems in place that no longer oppress but empower and build, we have to become different as leaders ourselves.

Transformation is not simply taking someone's advice and acting. It's not simply checking a box or writing a check. Transformation comes from us all becoming different.

And in order to do that work, you have to do your own. You have to do your own exploration and understand your own voice.

And so that's what this podcast is all about, is the invitation to you to think about that.

Because I think in this moment, a lot of people are not sure what to do, and they're trying really hard to find the next best way to participate in this moment. Well.

And I want to invite you to trust your own wisdom, but listen to it and let it help you and your team, your people, whoever you touch, take your next steps. So I will pass you over to tune in and I'll talk with you again next time.

Hello, everyone, and welcome to this week of Q2 Pivot. I can't believe it's the first week of the last month of June. I'm recording this a little late. Full disclosure, I had planned to do that this weekend. And we've had such disruption and turmoil here in the US I've been markedly distracted and just sort of consumed in my own way processing what's happening here in this country and also really also thinking about the lesson which is scheduled for today, which is leadership voice, which I think is well timed, frankly. So, leadership voice for all of us who have companies, you know, Whether you have two people who work for you or 200 or 2000, there's work to do for all of us to really know who we are as leaders and to consciously and intentionally use our voice. And I want to talk with you about what the elements of that are and then why that's so important. So we've done the work over the last several weeks about your vision, your values, your expectations, you know, slash, non negotiables. We've talked about compelling reason, we've talked about your operating system, really done that exploration of who you are. And the reason that I think this is all pretty important right now is because I do believe we're in a very transformative time in history and also for your business. And so as we examine things that are happening that's impacting your business, your team, your clients, buyer behavior, the economy, I think it's critical that you are aware and you are evaluating what's happening to you. And then as by. And then by extension to your business, and so you having a clear sense of direction for your company and what you want to achieve in your company is essential. That's a given. Then we have to really look at who are you? Right. Like, and why? What is your Voice. What. Who do you want to be as a leader?

What is your voice? And there isn't a right or wrong. Just like everything else we do in this work. This is your philosophy. This is your relationship with yourself as a leader. But here's what I'll tell you, is you have a voice, whether you are aware of it or not. You have presence, whether you are aware of it or not. You have a flavor you leave behind, whether you're aware of it or not. So my recommendation is, let's be aware of it.

Because when we're not aware of ourselves and our voice as a leader and we don't use it consciously, we flail with it. And I think one of the reasons that a lot of people don't get conscious about their leadership voice is because they don't want to piss anybody off or they don't want to hurt anybody's feelings or they don't want to alienate anybody. But I think that the only way to actually have a voice that means anything is to be willing to. Not everybody agree with you, to be willing to lose people, to be willing to not have those people or whatever work for you.

I think that's the heart of the voice, is that it has a line to. Creates clarity.

It allows the people who want to work in your world to find you and those who don't to find you.

And I think that's the work of being a leader. It's, you know, it's different to just think about yourself as a business owner who has a company. I'm talking about leadership, which, frankly, I think you signed up for when you built the business. You signed up for the responsibility of leadership. I don't think a lot of people do that on purpose, but here you are with it. Who do you want to be as a leader? What do you want your voice to represent? Are you willing to have the consequences and the benefits of that voice? I know that people. When people don't have a voice, I know how to know, because this is a lot of what they say is. I don't know. I'm confused.

Why does my team do this? Why do they act this way? How did this happen?

No one ever tells me anything around here. I'm the last one to know. Everybody complains to me all the time. They all listen to her or him over me and so many others. When you have a lack of voice.

You have someone else on the team who's louder than you. So when your presence is unfelt, someone else's will be, and they will Control the message and direction of your business. When you have your voice but you don't want to use it, you're confused and so are they. When you aren't clear in your voice, they're confused and so are you. It's important to recognize that, as I mentioned, when you assume the responsibility of leadership, you have these people now who work for you. They're not just coming to work for you for a job, you are directing them, you are leading them. And people want to be led. And if they don't want to align to your voice and your vision for your business, I think that's good news. Let them go. I wrote down some thoughts for myself as it relates to my voice, and these are the words I wrote down anyway. I'm a woman who leads with love and grace.

And my leadership exists in a square, which to me means there's plenty of room inside. But it does have hard edges and boundaries and clear, direct, open and engaged.

I want people to know who work for me, that we will have a great time and laugh a lot, and I'm all in. I have boundaries and lines and I'm not soft and I expect the same. And I also want people to know what I stand for in the work that I do, why I do what I do, and why I don't do what I do. And I think we all should have that grounded knowing because what we're witnessing in so many places in the world today at a global level is an absence of leadership voice. Also witnessing in so many companies today is a tone deaf leadership voice. And so the last thing I'll say is again, Whether you have three people.

Or 400, if you assume the mantle of leadership and the responsibility that comes with that, I think that also invites you to have an awareness and understanding of who's in the room and what they're expecting of you. We spend a lot of time talking about what you expect of them, but what do they expect of you? They expect direction, guidance, clarity, support, feedback, fairness, direction, clarity. I keep saying the same things over, right? So you have that responsibility, which I think is a tempered approach. You have to be tempered in how you work with all of these different people. And so your voice needs to be relevant to the work at hand and the work that you're doing. And that I think requires you to stay connected and in growth mode like you do with this program and others that you do. Being aware, being conscious, read the room, right? Lots of those different things to think about. So when we think about leadership voice, it stems from vision, values, expectations.

That's sort of your foundation. And then we look at who are you as a leader? Why? What do you want to be known as representative stand for? How do you want to describe yourself and your voice? What's the flavor you want to leave behind? Do you have the most prominent presence on your team or does somebody else? Is your voice unclear, and so someone else is filling the void in your absence? Is your voice absent? And so someone else is filling the void? Is your culture kind of a mess? Are people not really doing what you want? Do you not even really enjoy what's happening at work? We have to look at your voice, your presence, your message. Are you assuming the mantle of responsibility in a leadership role? Because whether you chose it on purpose or not, you have it.

Granted and bestowed upon you because of your role? And will you accept that responsibility and really stand with what you represent and what you want your business to represent at a philosophical sort of embodied way? So there's an esoteric element to what I've been talking about, but there's also a very tangible one, and that's really just listening to yourself. Your decisiveness, your clarity. Where do you say yes and where do you say no? Where is that super clear? And where is that confusing? The more we clean that up, the easier it is for you to take bigger steps, bolder steps, more clear steps to drive results and success into your business. I'll look forward to talking with you about it as we unfold this coming week.

Hey there, gorgeous. Are you ready to take everything I teach you in this podcast and put it to work in your business and really learn how to master leading your team? If so, I'd love to have you as a client in the Founders Lab to learn more about how we can work together. Head over to Chrisplackie.com.

Join there. You'll see everything you need to know about the Founders Lab and how to get started? See you there.