What I heard from a CEO client: “When I hear ‘build relationships,’ I think ‘We’re not spending time on kumbaya.'”
Nope, you’re not.
No one likes trust falls.
But you do need to build relationships on your leadership team. You need to build trust. It’s a virtuous cycle. It’s where the magic happens.
If you want to work on your team’s relationships:
Create clarity on where to focus when elevating their leadership.
- Assess individual and collective strengths and gaps.
- Offer facilitated conversations to make meaning of results.
- Provide ongoing support for growth.
Build an understanding of everyone’s strengths and the team culture.
- Create a focused and safe environment.
- Embrace the “V-word”: vulnerability (Hey, Leader, it starts with you)
- Vulnerability can be exhausting, so the process must be fun too (Still no trust falls).
If your team doesn’t “feel like a team” be honest with yourself:
Have you done the real work of relationship building?
Or have you kept it at surface-level kumbaya?
Or have you done nothing at all?
Remember that CEO? Here’s what I heard after I facilitated an offsite with his team:
“I was totally skeptical going in, but I get it. I’m bought in. This work matters. The relationships and trust we built created an opportunity for better business results as the executive team performs at a higher level.”
#leadership #executiveteam #executiveleadership
Hey there, I’m Cynthia. I’m a leadership team whisperer, executive coach, and speaker. I guide leadership teams in high-growth companies to achieve rapid growth in a healthy, sustainable way. I coach senior leaders to discover the path to lead with ease.
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