SigmaU Blog

This week I had to display courage in many ways. It took courage to speak my truth when my voice was shaking. It took courage to own my reaction and own the consequences of it – and it took courage to reflect and revisit an uncomfortable situation to move forward.

It got me thinking about courage and just how important it is to live a fully charged and authentic life.  Most of us will run into situations that require courage and, more times than not, we’re not ready. We don’t have our sword and shield up and we’re often blind-sided. What happens, and what happened to me when I wasn’t ready and had my back against the wall, was an instinctual reaction.

How do we know when courage is required?

C – Core Values

When something comes up that conflicts with our core values, it takes courage to speak up. It can be incredibly uncomfortable and even lonely to stay true to your beliefs when you’re facing the majority. But to live in congruence...

I accidentally leveled up the other day! Let me explain. I was running on the treadmill and didn’t realize that I had mistakenly pressed the speed button higher than usual. It wasn’t until I looked down that I noticed I had been running at a pace that was new for me and presumably outside of my comfort zone.

I learned from that experience to question my comfort zone. In that moment, I thought to myself “where else am I holding myself back from leveling up”? Clearly, the speed that I had previously gotten comfortable at was a pace slower than I was capable of.

Sometimes we level up when we’re thrown into a situation we’re unprepared for or we press the speed button without realizing it!

Here are some ways that you and I can be intentional about leveling up…

1. Our Associations

The people you surround yourself with matter to your level of success. This could be personally or professionally. It could be physically, your nutrition,...

How are you pursuing life? Is it in a reactive state or are you pursuing life with bold determination?

If you are unsure consider the following...

Leaders and High achievers set their sights on bigger goals. They are consistently chasing after a dream or goal that will require them to stretch. They may not meet their goal, but they know it is worth every moment of effort because it is shaping them into an excellent human.

As Jim Rohn famously said…

“The major value of reaching goals is not to acquire it, but it’s the person you become while you’re working to acquire it.”

Leaders and high achievers can think bigger and have possibility vs. limited thinking. You will rarely hear them say things like…

It’s never been done before?

I’m not sure I can do it?

What makes you think you can achieve this?

These questions are examples of limited thinking and a closed mind.

Achievers say things like…

If not me than who?

Why not?

What is...

Influence is something that we’re constantly participating in. We’re either influencing others or we’re being influenced by others. Recently, my colleague Lindsay shared some insights from one of her favourite books “Captivate” by Vanessa Van Edwards.

She shared that the reality is that we’re influenced all the time by other people’s energy.  We also influence others in the room by our energy.  What kind of energy do you want to be remembered for?

We know people who make us feel alive, excited, and refreshed. We also dread visits with those who make us feel edgy, irritable, and somehow like we’ve just run a marathon!  Energy influences relationships but there are some other factors when you consider positive influence.

In High Performance Coaching ™ we look at three key areas of influence and they are based on how positive influencers impact us.

They teach us how to think

There’s a very important distinction...

Your values will determine what you chase, what you release and who you invest your time with.

Life is complicated to say the least and our core values ground us. What are our core values? They are the fundamental beliefs we have about life, about ourselves and about the things that matter most.  They whisper to us when we do something that feels “off” or nudges us when someone doesn’t feel aligned with us.

Each one of us has values that drive our daily decisions, major life choices and relationships. When we’re living in congruence with those values, life feels a little easier and focused.  When we get off course, life can feel clunky or, worse, we have a deep sense of anxiety, shame, or regret.

For many, they’re unsure what their core values are. They know what their family unit values were, what their company values are but what about their own personal values?

How do we determine our core values? We could start by asking questions...

I recently shot a video for LinkedIn about courageous conversations. I had assumed that people knew what I was referring to when I spoke about these conversations and I shouldn’t have. I realized this while I was wrapping up an introductory webinar on high performance and someone asked me to give an example of a courageous conversation.

In the moment, I gave a personal example and shared a story of a courageous conversation I had.  After the webinar it dawned on me that I should not only define courageous conversations but also provide you with some tools and lead-in conversation starters that I have found to be incredibly helpful as I’ve faced these once fear-inducing moments.

Here’s what I can tell you about courageous conversations: they are easier and easier to have as you build your courage muscle!

As a recovering ostrich who would put their head in the sand and avoid confrontation at all costs, I can tell you that I would never dream that confrontation...

I didn’t realize just how vehemently I am committed to personal growth and development until I was challenged and told that it was selfish. I stopped dead in my tracks and couldn’t believe what I was hearing. This individual said “ya but have you considered the flipside of personal development. It’s actually selfish.”

Well, no! I must admit that I’d never considered investing in myself to be selfish and it got me wondering if people hold back from growing because they have bought in to this myth as well.

Here are a few reasons why I believe that personal development is not selfish.

1. You’re human which means you have an inherent need to grow.

See, most people stop living well before they’re dead. I look at some of my own family members who consume hours and hours of news and television and stopped growing years ago because they learned “all that they needed to know.” For me, that’s a sad existence.

I believe that...

Do you do your best work when you fly by the seat of your pants? Not me! I’m a planner, in fact I don’t wing ANYTHING!

In order to show up as a strong leader and role model, I have to be intentional about it. It doesn’t come naturally but when I make it a priority it positively impacts the team.

Here are 4 ways you can be more intentional as a leader today!

1.  Map it Out!

Start your day off thinking about and writing down who you want to show up as that day. Perhaps it’s thinking about your phone calls, interactions, coaching with employees or meetings. How would your best self show up? Decide early in the day while you’re fresh how you can be most effective as a leader. You can also check out our super popular Intentional Journals here: https://www.growwithsigmau.com/books.

2.  Set Intentions before Interactions

Oprah famously starts each meeting asking, “What are the intentions of this meeting?” This is a great way to gain clarity...

When I’m afraid or feeling stressed my ego takes over! Bold statement, I know, but it’s true. I show up rude, sarcastic and I can be short with people.  When I’m leading as my best self and I’m intentional about how I want to show up as a leader, it’s a totally different story.

I’d venture to guess that as a leader, you may be able to relate. When you’re under pressure you just want things done and done properly with minimal questions and minimal interruptions so you can work on what’s most important.  This happens to most of us when we’re in reactive mode vs. being proactive and intentional.

Here are some telltale signs that I’m under pressure and my ego has taken over…

I assume the worst intentions. I have moments where I doubt the intentions of those around me and question if my team did all that they could in a situation vs. assuming the best in others.

When I’m operating from my ego, my ideas are...

If you’re a growth-oriented and innovative company then courage should definitely be a part of your culture. It takes guts to be different, to challenge the status quo and to set BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) for your company!

To execute and navigate through unknown territory takes courage and it’s not enough for the leader to be courageous. Courage needs to be woven through the organization.

Show Courage as a Leader

Like most things, courage will require you as a leader setting an example for your team. My old coach Lindsay used to always say “Leaders get the behaviours they display or tolerate.” So how can you be an example of courage? Courage as a leader isn’t necessarily about control or leading the charge. In fact, courage as a leader shows up when you push yourself outside of your comfort zone. When you’re vulnerable by putting yourself out there on social media for example. It’s being courageous enough to admit to the team when...