Episode 05: The Magic of Your [Leadership] Story
Your Story Matters
In this episode, I talk about how knowing and sharing your leadership story is a way to elevate your self-awareness and create connection with your peers and teams.
Enjoy!
Listen Here:
(The notes below are only a brief summary of what is discussed in the podcast. Be sure to listen to get all of the goodness! If you would like a full transcription of the episode, please send an email request to: angie@angie-robinson.com. We’d be happy to provide that!)
One of the (many) reasons I love Disney is because of the element of story. Stories are important in our communication. Stories:
spark connection
help us create meaning of the world around us
help us to understand our place in the world
shape our perspective and help us understand other peoples’ perspectives
help us understand ourselves better
Our lives are really a story that is being written as we live it. We get to choose what the next chapter will look like AND we can reread the parts that have already been written to reflect on memories and search for lessons.
Our stories, the parts that have already happened, help shape who we are today and where we will go tomorrow.
In this episode - I talk about the magic of knowing your leadership story. The story of what has shaped your view on leadership, on what contributed to the type of leader you are and the path you took to get where you are today.
Why does this matter?
It helps us understand how we came to be who we are now.
This awareness gives us the power to decide what we want to hang onto and what we want to let go of.
It helps us to understand why we may believe what we believe.
It gives insight into our motivations for what we do and how we do it.
It reveals lessons we may have learned,
It elevates our own self-awareness – giving us more power to make choices on who we want to be in the future.
They become a vehicle for sharing leadership insights, wisdom and lessons - building connection and creating inspiration.
They humanizes you as a person vs. just a box on an organizational chart.
How can you tell your story?
Get curious.
Create a timeline of your life through the lens of leadership - highlighting the events along that way that you see as impactful and formative. Also - identifying the people who made an impact on you.
Spend time thinking about and answering questions such as these:
What significant events from your life has shaped who you are today?
What or who has shaped your outlook and values as a leader?
What lessons about work, career path, etc. were you taught by your upbringing (think about lessons learned by parents, where you were raised, by teachers, etc.)?
How did you come to choose your career?
If you changed career / job tracks – what made you decide to do that?
If you’ve ever lost a job or voluntarily lost a job, how did that change trajectory of your career?
Your story is more than just facts.
As a matter of fact – it’s when we look at the facts through the lens of story – we make meaning. And that meaning will likely change over time – the more you tell the story, the more lessons are revealed.
(listen to the episode to hear an example of my leadership story)
To wrap it up:
Our leadership story (and our overall story) matters, It elevates our own self-awareness – providing clarity on some of our own whys and hows. It allow us to be intentional about how we use the lessons and how we write our next chapter. They become ways for us to connect with our teams by humanizing us and by sharing our wisdom.
Walt Disney once said:
“It seems to me that we have a lot of story yet to tell.”
Isn’t that the truth!?
What do you think?
Have you ever really examined your leadership story?
What wisdom and lessons can you draw that will help you elevate your leadership?
What can you share with others to inspire and create connection?
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