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Who is in the boat with you?
How are you connected? This question is rooted in what we have experienced working with scores of leaders who are embedded in layers of relationships within their organizations. The fact is that many leaders feel isolated. Yes, isolated. The positional authority has created barriers, real and imagined, to connection. These leaders may be in a variety of positions - executive directors, board chairs, supervisors. Many feel like they, alone, are carrying the weight of the organization (paddling solo, so to speak), unable to surface their deep musings while attending back-to-back meetings, responding to email and phone calls, and tending to the infinite demands. Our ethic is that leaders need others in the boat with them, paddling together. Board chairs and executive directors can form powerful alliances in service of the organizational mission and each others leadership. Peers - other board chairs or other executive directors - can become resources and sounding boards for each other. We need wise counsel when faced with hard decisions that require courage. We need others who understand the complexity of factors under consideration. We need to be seen as whole people, not just in our role. And we need good companions on the journey - to laugh, to share good news with, and to ask essential questions. Who is in the boat with you? How are you connected?
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