Late last year (in late 2018), I took the Leadership Circle Profile certification class with Shahmeen Sadiq. It was a 3-day class for the core Leadership Circle Profile and a 1-day follow-up for the Leadership Culture Survey.
I was looking for an instrument (360-degree tool) to use in my Certified Agile Leadership (CAL I & II) workshops to provide insights for leaders shifting towards a more agile mindset. I’d been using Bill Joiner’s Leadership Agility tool, and I found it unwieldy for my purposes in the class.
Well, after four days, I’m excited about my new tools. I believe the LCP is an excellent tool for individually coaching leaders. And I’m even more excited about the LCS and how it will nicely dovetail into my private CAL I classes.
The Leadership Circle
I can’t do the instruments/surveys justice in a short blog post. I will say that the focus is on showing us the balance between our reactive tendencies and creative competencies. Reactive focuses more on controlling and managing our teams. While creative attempts to achieve results by building and leveraging our teams’ capabilities.
One way to consider it is to consider reactive and creative as the difference between management and leadership. And one of the things I like about the circle is that it doesn’t imply that reactive is bad. Instead, it shows you the degree to which you’re balanced between the two sides of the circle. And it offers you insights into why and where you might want to begin re-shifting your focus.
And, of course, if you’re in the business of leading agile organizations and teams, then a shift towards the creative is a must.
Here’s a short informational video on The Leadership Circle that also helps understand it at a high level - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMWYiAgg1dc
My Personal BIG Aha
My personal AHA surrounded the notion of shifting your perspective. Shaheen spoke about our stories, which are our:
Beliefs
Assumptions
Baggage
History
Patterns
That we tell ourselves about:
Ourselves
Our teams
Our managers/leaders
Our organizations
Our cultures
Our limits / constraints
Often, we are our own “worst enemy” regarding our perception of our situation. And one of the key things about shifting conversations is being kind to ourselves in the journey. Realizing it will take time and that we might never be perfectly done in the shift.
And that’s ok.
The key point is to be present and focused in each moment and be aware of the context. Looking out for our historical triggers and staying sharp on detecting them before our reactions.
I’ve shared about some of this in other blog posts:
Wrapping Up
I’m incredibly excited about how this new tool will complement my CAL classes, my leadership coaching, and the client leadership reflections it will cause.
We all need to work on our creative side, and this is a way to shine a light in that direction.
I hope you get the chance to attend a future class. They’re an excellent opportunity to grow your leadership insights and chops.
Stay agile my friends!
Bob.
April 2023 Update
I have been reflecting on the usefulness of the LCP in my CAL classes and client leadership coaching since I wrote this in early 2019. So, an update after four years of using the LCP.
I’ve found it incredibly useful in my private CAL classes, where I use the Collective Leadership Assessment with leadership teams. I’ve also been using the LCP in my individual leader coaching. In both cases, I’ve found the instrument to be a powerful tool in my arsenal.
It helps to reveal the system to my clients and uncover areas to explore and improve upon. It also provides a landscape for coaching conversations that is second to none.
If you’re an agile coach who is coaching at the organizational and leadership levels, I can’t recommend it highly enough to help you help your clients.