Identifying and Dealing with Paradoxes

This week’s tip comes from Leading Blog. It is resonant with the principles and practices of Step Up Leadership: curiosity, receptivity and deep listening. There are problems and there are paradoxes. The trouble is when we treat paradoxes as problems because then our decision making process becomes paralyzed, inflexible, incomplete, isolated and closed. Paradoxes are […]

5 Leadership Lessons from Rwanda

This week’s Step Up Leader Tip comes from an extraordinary young Rwandan female leader. Sandrine Umuhoza, student at The Akilah Institute for Women in Rwanda and President of the Student Council, recently visited Tampa as an ambassador for her school and country. Sandrine exemplifies the dynamic potential of Akilah’s students; young women who bring economic […]

Is Your Leadership Consciously Fit?

The theme for this month is Conscious Fitness.  This is critical for leaders because energy, stamina, drive and the capacity to execute depend upon physical, emotional and mental fitness. What does it mean for a leader to be consciously fit? I believe in the core of Eastern philosophy; what is in the microcosm is in […]

Gratitude as a Leadership Practice

This week I had an opportunity to reflect about gratitude, both for my clients and for myself.  It was not an exceptional week, except for one thing; every single client took the time to acknowledge the positive impact our coaching work was having on them, professionally and personally.   I didn’t expect this, but am tremendously […]

Why Connection Matters for Leaders

According to Wikipedia, connection is “a relationship in which a person, thing, or idea is linked or associated with something else.” This directly relates to a fundamental leadership skill:  the ability to connect. Everything a leader does, requires connection. Vision, strategy and execution require connection.  Getting things done through people requires connection. Leaders are able […]