Balanced Leadership
The past few years I have been asking myself: How does a healthy life and workplace look like? How can I make sure I am rested and healthy enough to take care of others?
As a founder for @orisun.studio and project manager I only recently realized that I am a leader. It took me this long to realize it because I was afraid to admit that I am responsible and can be held accountable for others. But then I learned what leadership really meant. It is actually very personal and focuses mostly on taking responsibility and accountability for yourself first. I learned that self care is preparation for community care.
But how do you make sure the whole ecosystem is healthy and sustainable? Well, I don't know yet but what I do know is that in the spaces I create I don't want people to get burn-outs or leave my organization because it's unsafe. So instead of claiming to be an expert on anything I have decided to put the focus on myself in this research. By being vulnerable and sharing thoughts through a selection of mentors who are helping me reach my highest potential in different areas of my life and business. This ongoing research is focused on how we can improve the balance between our wellness & career.
The universal law of duality
There is a clear connection between women in business settings, wellness and leadership and here is why. From a spiritual perspective we should recognize that duality exists within everything. The universal law of duality teaches us that every aspect of life is created from a source that are both opposite and complementary forces. It does not cancel each other out but balances each other out.
One of my first lessons in spirituality was this lesson. Everything is created twice. First it’s a thought and then it becomes a form. So the first creation is invisible. Remember what Joana said? “Spirituality is the science of energy. Spirituality is the energy behind things that are created.” So everything you create has a certain energy backed to it which will translate into your business.
When you look at this law from the business context, there is the masculine energy and feminine energy attached to it because businesses are run by people. “Execution is the masculine energy. A linear model, focused on execution, doing. Your worth is connected to you doing something. It's competitive, with winners & losers. The feminine energy is a cyclical model and mirrors nature. It is focused on being and reflection. Your worth is connected to you being somebody. It is collaborative.”
Our current status quo leans more towards the masculine energy and neglects the feminine. This is why feminine qualities are needed to re-balance our way of doing business.
We need new solutions to existing problems to uplevel the world, culture and life. We need new leaders, who have the imaginative power to create these solutions.” - Joana Fatondji
Here is a list of qualities
Self - leadership
So we have discussed the balancing forces of humans and business but if there is a duality in everything this should also exist in leadership. Brené Brown is an author, researcher and public speaker who has studied the emotion of vulnerability, shame, compassion and the dose of courage that comes with these skills. According to Brené Brown Leadership is the act of holding oneself accountable for finding potential in people and processes.
I practice leadership with the understanding that it is not just about the people and processes I manage. It is also about managing myself.
This management of self or self-leadership is honestly the foundation for anything that flows from it. In my opinion it is also the hardest most triggering part of business. It requires full honesty with yourself and reflection. It requires you to take critique and acknowledge your own shortcomings. It requires self-care because it will lead to community care.
This is why it is important to invest into yourself and take care of yourself by honoring yourself. This is also why I got myself a coach 3 years ago because I knew that I wouldn’t get there alone.
The business of wellness creates a culture of wellness
Now let’s get into the team and community management. The connection between leaders and the rest of the organization creates the culture of an organization. So if you have bad leaders this reflects within the culture. This is why not everybody is destined to become a good leader. It is a skill you have to develop. A balance you constantly need to manage of yourself and then also the culture you are cultivating by the people who have around you.
Why good leaders make you feel safe a Ted Talk by Simon Sinek he discusses the effects of a good safe culture on teams and how they can flourish: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmyZMtPVodo
A safe space usually boils down to a place where everybody can be their authentic selves, flourish and get the chance to make mistakes. It is also a place that is diverse and inclusive. The Harvard Law Review published an article written by Melissa Daimler who wrote the book Re-culturing to close the culture gaps in an organization by reviewing the behaviors, systems, and practices in place in your company.
Instead of the common default to hiring for “cultural fit” — which in practice is usually an excuse for hiring people we find likable or similar to us — we can look for behaviors that are cultural complements. This moves us away from the tendency to hire people who think the same and towards a company built on diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, and ideas that complement culture while also enriching it.
Leading inclusive communities is a whole topic on its own but very tied into leadership. Because in my personal experience your identity is your power but it is also used to disempower people in their cultures. The good news is that we can re-culture even when it used to be unhealthy.
In Rwanda, 50 percent of the ceo’s and government employees are women. This is a beautiful example of balance within organizational structures. For those who don’t know the country’s history. In … Rwanda dealt with a genocidi between the Tutsi and Hutu tribes. In … the country started to rebuild itself and due to good leadership it has become the most innovative, clean and inclusive country in the world.