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November 1 marks a very special day - OutGrowth is officially five years old this year!

 

In honor of this milestone, I present to you the five components that make up my "why" as a business owner. It has been a joy evolving my programming and offerings over the years, and through it all, I have stayed connected to my reason for being. Here is what drives me:

 

  • I believe in the power of immersive experience as a mechanism for developing relevant and in-demand personal and professional skill sets. I believe that new experiences are ends in themselves, and have the potential to change the way we think, live, work, interact, and chart a path forward.

  • I believe that we need to constantly cross-collaborate in order to reach beyond our industries and professional silos, and to broaden our professional perspectives.

  • I believe that in order to create a life of impact and fulfillment, we need to connect to our professional purpose, and educate ourselves on the businesses and communities that are making a difference in the world.

  • I believe that we owe it to ourselves to question the status quo, reimagining how life and work can look, and having a bias to action so that we are always experimenting.

  • I believe that courage breeds confidence, which leads to competence. I believe that we have to charge toward discomfort in order to reach new heights.

 

As we celebrate this month, I am proud to dedicate November to heart-centered leadership. In this issue, you will be introduced to two inspirational leaders who share their knowledge and expertise on this topic. You will also be supplied with top tools and tips for building your heart-centered leadership style. Happy reading, and cheers to five years!
 

Grow out with us.

The Sun Beam

Heart-Centered Leadership Coach, and Founder of Jess Lilly Coaching LLC, Jess Lilly

 

Upwards

360 Degrees of Leadership

by Eric N. Ford, Interim Director for the Shriver Center at the University of MD – Baltimore County

OutGrowth Today

Our Monthly Blogger Spotlight + OutGrowth's Top Tip for November

 

The En Root Scoop

On Heart-Centered Leadership

Our Top Ted Talk, Podcast + Book

Learn More About Our Services

“We desperately need more leaders who are committed to courageous, wholehearted leadership and who are self-aware enough to lead from their hearts, rather than unevolved leaders who lead from hurt and fear.” - Brene Brown

 

Before I was a Heart-Centered Leadership Coach, I was a public school teacher in Washington, DC reading Brene Brown’s work and asking myself, “Do I have what it takes to make a difference in the world?”

 

At the time, I was on my way to burn out; doing my best to show up and teach the high school students I worked with - many of whom were facing stressful circumstances at school and at home. I so badly wanted to be there for them, yet I struggled to deal with empathy overload and a bottomless pit of responsibilities. I didn’t have the self-mastery skills necessary or support sufficient to sustain leadership in that role. I left teaching defeated, feeling like a failure and like nothing I did could possibly be enough. I got the message that I was “too sensitive” and “too emotional” to be effective for the long haul.

 

When I hit the rock bottom of that experience, I discovered a new conversation beyond “am I good enough?” and “what’s wrong with me?” The person who supported me to shift my mindset was my first professional coach, Laura Westman. In that coaching partnership, I realized that my sensitivity and empathy were superpowers that could be honed like any other gift. Showing up with an open heart and giving of yourself courageously requires healthy boundaries, self-awareness, excellent communication skills, and superb self-care. Having those breakthroughs led me to pursue a career as a professional coach so that I could support other Heart-Centered Leaders like myself to sustain leadership and make an impact without harming themselves or burning out.

 

If you are reading this article, chances are you are already committed to leading from your heart. You believe in creating a world where empathetic, compassionate, vulnerable leadership is the norm. Your blood boils at the very mention of leaders around the world using domination, violence, and fear to control people and take power.

 

It can be quite overwhelming to think about being an open-hearted leader in a world full of fear and division. You may feel powerless, hopeless, or not know where to start. You might have resigned yourself to a life of coping and shielding yourself from the state of the world. It’s understandable to do so.

But in your heart of hearts you know that so much more is possible. You know that you are capable of contributing to a better world by harnessing your gifts.

 

One place to start is within yourself. How you treat yourself, speak to yourself, and care for yourself is the foundation for the work you do out in the world. It requires courage and intentionality to choose a path of self-awareness, transforming your relationship with YOU first and foremost. Giving yourself that gift is the thing that will enable you to make a huge difference in the world and inspire others to do the same.

 

Will you allow yourself to believe it’s possible? Will you give yourself permission to move beyond self-doubt, cynicism, and resignation?

 

That is the purpose of Heart-Centered Leadership Coaching. I help leaders do this every single day - to wake up and choose open-hearted leadership again and again and again.

 

You are capable of creating the world that you want. Today is a perfectly good day to start.

 

 

Jess is a Heart-Centered Leadership Coach and founder of Jess Lilly Coaching LLC.

 

Jess works with empathetic leaders who want to harness their superpowers and overcome burnout. Her clients practice new skills and embody new ways of being to gain access to more personal power, creativity, compassion, and authenticity. Jess’ bold and playful coaching style make her an effective partner for transformation. Unconditional love, joy, connection, integrity, and trust are values that guide her leadership.

 

Jess offers 90-minute Leadership Roadmap Sessions for people interested in trying Heart-Centered Leadership Coaching.

 

The Leadership Roadmap Session is a powerful way to "dip a toe" in the coaching waters. In this 90-minute session, leaders get real about who they want to be one year from today and what it will take to get there.

 

To learn more and request a Leadership Roadmap Session with Jess, visit her website.

Connect with Jess

Sometimes I am in awe as I reflect on my career path, lived experiences and my life journey. It truly exemplifies that cliché that says, “everything happens for reason.” Everything is connected. As my life continues to unfold, I consistently see how one experience prepares for the next. I am able to make connections from being a Boy Scout and playing recreational basketball, to serving on nonprofit boards and coaching a travel basketball team. Similarly, I often draw upon past conversations had with paternal figures from my childhood, and leadership styles learned in JROTC, for guidance in raising my two sons and embracing the role of a strong male leader in my extended family. 

 

I have found that if you remain true to your family values, mentors will emerge in your life to reinforce those values and help you find your purpose. I spoke about this concept during a “Retriever Talk” program at UMBC.

 

What developed organically for me from mentorship and professional development, I have come to understand is called “heart-centered leadership.”  A concept coined by Susan Steinbrecher and Dr. Joel Bennett has the same principles I use as a leader. In reviewing this text, it was affirming to learn that the values I use daily are shared by others.

 

First and foremost, I strive to build rapport and relationships with those I work with. Before we discuss deliverables and expectations, I seek to get to know you as a human. I want to better understand how you got this point and what we have in common. This sets a strong foundation for our relationship.

 

I mentioned earlier how everything along my career path seems to be connected.  So, through my mentor in JROTC, I was introduced to Hampton University, where I attended college. My experience there had a profound impact on who I am and where I developed lifelong friendships. 

 

While at Hampton, I was recruited to work at UMBC as a mentor for youth in Baltimore. That experience shaped my entire career, one job at time, that eventually led me back to UMBC to serve as the director of The Choice Program. I shared this experience in an article called Shaped By Shriver.

A key component of heart-centered leadership is consistently practicing self-care. A big piece of my self-care routine is returning to Hampton for homecoming each year to bond with friends and reflect on the impact college had on my life.

 

In mentoring young people at The Choice Program, we strive to use a trauma responsive approach.  Fundamental to doing this successfully is not asking, “what’s wrong with you” but instead, “what happened to you?” This shift in framing moves one from judgement to understanding. This is another way a key value I lead with is affirmed through heart-centered leadership. Heart-centered leaders ask questions, don’t make assumptions and are not judgmental.  

 

As I close, I would like to leave you with three tips in helping you find your purpose as a heart-centered leader. 

 

1) Reflect on your family values; the positive things that were important in shaping who you are.

 

2) Identify and meet regularly with mentors who share and reinforce your family values.

 

3) Choose a career that allows you to celebrate and manifest those values each day.

 

 

Eric N. Ford, originally from Virginia and a graduate of Hampton University with a B.A. in Sociology (1993), and a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in the Nonprofit Sector from UMBC, has more than 28 years of experience in the Human Services field in the Baltimore metropolitan area. Eric is currently interim director for the Shriver Center at the University of MD – Baltimore County.

 

Connect with Eric
 

Monthly Blogger Spotlight

 

"A Professional Growth Spurt"

by Liz Matthews

 

"When you have hobbies and other valuable ways to spend your time, you can experience clarity of thought, which can provide you with perspective on what is important and what is worth spending “stress capital” on. This can help influence your future decisions."

 

Liz Matthews has spent over 25 years working in the public, private, and government sectors. Liz has held communications, outreach, and marketing positions at two national nonprofit organizations, a tech start-up, a fortune 500 company, and in higher ed. Liz has a Global Career Development Facilitator certification and is a Certified MBA Career Coach through The Academies. She received her BA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

 
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OutGrowth's Top Tip

 

On Heart-Centered Leadership: Displays of Gratitude

 

How different would our work lives be if we always felt appreciated, and we were able to express that appreciation in a meaningful way to our teams? More than an obligatory, "thank you," displays of gratitude involve deep listening and respect, a building of trust, and can lead to a complete shift in how we relate to one another and work together.

 

I often talk about the power of creative confidence and risk-taking in the workplace, when this type of culture is supported by leadership. How would our methods of working, collaborating and building solutions look different if we had a strong foundation of trust and mutual respect? More than just a fluffy concept, the atmosphere we create affects our assessment of intrinsic rewards, employee turnover and even the bottom line.

 

Let's begin to ask ourselves how we can really change the way we acknowledge and value what our teammates are bringing to the table, especially as we enter this season of gratitude. It could be a game changer for our organizations!

 
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'Four-star general Stanley McChrystal shares what he learned about leadership over his decades in the military. How can you build a sense of shared purpose among people of many ages and skill sets? By listening and learning -- and addressing the possibility of failure.'

 
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'Every single imperfection adds to your leadership. Join Deb Crowe as she speaks with Heart-Centered Leaders from around the world.'

 
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'Heart-Centered Leadership is a transformational business book, one that is keenly attuned to the growing awareness of the need for more mindful leaders who realize that self-care and authenticity have a deeply significant impact on the satisfaction and well-being of their workforce and, by extension, the bottom line.'

 
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