Great Leaders Own Their Expertise
Contributing Columnist: Barbara Churchill, Creator of the Live It Real™ Leadership Coaching program
Last week I was working with a client who was recapping a conversation she had with her boss, regarding the progress of the initiative she was heading. She asked her boss to help her with a particular decision — to send or not send out yet another survey.
The boss told her not to and asked why she thought she should. My client, Jane, thought she needed more information to present to the leadership team — more data, more proof — to support her case. I asked her why she was so adamant about needing more data, and our conversation about it went as follows:
Me: Why do you think you need more information than you already have?
Jane: I want to be prepared. I want to make sure I have everything I need in case they ask for more information.
Me: Didn’t the leadership team ask you to head this initiative?
Jane: Yes.
Me: So, you’re gathering more evidence to prove to the leadership team that the decision they already made is a good one?
Jane: Um, well, I guess.
Me: Is this really about being prepared? Why is this important for you?
Jane: I want to look credible.
Me: Jane, you got the go-ahead and have their blessing to roll with it. You’re already credible.
I encounter this kind of situation over and over again with the leaders I coach — particularly those who are in emerging leader positions. They continue to look outside themselves for evidence to support their expertise and expend an enormous amount of time and resources doing so.
I encourage them to stop, review, and acknowledge the experience they already have. They typically realize that nothing more is needed. Yet, owning their expertise with a sense of confidence continues to be a challenge for them.
I can’t tell you how many times over the last 25 years of being a business owner, I’ve thought I needed to get this certification or that training because then I’d finally be a credible member in my field. Those moments usually occurred when I was making decisions from a place of fear or lacking.
So, why do we do this?
Part of the reason is that we lack of confidence in our own abilities.
Many leaders are used to being executors, and when their positions change, they may not receive as many accolades as they did in the past. This can be a source of insecurity to many, even though it is not an indication that they are not performing well.
Expertise is more difficult to measure, especially if there are no letters after your name like PhD or some other certification designation.
What it boils down to is taking yourself out of autopilot mode and checking in with yourself. Ask yourself the key questions that will deliver the needed answers.
No one else has the history and experiences that you have.
No one else has the perspective that you have.
No one else sees through the lens that you have.
Trust yourself that you know what to do.
Trust yourself that if you need additional information, you know how to find it.
Trust that you have the expertise.
Trust — and own it.
Barbara Churchill is an Executive Coach and Speaker, specializing in emerging and senior level leaders, and is passionate about empowering people to embrace their leadership skills and step into more challenging roles. Creator of the Live It Real™ Leadership Coaching program, Barbara combines her leadership and communication expertise and works with large corporations as well as small and medium sized businesses. Barbara continues to be invited by Fortune 100 companies to lead sessions on self-confidence and leadership; and is a frequent television guest in the Twin Cities market.
Barbara is a part of a series of virtual workshop and learning forum called Lead, Women. For more on Lead, Women speakers, please visit www.FB.com/groups/LeadWomen.
