Top Takeaway Tuesdays: Leading with Grit and Gratitude
The Knowing Self Knowing Others Podcast, Ep 68
Hello KSKOers
I discovered Dr Sarah Ratekin on TikTok and was instantly drawn to her insights, thoughtfulness and little bit of sass. I was super pleased when she agreed to come on to the show and talk to me about grit, gratitude and happiness in the workplace. Take a listen - you’ll be glad you did!!
Here are my top takeaways from our conversation…
The Importance of Self-Aware Leadership: Dr Sarah’s emphasis on the critical role of self-awareness in leadership is a powerful reminder of the fundamental importance of understanding oneself as a leader. By really getting to understand our own strengths, weaknesses, and emotional triggers, we can better navigate complex leadership responsibilities.
Reflection Question: How can you commit to a regular practice of self-reflection to gain deeper insights into your leadership style and its impact on others?
Combatting Workplace Stress and Crisis Management: Our discussion sheds light on the inadequate handling of workplace stress and the need to for organisational leaders to create space to process experiences. We reflect on how we, as leaders, can create a more supportive environment for our teams to effectively manage workplace stress and crises. We talked about Covid: have you had an opportunity to reflect and de-brief in your workplace?
Reflection Question: How can we improve our reflective practice as teams so that reflection and de-brief becomes a standard part of our implementation and learning process?
Fostering Positive Workplace Culture: Dr Sarah’s emphasis on resilience, authenticity, and continuous learning highlights the core values that are crucial for a positive workplace culture. This leads us to ponder how organisations can actively promote these values to create an environment that not only supports well-being but also encourages productivity and creativity.
Reflection Question: What tangible steps can you take to foster a culture of resilience, authenticity, and continuous learning within you team?
Healing Organisational Inflammation: The concept of organisational inflammation was new to and we discussed what it meant. If we think of organisations like a body with interconnected parts and crucial organs for sustaining life, then it makes sense that an organisational body suffers from inflammation, just like a human body. It’s essential for leaders to consider what steps to take to foster transparency and trust within their organisations to heal any existing inflammation.
Reflection Question: How can we actively cultivate an environment of openness and trust to address underlying issues that may be impacting our teams and organisational well-being?
❝So companies are exactly the same at a metaphorical perspective. You have your human resources department, logistics, accounting, finance, operations. And, again, when one of those systems gets out of whack through overengineered processes or outdated protocols or personality conflicts or whatever. Again, we see that same concept of inflammation.❞
5: Balancing Grit with Authenticity: Dr Sarah's warning against toxic positivity and over-reliance on grit is a crucial reminder for leaders to balance resilience with authenticity. Being resilient can sometimes mean gritting your teeth and getting through it, and sometimes that kind of culture masks an individual’s authentic challenges and forms a barrier to seeking help. It’s important to reflect on how we, as leaders, can strike a balance between the call for resilience and authenticity in our approach to leadership and organisational challenges.
Reflection Question: How can we authentically support our teams while also nurturing resilience in the face of adversity?
How can you use these top takeaways and reflection questions (TTRQ)?
Pick one of the TTRQs
Share it with you team
Ask for their thoughts and views. Reflect, discuss and debate
Get to know your own thoughts better. Help others to know their thoughts better. Get to know each other better.
Share your thoughts here with us on what you’ve discovered and learned.
Hope you enjoy the episode and find that these TTRQs generate interesting and awareness raising discussions!
I really love the conclusion with its warnings about toxic positions and the over-reliance on grit. It is too easy to overindulge on behaviors (such as positivity) that are generally good for us. Balance and discretion are key.