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Intentional Leadership — D4, W2, M2 — Relationships

Thursday is a good day for reflection.

Take a little time today to consider what happened yesterday?

Did you take the time to let someone know about the potential you see in them? How did it go? What’s happening as a result?

Now let’s take a different approach.

Think about three people from your work/professional life. Write their names on a piece of paper.

Next to their names, write down the qualities you most admire in them. Then jot some ideas on the amazing accomplishments you believe could be realized if they worked together on a project of your choosing.

Who would do what?

How would each person shine in the project?

Can you envision it? What do you think would really happen if you moved it from an idea to reality? If there’s value in this exercise, take it another step further…

If you want to really have an impact, and make a difference in someone’s life, write at least one of them a hand-written note telling them how much you value them and their abilities; be specific about the qualities you admire and the potential you see in them. I look forward to hearing what happens next (use the comments box below to share your stories!).

Sent from my iPad

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Intentional Leadership — D2, W2, M2 — Relationships

Today, we give some thought to what is true about ourselves.

Think of someone you know well and have a solid relationship with, or whom you consider to have built strong relationships with others. What are three key actions you’ve seen this person take to value and invest in others?

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What are three actions you take that are natural and easy ways to build relationships with?

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I know a woman who is very good at this, and am blessed to know she is truly my friend. She takes a genuine interest in people, understands the power of really listening to a person, and demonstrates her commitment to the relationship by making the effort to stay connected and engage in meaningful conversations with the people who are important in her life.

It’s a relationship I value and one that reminds me how important it is to not take people for granted.

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Intentional Leadership — D1, W2, M2 — Relationships

This week we are going to explore the potential we see in others.

How familiar are you with the story of Helen Keller?
She was unable to see and hear, and consequently, to speak. As a child, her parents brought in a tutor, Miss Sullivan, to teach her.
Miss Sullivan turned out to be most creative, perhaps even unconventional, in her methods for teaching Hellen to learn letters and words. She tried to “sign” a pattern of letters into Helen’s hand, but Helen failed to grasp their meaning.
Finally, Miss Sullivan took Helen out to the water pump in the yard, and held her hand under the running water. In her other hand, Miss Sullivan drummed out the patterns of the letters of the word “water;” Helen stood transfixed, feeling the water run over one hand while he focused on the pattern of the letters being tapped out in her other hand. It was ingenious!
Helen’s progress in learning was quite accelerated; she mastered a complex vocabulary, eventually learning to write — both the standard alphabet and in Braille. She even learned to speak.
She went on to graduate from college, wrote fourteen books, traveled to numerous countries, met a number of world leaders and served as an Ambassador for the American Foundation of the Blind.
It’s a miraculous story; one that would never have happened had Anne Sullivan not been brought in to tutor Helen, and had she not recognized Helen’s potential. The moral of the story: When we see the value in others, we have an opportunity to help them achieve great things.
Think back over the course of your life. Who believed in you?
What did they do to encourage you to stretch and go farther than you may have thought possible?
How did they demonstrate their belief in you?
Had they not believed in you — or didn’t demonstrate that belief — what impact would that have had on your life?
Who have you seen unrecognized potential in?
What did you do to nurture its growth?
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