Self-Awareness, Mindset and The Relationship with Ourselves: Self-awareness and mindset is being aware of the relationship you have with yourself. Conscious leadership starts with the relationship with self because it determines how we develop relationships with others.  This requires us to be fully aware of what we are thinking and feeling and knowing how to go beyond set beliefs – to be present and engaged at the moment. To be true leaders, whether in life or work, we need to be intentional about relationships with ourselves and be conscious of choosing our thoughts, and what we give our attention to in order to change our level of awareness. A relationship is only as good as what you put into it, especially relationships with ourselves. If we do not nourish ourselves, be kind to ourselves, and go beyond set beliefs, then our partnerships and teams do not have the right conditions for growth.

Knowing your Why: Knowing your WHY, and developing a purpose. Becoming a conscious leader begins with taking a good hard look at what you want and how you’ll get it. Your soul is the most intimate part of you. Leaders need to ask themselves: What kind of world do I want to live in? Having a purpose behind everything you do, makes a difference. Discovering “soul purpose” can help with rapid shifts in the business world. As a leader, you must show up authentically, be quick to respond, and make aligned decisions based on a purpose. It’s the balance of strategy and soul, clarity and creativity, head and heart that creates the impact and change we’re all craving to see. What kind of organization do I want to create? What kind of team do I want to be in? What’s my role in creating this?

Courage to speak your voice: Courage to speak your voice. Many of us silence our own voice and forget what it means to be a leader, even a leader of our own lives. This can lead to a loss of power and inability to change. Being authentic in our relationships with others means expressing your true feelings to your partners, colleagues, teams, and organizations, especially the difficult ones that are challenging. The scariest feelings may be the hardest to express, but hiding them does more damage to relationships. First, you never really “hide” a feeling – it will surface in other ways. Your feelings are powerful indicators, and when you try to hide them, it’s like putting them in a pressure cooker. They’ll simmer below the surface – you’ll even feel them burning away in your chest or as an uncomfortable queasy feeling in your stomach. And they’ll keep gnawing at you, trying to find a way to get out. Feelings demand to be acknowledged because it’s the only way they’ll heal. But if you don’t express them verbally, they’ll show up through your body language or other pleas for attention, which is your leadership presence.

Show Gratitude: Be appreciative and show gratitude. Acknowledgment and gratitude of others (even when you think they should know) is precisely one of the behaviors that makes a beautiful connected relationship. People feel acknowledged, seen, and heard and are motivated to do more, and inspire others. People never lose their desire for that.  Most struggling relationships, or teams if feeling undervalued or resentful, don’t even realize that appreciation is missing from their interactions; and all they know is that they do not feel good.  For nearly every relationship challenge, individually and collectively, appreciation is the answer.

Truly Listen: Listen Without Interrupting. Nelson Mandela who said being last to speak in the room is effectively leadership (or something like that). Do you truly feel heard in relationships, both personally and professionally? Has anyone ever said to you, “Did you just hear what I said?” Not feeling heard is one of the biggest complaints in failed relationships, teams, and cultures. Not feeling heard can make you feel lonely and unappreciated – a dynamic that leads to disengagement and resentment in relationships. Being a good listener is about cultivating presence. You get skilled in setting aside your own perspective and letting the others have the stage. Otherwise, you’re just responding from your own needs and ego. When this happens, your relationships feel it.  You’ll know you’re not truly listening when you’re in your head coming up with a response while the other person is talking. It is amazing at the number of new perspectives and collaboration that come about when people really hear each other to create something even bigger and better.

Build Confidence and trust: Go Beyond Self and Build Trust. Trust is about the state of the whole (safety, feeling seen and heard, valued, a part of something bigger, respected, and understood).  Conscious leadership means you are committed to respecting another’s whole being, and valuing diverse perspectives, and empowering others to be themselves where it is safe to make mistakes. This is about integrity for the whole and is a daily practice, not just an every-now-and-then thing. To faithfully carry out this discipline which incorporates the habits every day that deepen trust for another other, results in healthy relationships with conscious connection.

Resilience and acceptance: Choosing to Be Positive. Conscious leaders find acceptance in situations. We live in difficult times. We might not be happy with the current situation, but if we can make the conscious decision to accept things as they are in the moment, rather than getting wrapped into the problem, we can get better at coming up with solutions if we are positive and hopeful. Conscious leaders find joy. Look for the joy in everything you do. Boredom and irritation mean we are no longer acting from a conscious perspective or accepting the situation. Being present and finding joy in each moment, helps us to be positive and put life into perspective. Nature is a great way of doing this. Enthusiasm. When you are true to yourself, believe in your self-worth, abilities, and gifts, and align everything you do with this mindset, you find yourself in the flow, and everyone feels it too. You’ll experience a new kind of power, a power that infects and benefits all around you.