Embodied Leadership

I am sitting in the airport, contemplating my willingness to pay for a croissant and egg sandwich (which happens to cost three times as much as a toasted bagel.) I’m on my way back to Utah from New York after attending a workshop on “Embodied Leadership” offered through Columbia Teachers College.

It was a great experience and I learned a lot. I learned most from reflecting on myself and talking to other strong women leaders.

Here’s my biggest take-away. I have been thinking of leadership as an opportunity to be strong, to become better at decision making and to grow into a more sure and assertive person. I still believe that this is true and I am deeply looking forward to challenging myself in these dimensions. On the other side of that coin, I thought of my kindness, my empathy and my tendency to want to please others as a weakness or a hindrance to my leadership. I saw it as something that might cripple me, hold me back in decision making. This workshop helped me to see that, while these are definite concerns to watch for, I should not try to stifle my kindness or my empathy. It is my biggest strength as a human being and rather than hide it or fight it I need to embrace it. In reflecting, here are some ways that I see it working for me.

1. I am really good at giving sincere and thoughtful compliments. People want to be recognized for their hard work and efforts and I can fill this desire for them.

2. My empathy can help me feel the stresses that others are feeling. I am good at interpreting emotions and I will be able to slow down and support more support when I sense that other teachers need it. I will also be able to back off as I see there teachers seeking more independence.

3. When other people can’t see eye to eye I can be the liaison. I can work to understand each persons opinion and help express it to the other. This could help create understanding between teachers and administrators.

My “commitment” for the two days of the workshop was (and is) “I am a commitment to developing my own strong convictions while still maintaining empathy for others.”

Another major takeaway for me is a possible mentor. While the workshop only has 23 attendees, there was a crazy coincidence that occurred. One of the other women in my group is the principal at the high school that I went to! I knew her twelve years ago when she was a social studies teacher there. She was appointed to the position of principal in a quick decision. She had no leadership or administrative training and This highly resonated with me because it is exactly what I experienced over the winter break when I was offered the position of director of pedagogy. (Luckily for me, the dean of academics decided to stay at our school so that I have time to ease into a leadership roll…) She offered me a ride home from the workshop and I gladly accepted. I picked her brain about her experience and learned so much from her. She said that the most important part of her development was finding a good mentor. I think she could serve that role for me in some ways. I learned a lot in our car rides and I am so grateful for this coincidence.

As far as “embodied leadership” goes, I’m not so sure I buy into the premise that the physical simulations that we practiced will prepare me for real situations that leaders face. But, the experience gave me many opportunities to think and reflect on my tendencies with respect to decision making, requesting things, saying no, and staying true to myself under pressure. The process of grounding yourself through centering was extremely calming too.

Centering: Feel your feet on the floor. Rock forward and back, left and right. Settle into your center. Focus your gaze forward but keep it in the room. Open your shoulders (specific to me, pull your chin back so that your neck is alignment with your spine). Breathe in and expand through the top of your head. Release the breath as you soften the front of your body and lightly open your palms forward.

Try it! It should make you feel calm, level headed, ready to receive and confident to offer.

OK, I’m doing it, time for an egg and cheese croissant…