“Leaders don’t just do what is easy, they do what is right” -Robin Sharma
We are all leaders. If we were asked to name a leader, almost 100% of us will not list ourselves as a leader. We are more likely to list the better known leaders of the world such as Mahatma Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, Bill Gates, and Mother Teresa- and so on.
Many of us put these individuals on a pedestal, thinking we might never reach the heights that they have attained; that they might have been born with special gifts that we don’t have, the reality is this is not the case.
Everyone one of us is a leader. We lead ourselves in many different ways each day. With some awareness creating around our strengths and accomplishments, it would become clear how we use the leader in us to get to where we are today.
If you were to think about a time in your life when you were faced with a challenge, that seemed insurmountable, you were able to overcome that challenge and move past it; what strengths did you bring to that situation? What qualities in you did you use to draw on your strengths? Being able to coach ourselves successfully through any situation requires us to be aware of the leader inside of us.
To help you coach yourself through any situation, I would like to introduce to you a coaching tool I use with my clients. The tool is simple and powerful and when used will net you your desired results. I call this tool IDARE which is a five-step tool that can be applied in any situation and is used as follows:
1.I-INTENTION. When faced with any situation ask “What is my intention for this situation?” What do I intend to create from this interaction?
2.D-DESIRE. What is your desire for executing your intention? Use the scale of 1-10, where 1, your desire is very low and weak up to 10 where your desire is very high and strong.
3.A-Action. What action(s) am I willing and able to take to make my strong desire to see my intentions become a reality?
4.R-RESULT. What results do I desire to see come out of my intentions, desire and action?
5.E-EVALUATE. This requires you to practice self-reflection which is a key step in your self-coaching process. You are encouraged to evaluate each of the 4 preceding steps along the way. By using evaluation you are better equipped to tap into what is working and what is not working for you. By simply asking, “is this what I want from this situation”? You have demonstrated the strongest leadership quality of all, taking responsibility for your actions and consequently the results you see in your life.
This tool will help you now consciously and deliberately process your interactions, reactions, responses and decisions as a leader would; with clarity, focus and purpose.
I will elaborate on the ideas discussed here and the tool shared in future articles.
Live Well…Phyllis
