I was on a ZOOM meeting with the CEO of Lessonly. Before meeting I read his book Do Better Work which is a quick read with some great leadership and communication concepts to apply.
Max is now the CEO of a thriving organization, but like most busines
s owners he had his bumps along the way. Before starting Lessonly he launched another company which lasted a year and ten months. Out of that failure he learned one of his biggest leadership lessons which he discusses in his book: “share before you are ready.”
New leaders may think they have to have all the answers which leads us to the trap of never sharing ideas. This, Max realized, is not an effective strategy because we limit our ability to learn from others and therefore have a more whole picture.
While talking he shared three ideas that guide his leadership.
Wholeness
In America, Max suggested, we battle a perfectionistic culture where we judge situations, others, and are not honest with ourselves. This perfectionism at times causes us to deny realities about ourselves such as our greed, envy, and controlling tendencies. A healthier way to lead exists though.
When we lead with the idea of wholeness, we are accepting our humanity. Human beings are average, above average, and below average in various aspects of our lives. When we lead from a place of wholeness we have the emotional self-awareness that helps us develop a healthy culture.
Symmetry in Behaviors and Values
Remember learning about symmetry? What something looks like on one side is the same as on the other. Max referenced this idea of symmetry in our behaviors and values. As leaders our behaviors and words must be consistent through modeling the behaviors we desire.
“If you want people doing something you better show up and do the thing.” Max Yoder
I dove deeper on this to understand how he sees this lived out as the CEO of the organization. As we discussed this, Max shared a few key principles to create this symmetry:
- Model – When he engages his employees, he models how he would want them to behave whether that is in relating to a customer or one another
- Avoid Special Logic – The idea that the rules are different for him and his direct team than for the rest of the organization. When special logic exists consistency will break down and therefore credibility and trust.
- Transparency – Willingly and openly share what is relevant to the team. Leaders do not need to be share everything because not everything is relevant, but share what the team needs to know in order to maintain credibility and trust.
- Healthy organization – This happens through taking care of the people in the organization. If you want to learn more in detail about how they create a healthy culture, then read about their communication process in chapter five of Max’s book Do Better Work.
Awareness
The third principle leadership principle Max came from reading the book A Failure of Nerve. In this book he learned the idea of emotional triangles which states that with any interaction with others there are the two individuals and oftentimes an issue or another person. (To understand this more in depth go here to read Max’s blog)
As leaders we are not responsible for other people’s issues, but we do need to be aware of their existence. In order to uncover the real issues we must ask clarifying questions to gain a better understanding of the situation. These questions help us clarify the context and therefore be able to connect and lead others more effectively.
After learning Max’s principles, where do you need to grow? What is one step you can take today in becoming a more whole leader? Do you want to lead more effectively in your work and home life? If so and you have not received my free leadership ebook on the topic then go here to get it today. In the meantime, lead well.
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