My Leadership Philosophy
Serve First
Build Trust
Act as One Team
Why I Embrace Servant Leadership
The transformational, intentional, heart-based, conscious approach
Here at The Leading Edge, the values of servant leadership form the foundation of what I teach. I believe that in order to create a work culture where employees feel supported, respected, heard, and appreciated as the humans they are, everyone—from CEOs to middle managers to entry-level workers and anyone in between—needs to be aligned with the same vision and be of the same mindset that they're all in this together.
So call it what you'd like: servant leadership, heart-based leadership, conscious leadership, intentional, transformational, or thoughtful leadership. Regardless of how you refer to it by name, this unique yet logical style of leadership is built on effective communication, collaboration, and co-creation.
Experience The Leading Edge Training Style
Not yet sure if you're ready to find your Leading Edge? Let me help point you in the right direction with this free introduction to how I teach servant leadership through these online modules. In this 20-minute video, I lay out the servant leadership framework, explain what it is and isn't, share how to define and measure servant leadership, and break down the philosophy's three guiding principles. No cost; no commitment; no pressure. I simply want to offer you a sampling of how my trainings are structured. Enjoy!
Let's backtrack briefly for a quick history lesson. "Servant leadership" is by no means a new concept, and certainly not one I can take credit for! The term was coined by Robert K. Greenleaf—a writer, consultant, teacher, and long-time AT&T executive—in his 1970 essay, The Servant as Leader. Simply put, Greenleaf believed that the job of a leader is to serve the people who serve the customer; to lead is to serve, and to serve is to lead.
Unlike traditional leadership, wherein the designated leader tends to be fully "in charge" and "have command over" the people, in a servant leadership model, the leader shares the power and puts the employees' needs first. So, rather than the people working to serve the leader, the leader exists to serve the people. When employees are supported and valued in this way, they show up to work as their best and most creative selves, perform as highly as possible, and love their jobs—all of which are good for business.
The organization exists for the person as much as
the person exists for the organization.
Robert K. Greenleaf
Build a Culture Where People Thrive
One that makes them happy to show up to work
The workforce and the way people think about work are evolving—leadership practices need to as well! The COVID-19 pandemic and the so-called "Great Resignation" that ensued only reaffirmed this. Gone are the days when employers could expect the majority of working professionals to sit for hours in traffic, get into the office at the same time, put their heads down from 9:00 to 5:00, do more with fewer resources, get paid less money, wear multiple hats, and then (hopefully) eke out enough joy on the weekends just to come back Monday morning and do it all over again. Every week. Every year. Until they can finally afford to retire. That's no way to live, and the state of today's workforce is reflecting that!
I believe that all business problems are, at their core, people problems. Now more than ever, for a business to maintain success, stay competitive, attract talent, and retain employees, the decision-makers need to shift how they view their leadership roles and responsibilities. Micromanaging, clock-watching, barking orders, and running nonsensical meetings won't cultivate an effective or productive work environment. But prioritizing and thoughtfully responding to employees' needs, supporting their ideas, fostering their development, establishing the "in it together" attitude, and embracing a work-life integration mindset will.
We already know that people don't leave bad jobs; they leave bad leaders. So before your company's people problems escalate to business problems, invest in creating a work environment where we Serve First, Build Trust, and Act as One Team!
A Roadmap to Your
Leadership Transformation
The larger process of transforming your external work environment begins with an internal transformation of the individual leader. In the first level of our online leadership program, the focus is on self-discovery and one's own personal journey. In the second level, we then take what you've learned about yourself as a human and apply it to who you are (or want to be) as a leader in the workplace in order to transform your team and your organization. Take a closer look at how I've designed the program to match these goals in the roadmaps below:
Level 1: Personal Transformation
Who Am I? - Clarify your life stage and guiding values, and identify areas where you need to set more intention. Learn about the power of your subconscious mind and how to shift your limiting beliefs.
Knowing My Drivers - Know your strengths and motivations (or drivers); identify the unique ways in which you express these. Learn our Brain-SHIFT technique to remove old triggers and programs.
Valuing Relationships - Identify what builds and breaks trust for you, as well as how to repair it when you desire. Dive deeper into some breathwork and how to release old triggers.
My Purpose - Define your personal mission and vision for the life you want to create. Identify your role models and what you'll do to use your personal transformation to inspire others.
Level 2: Cultural Transformation
Authenticity At Work - Now that you've completed Level 1, define the future culture you desire and learn how to bring your aligned self to work with self-mastery.
Effective Communication - Use the building blocks of communication as your foundation for influencing, giving feedback, and having real conversations—regardless of positional authority—even when it feels difficult.
Build Great Teams - Gather the tools for building teams of people who know each other's strengths, challenges, and how to best work with each other to co-create. Use these tools to harness the team's resources, run outcome-based meetings, and coach for alignment.
Produce Great Results - Recognize the wins from the past year, and create your plan for the year ahead. Bring intention to continuous co-creation with your team, colleagues, and customers.
Grow the Whole Team with
Group Training
In addition to the leadership programs I offer for individuals, I'm also happy to work with whole teams, departments, and organizations! If you have several people at your company interested in developing their leadership skills, building their emotional intelligence, and reimagining their work culture as a place where thriving employees generate a thriving business, then let's work together to build a customized solution that fits your needs.
Every team's situation is unique, so I want to offer tailor-made training programs and custom plans that will work to uplevel your group's leadership skills. Whether that plan consists of routine virtual consults, me training the whole team at once, me training the facilitator, or providing accounts for each individual in the group to go at their own pace—I'll collaborate with you to determine the best path forward for your organization!
"The Leading Edge’s Servant Leadership program helped us grow our leaders and double our clients—in 2020!"
Andy Freed, CEO, Virtual
"Thank you for a fantastic training session yesterday. It was well received and enjoyed by all. Today, several of the managers and supervisors were still talking about Emotional Intelligence issues and how much they enjoyed sharing and learning. You really got them thinking about their actions and interactions. I couldn't have asked for a better outcome."
Kim Thorner, General Manager, Olivenhain Municipal Water District
