Are You Leading With Purpose or Leading Not to Lose?

There are two ways to lead - from a place of purpose or from a fight-or-flight place where you’re just doing everything you can to not lose. 

Newsflash: one way sets your organization up for bigger and better outcomes, and the other one…well, let’s just say, it causes chaos, division, and many other issues that make for a toxic work environment. 

Now, you might be asking; How do I know if I’m leading not to lose? In this episode, I’ll share how to pivot to a more purpose-driven way of leading. 

Three Things To Take Away From This Episode

Why you need to lead with purpose When we lead toward purpose, we’re in control and we have a higher ability to influence our organization. From a place of purpose, we are more competent, innovative, creative, and open, and that benefits the team and all the work we do.  

Signs you’re leading not to lose It’s pretty easy to spot an environment or a team that’s being led not to lose. Perfectionism, fear, throwing people under the bus, defensiveness - these are all signs that instead of being daring and innovative, we’re in survival mode. 

Listen to your inner game The language we use in our leadership tells us a lot about our inner game. If we’re leading not to lose, there’s a root cause. Maybe it’s our own fears, how we’re led, or how we were taught to lead, but we have to dig down and find the root cause of why we’re leading not to lose, so we can start leading with purpose.