Recognize the Allies in Your Hero's Journey
We’ve been doing a lot of writing and thinking about the hero – or heroine’s - journey lately. You know the arc: in a nutshell, a hero goes on adventure, encounters a decisive crisis, meets a guide who helps on the path to a decisive victory, and the hero emerges forever transformed. It’s a story as old as Odysseus and as current as the Corona pandemic. Aren’t we each facing our own hero’s journey right now?
Your Personal Hero’s Journey is Now
The story is well known. And there are elements that feel particularly relevant to where we are right now. The first is the universality of the story. We see it played out in movies, theater, books, even songs and certainly in our own lives. This journey that’s a universal experience is also deeply personal. As we make our way through our own challenges and ultimate transformation, we do that in the company of so many. It’s one of the many polarities we encounter in our lives: another example of something that is not an either/or, but an and. For us, that brings a level of comfort – and we could all use a bit more comfort and support right now.
Ally 1: Your Values
The hero’s journey is often grounded in values – or a challenge to these values. Our values provide the anchor, the north star in crisis. We were talking about this just the other day: some of you may have seen the Netflix documentary My Octopus Teacher (lessons from that could be a whole other article…but we digress!) The kelp forest that filmmaker James Reed explores in the movie is a dramatic example of strength and flexibility – another polarity, BTW. The kelp, anchored to the ocean floor, can withstand tremendous changes in current and move in flow with the tumultuous waves because of its strong roots. Our values are our roots. When it’s time to make a tough decision, or act on a people issue at work, what grounds us? Our values. Our work with Hogan assessments tells us that “values are an essential part of your identity—they describe who you are, what you stand for, and the environments in which you will flourish.” Values are our strength, our anchor, our compass by which we navigate.
Ally 2: Provide Clarity
Recently, the NeuroLeadership Institute hosted their annual conference. One of the principles they talked about is, in times of uncertainty, the brain needs clarity. And that clarity must be based in values. The speakers were clear on the distinction between clarity and certainty. Right now, we’re surrounded with uncertainty: what’s going to happen with the economy? My family? My health? My job? Unknown. The hero doesn’t always know where the journey will lead but is clear that she’s on the right path when operating from values. As leaders, the more clarity you can provide for your people, the more engaged they can be – even now. One of the ways the speakers proposed to provide clarity is to simplify options. Provide a limited number of viable choices for people, not an unlimited series of options. Choice is a means of giving people control in uncertainty, and when we feel like we choose something, we feel like we “own” it – it feels closer to us.
Ally 3: Embrace Transformation
Finally, the hero’s journey is about transformation. Transformation is such an extraordinary concept. So graceful. Hopeful, and scary at the same time. (Another polarity…many things are true at once!) Transformation happens with an open mind, and with surrender. The caterpillar becomes a butterfly only by going through a messy, difficult, and ultimately life changing metamorphosis. So much of the coaching work we do is helping people get through this “messy middle” on the journey of transformation. And it’s beautiful on the other side.
Unique and universal. Challenging and transformational. Scary and exciting. Anxiety- producing and hopeful. In the words of Marianne Williamson, “Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us. The revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one.” That is the hero’s journey. It’s the arc we’re all on right now.
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We would be remiss to write in November without a healthy dose of gratitude. Despite all the challenges right now, there is still SO much to be thankful for. Living in gratitude and staying true to our daily gratitude practice is what’s getting us through 2020. We’re thankful to those of you who are on the journey with us.
Plus, whenever you’re ready…. here are three ways you can work with us.
1. Experience what it’s like to have the extraordinary support of your own executive coach. Reach out to Kathleen or Lisa to discuss how 1x1 coaching can make all the difference to what you’d like to explore or achieve.
2. We’re opening the doors for our 2021 Nova Masterminds soon. You’ll join the two of us and a small, curated cohort for six weeks as we explore The Hero’s Journey and the transformation you want to or must begin. Make 2021 your best year yet. Schedule a quick call to find out more.
3. Go deep for a week. Join our waitlist to be the first to know when we, once again, schedule our next signature Leadership Immersion. We bring women together to find the inspiration, ideas, and insights that only come when you step away from your normal routine and find space to reflect and grow. We were scheduled in Florence, Santa Fe and Napa for 2020… join our waitlist to see what’s next.