LONG BEACH, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 11, 2021 / Steve Chaparro expected to become the next CEO of the company he was working for. Instead, he was laid off. Some people would have seen this as a sign to give up. Steve saw it as an opportunity for a personal transformation. He realized that despite his talents and business knowledge, he still had shortcomings. Every entrepreneur and change maker has a few blind spots. For Steve, and many frustrated visionaries like him, that blind spot was a lack of self-awareness and self-management. Leaders can get so caught up in their goals for the future that they fail to articulate their plans in the present. This leads to frustrations, miscommunications, and missed opportunities.
Steve Chaparro is now a successful transformational speaker and culture design strategist with an upcoming book. He is sharing his hard-won knowledge in an upcoming book and in a free five-day audio course designed to boost self-awareness and leadership skills via the Three C's: Communication, Co-creation, and Culture.
Lesson 1: The Problem With FIDO
The most common negative emotions for executive or entrepreneurial leaders can be summed up with the acronym FIDO:
- Frustration
- Irritation
- Discouragement
- Overwhelm
Everyone experiences these emotions, but for visionary leaders, FIDO presents unique challenges. For one thing, leaders often feel a need to hide their setbacks. They don't want their employees to know how discouraged they feel, out of concern that this would undercut company morale. So they put on a brave face, continue forward, and fail to address whatever is underlying their difficulties. The overwhelm builds up until it turns into burnout.
Preventing this burnout requires real change in the way that leaders act and in the way that their organizations function. Any meaningful change in an organization must start with that organization's leaders. How can a frustrated visionary achieve this change? The first step lies in self-awareness.
Lesson 2: The Cave of Self-Awareness
In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the inhabitants of the cave see only the shadows of reality. Seeing the real world requires getting out of their comfort zone and exploring the world outside. Similarly, leaders exploring the cave of self-awareness must face uncomfortable truths to arrive at a better understanding of themselves.
In Steve Chaparro's case, the process of developing self-awareness was catalyzed by his unexpected layoff. To discover where he had gone wrong, he consulted those closest to him, asking them to report honestly on what they perceived as his strengths and weaknesses. Hearing about the latter qualities was both affirming and disheartening. Once he realized where he had gone wrong in the past, he understood what he had to do differently.
Visionaries can easily see a better future, but they aren't always aware of how other people see them. When there's a disconnect between what leaders are saying and what their followers are hearing, communication breaks down.
Lesson 3: The Chief Communicator
Having the best ideas in the world doesn't matter if no one listens to those ideas. But what stops people from listening?
Sometimes, it's a problem with communication styles. Speaking to hundreds of people from a stage requires a different skill set from speaking to an individual leader or employee. Using the wrong strategy for the wrong context will only lead to frustration. Often, visionaries excel at articulating themselves to a crowd but falter with one-on-one conversations. Knowing how to adjust your speaking style for your audience is a vital communication skill.
Other times, the problem is different listening styles. When people question a new idea, it can be tempting to assume that they just don't "get it." But for some people, asking questions is simply how they process concepts. Instead of getting irritated in response to pushback, great leaders take the opportunity to further explain their plans, clarify confusion, and take in useful feedback.
Lesson 4: The Co-Creative Leader
The best leaders don't try to do everything by themselves. They are co-creators who know how to harness the collective genius of their whole organization. In today's rapidly changing world, companies need ongoing collaboration between the people on the frontlines, the people behind the scenes, and everyone in between. Leaders need to see their coworkers not as passive followers, but as creative collaborators.
A frustrated visionary might have a fantastic vision, but not know the best tactics for achieving it. That's where co-creation comes in. Running ideas by a group allows everyone to offer constructive feedback. It also increases the sense of buy-in. Employees are more likely to go along with their leaders' ideas if they feel like they have contributed to shaping those ideas. Collaborative group discussions may even help leaders spot employees with untapped potential.
Lesson 5: A Case for Culture
"Culture" is difficult to define, but in a business context, it is best summarized as "the way things get done around here." Having a healthy company means having a healthy company culture, one where everyone understands their role and feels a sense of purpose. Culture isn't something that can be outsourced. A CEO can't simply hire a consultant and walk away. Business leaders have to be involved in the process of shaping their companies' cultures.
Winston Churchill once said, "We shape our buildings, thereafter, they shape us," meaning that just as people can change their physical environments, those environments can affect the people within them. Steve Chaparro likes to rephrase Churchill's quote as, "We shape our organizations, thereafter, they shape us." When visionaries transform workplace culture for the better, the changes have a cascading effect that benefits everyone.
From Frustration to Enlightenment
To learn more about organizational culture expert Steve Chaparro's leadership topics, aspiring visionaries can enroll in the free, five-day audio course. This will enable them to hear Steve's advice firsthand and give them access to "homework" designed to gain greater awareness to improve their communication, creativity, and culture. To learn more about Steve or book him as a speaker, visit his website.
CONTACT:
Contact Name: Steve Chaparro
Business Name: Culture Design Studio
Address: 3717 East 2nd St. #5, Long Beach, CA 90803
Phone Number: +1 562-972-1024
Website Link: https://stevechaparro.co/
SOURCE: Steve Chaparro
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