Jill Proud

How has 2020 changed the way you connect? So many leaders I work with are finding it simultaneously a year of deep honesty and humanity while also feeling like significantly more effort. As a leader, you need a safe and calm place to grow, develop and stretch yourself in new ways. Now is the time to be incredibly intentional about that. One key is surrounding yourself with others who are on the same path. People who get it. Where you don’t have to explain, you get to just BE ...YOU. My hope for you is that you get very conscious about who is in your community. That you are very intentional about how to stay connected with others who are in a growth mindset so you get nourished and in turn have more to give! Connection; The energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgement; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.

Meet Camille -- another Vital Visionary who is about to start a game changing leadership journey with a group of peers at the same level and who are ready to elevate to the next level!! "I'm looking forward to collaborating with and learning from other strong and influential women within The Vital Visionary." #thevitalvisionary #leadershipskills

"Building the business plan was the easy part...acknowledging what I own with confidence was really at the root of advancing" Meet Lorraine Boyle. Lorraine participated in Your Bigger Future Mentorship program, and before joining she was at a fork in the road with her business.... Lorraine was asking herself questions: "Do I expand with more staff? Do I continue with my current model? How do I build a business plan moving forward?" When working with leaders we go internally so they can get external results, and I don’t let them off the hook. "What I discovered during the program was the actual business plan element was not the stumbling block...I was getting in my own way by not acknowledging the unique perspective, expertise and skillset I offer as part of my business" Lorraine was able to reframe those questions about HOW to deliver the external results by doing the internal work and acknowledging her own stories. So, are you ready to go deeper to achieve your bigger future?

So if you identify as a ruminant, please write a new script for yourself. And repeat firmly after us: rumination is for cows! -- Sally Helgesen, How Women Rise. How Women Rise, is an excellent book written by Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith. It’s well researched, beautifully articulated and looks at the things that hold both women AND men back in leadership. It also provides strategies and tactics to raise your leadership game wherever you are on that journey. So as y...ou identify what holds you back, what your self-talk sounds like, and if you have an internal reference point for your success look for the places you do feel confident. What is happening in those situations? How are you showing up, talking to yourself and engaging for impact? Then you can look at ways to map that over to an area where you feel less confident. Sometimes it’s as simple as defining what success looks like. Have you read this book? What did you think? Do you have any other recommendations for my reading list?

Who else is excited for our 2021 Vital Visionary cohort?! Sheena shared a powerful note with us: "A while ago I heard a speaker talk about Impact - with the definition that having impact was leaving others better off for having interacted with you. I want to have impact within my leadership role and I think the Vital Visionary is a path to becoming a leader that has impact." We totally agree --... #thevitalvisionary #leadershipskills