If you are asking whether or not you are the right person to be leading where you are right now, you are not alone. Between all the changes, ambiguity, and uncertainty of the present and the future, it is completely normal (and helpful) to question if you are the best person to be in your role right now.

If you’re growing increasingly aware that you are less sure about the cultures around you then you once thought you were, you are not alone. One question that I see underlying a lot of public discussions lately is “Why Black Lives Matter? I thought we were all one race, the human race.” In a lot of ways, I know that this comes from a genuine place of wanting to love all people, as we believe we should. Here are a couple of reasons why this is actually offensive however, to all people.

“What can I do to help?” is the question I am hearing from so many people right now who want to respond to the immediate needs of neighbors who are without access to grocery stores, clean water, and medication. And who are even having to clean up their burned down, looted, and vandalized businesses. Not to mention the deep desire to respond to the long-term needs of people of color (POC) who have long been oppressed by systems built by white people to profit white people in the United States.

When we are clearly in changing, uncertain, and ambiguous times it can be really challenging to know how to continue to meet (and even exceed) our customers' expectations. This can be especially true if we can’t see them face-to-face. That is unless we know how to exceed their expectations no matter what’s going on in the world.

As I read people’s posts in my feeds from all different sides of this virus, I’m reminded of what my dad’s grandpa would tell him when he remarked about an issue “there’s more to the story, Tommy. There’s always more to the story.” So, as I sit here months into lockdown, I’m wishing I could be sitting next to you on your front steps. And if I could, here’s what I would tell you with misty eyes.

This dream took an immense amount of discipline, focus, and sacrifice. And let me just say that life does not stop when you set an ambitious goal like getting your Doctorate. I was two months pregnant with my first son when I started my Doctorate and had my second son one month after completing my doctoral work. And in the middle of it all my dad unexpectedly passed away. Not to mention countless other moments in between.

While nothing can replace in-person gatherings and community (I can’t be the only one that jumps up and down when someone says they’re going to stop by and talk to us through our dining room window), engaged communities can absolutely be created and fostered virtually. And even lead meeting IRL (in real life), which we know will happen again some day. Here are 4 ways you can create an engaged community beyond using Zoom calls and meetings.

When my husband Jake and I both need to stay home to take care of our son AND still work, we’ve found some ways that enable both of us to provide great care for our kiddo AND get all the essentials done for work that we both need to. It just takes some planning, intentionality, and flexibility on our parts. But we’ve done it numerous times and made it work successfully for our whole family.

Let me be brutally honest with you, if your team’s success hinges on you being involved in every single detail and decision, it’s simply not a team effort. You’re not working with and through your team; you’re simply using individuals on your team to do tasks that you don’t want to do. This doesn’t require trust, it doesn’t require creativity on the part of others, it doesn’t require a team.

When you work with people (ah-hem, most of us!), there are going to be times when you get hurt or offended by others. Either the people you lead, your peers, or those leading you are going to offend you. Even if you are easy going and it takes a lot to offend you, it will still happen. None of us is immune to this. When this happens, do you handle it in a productive way?

Before you and your team go ahead and start to implement the changes you want to make to realize your envisioned future, there are a few things Cummings and Worley (2015) stress are important to keep in mind for successful culture changes.

how do you use your influence to help your team get excited about making necessary changes? Here are 10 steps you can take to implement culture change through honoring the past and leading into the future!

As a leader, you know that not only is change inevitable, it’s also vital to the health and sustainability of your organization. Change is what enables you and your team to continue to meet and exceed people’s ever-changing needs and expectations. But if there’s anything I know about leadership it’s that implementing change can be one of the most challenging and resisted parts of leadership.

As a leader, you’re thrust up in front of others much more so than you are when you aren’t leading.  And if you’ve ever struggled with your body image, you know that this can be an uncomfortable aspect of leadership.  Based on the number of conversations I have with both male and female leaders about this issue, it is way more common than you might imagine.  I can think of leaders of every body type imaginable from thin to short to tall to full-figured that have struggled with the lie that “size matters.” So, when your body image issues are flaring up and getting in the way of your leading confidently and effectively, let me encourage you with a few tips to keep in mind 'cause the reality is that there's no one size fits all body type for leading confidently and effectively.

What specific area of your life or professional career do you wish you could be better at? Networking, confidence, facilitation, managing others, vision casting, leading meetings, finances, parenting, marriage, or something else? Finding a great mentor might be just the relationship you need to invest in. Here's what's so fantastic about finding a great mentor: Mentors can support our professional and personal development as they share their expertise, offer guidance, and even act as an advocate for us!

Have you ever felt like you don’t belong? My hand is raised right along with yours! Much of my life, I’ve felt like I haven’t belonged! I took gymnastics when I was younger and because I was much taller than any other girl in my class, I needed a special leotard that wasn’t quite like everyone else’s. In fact, I was the tallest girl in my class until middle school. There was no blending in for me. Let’s not even go into the puberty stage…does anyone feel like they belong then?!