How important is it for leaders to focus on their own growth and development?

One of the leaders who I most admire and who inspired me to take my development seriously once said that when leaders suffer, everyone around them suffers. When they courageously look inwards and take meaningful steps, their growth is likely to help others blossom as well.

Warren Bennis, one of the pioneers of leadership consulting, once said “Becoming a leader is synonymous with becoming yourself. It is precisely that simple and it is also that difficult.”

To become yourself and live from full expression requires enormous dedication. It can imply letting go of many perceptions about who we are (visions of grandeur or self-limiting thoughts, for example). The journey to becoming our true selves takes courage, vulnerability, and steadfast commitment to learning and development. It’s only then that our innate gifts and full potential get realized. Think of leaders from your experience who took such sincere steps, and how they impacted the organization or group that you were a part of. 

So if this speaks to you, what will it take for you to be that leader? What story about yourself gets in the way? Imagine all the possibilities from being a truly embodied leader who continuously embraces your own growth. Now envision what that could also inspire from everyone around you, and the difference that can make for your organization and mission.