Creating Space… To Lead Authentically

Leading With VOICCE® Series.

"I don't think I'm the right kind of leader for my organization." Many high-achieving women have shared this exact sentiment with me during 1:1 coaching conversations. I've even had the same thought myself. With 20 years in sales, I often believed my style wasn't "in your face" enough, or I wasn't persuasive enough to be a "good leader". Many of my clients have echoed the same sentiments.

However, when I really take a step back, what I've noticed is that it wasn't my lack of this quality or that quality that impacted my ability to lead others; it was a lack of awareness around what I brought to the table. I've also seen that same dynamic in many of my clients. Some had a solid sense of leadership confidence, and others were still building that muscle. 

One thing was consistent. When they were clear about what they brought to the table, they could step into rooms with more confidence and influence conversations with greater impact. They tended to build relationships that had more depth, and often even found more satisfaction in their day-to-day work. So what changed?

My work is built on a very powerful core belief. We each have powerful gifts we bring to the table. When you choose to step into those gifts with clarity and authenticity, your impact follows. 

What changed for many of my clients, as well as for myself, was the ability to see, articulate, and operate from a place of strength. Many high-achieving women are used to a moving goal post of leadership qualities to pursue. However, this keeps us feeling inadequate, or at a minimum, unsure of ourselves. 

Try these 3 questions to help identify, articulate, and practice leading from a place of authentic strength. 

1. Values Alignment: What qualities or characteristics matter to me, even when others may not agree?

2. Strengths Identification: What actions or practices tend to come easily to me, often acknowledged by others, yet seldom recognized within myself?

3. Impact Aspiration: What are the causes or challenges I tend to care most about, and will spend my free time exploring?

While many of us may not always see the immediate connection between values, strengths, and impact, creating space for more awareness starts to create a breadcrumb trail toward more authentic leadership. 

If you value integrity in your day-to-day interactions, you will likely see that show up in how you engage professionally. 

If you tend to be someone with strong interpersonal skills, your professional and personal network likely reflects the ease with which you connect with others. Not everyone has that.

If you spend time researching various aspects of injustice and inequality, you are likely also taking note of inequitable practices within your workplace. 

These characteristics define how you build trust, how you interact with others, how you process through change, and how you make decisions. Identifying these qualities puts you in a position to do it with intention, creating more impact, more influence, and ultimately a clearer path toward authentic leadership. 

This is where confidence is built. 

---

Tian Philson - Leadership Transformation & Decision-Making Coach | Creator of the VOICCE® Decision Making & Empowerment Framework | Helping leaders go inward so they can go upward.