Leadership happens everywhere and so we should not limit our opportunities to develop leadership to experiences and training programs at work. Taking a multi-domain approach involves considering connections across all areas, or domains, of our lives.
There are at least three major benefits to considering a multi-domain approach to leader development. First, we gain synergies by examining transferable skills across the connections we identify. We recently heard a great story of a leader who had been given feedback that she should work on being less emotionally reactive and defensive when her employees approach her with issues or setbacks. She noticed a connection in her “over-reaction” to her teenage sons and took the opportunity to practice being more composed both at work and at home. This practice both sped up her development and created improvements in her relationships at work and at home (i.e. it was both more efficient and effective). In addition to transferable skills, taking a multi-domain approach helps us to grow from the ways in which areas of our lives are different. These disconnections present opportunities to expand our skills sets. Sometimes there are constraints in work that prevent us from trying out new behaviors or it simply takes too long to wait for the next stretch assignment. However, there may be opportunities to stretch ourselves outside of work. Taking on a community project or voluntary role presents unique leadership challenges. Whereas leaders in work can often motivate others through the use of rewards or punishments or simply the power of their position or title, motivating volunteers requires something very different. Finally, considering how various aspects of our lives are connected can foster greater personal coherence and integration. This reflection often starts with noticing skills or actions, and then grows deeper focusing on values, identities, and self-awareness. Being aware of how we live out our values throughout our lives promotes greater psychological well-being. In so many ways, leader development is personal development.
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Think about your first leadership experiences. Were they after your college graduation, when you launched your career? Probably not! Many individuals’ first leadership experiences have to do with playing with other kids, participating in sports teams, collaborating on artistic endeavors, or through educational attainment. We encourage our children to have a broad array of experiences – learning in schools, volunteering in their communities, and participating in family chores and experiences. These “character-building” opportunities are also leadership experiences. Such activities continue through college, as students become involved in student life, sororities and fraternities, sports, student-led groups and student government, etc. But then it seems to stop.
Colleges accept well-rounded applicants – ones that stand out due to leadership experiences. Organizations look for recruits with something special – again, leadership experience. But after joining an organization, our focus on leadership tends to be on development and training within the organization. This can make individuals reliant upon their managers to recognize their leadership potential, and some end up being left behind. But what if we continue to treat leadership development as something that can happen anywhere – at home, in the community, and also at work? What if managers asked their employees about experiences coaching their kids’ softball team, organizing a parent-teacher fundraiser, or caring for an elderly parent? All of these experiences also require leadership expertise and can be developmental in nature. This is what multi-domain leadership (MDL) is about – tapping into the experiences we have every day and using them to help create and solidify a leader identity. The more variability we confront in everyday situations, the better we become at diagnosing which leadership competency is relevant for each experience. MDL is about creating a leadership toolkit through varied life experiences that allows us to be more effective wherever our leadership challenge lies. |
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