On Sunday, I went to a baby shower – not something I do that often these days – but I have a wonderful friend in politics due in a month, and a group of us threw her a party. We promised no baby shower games; instead, we drank champagne (as she looked on) and ate nice food. In between all the catching up, one of my lovely friends snuck in quick little 1-1 videos to get us to give “advice.”
First question she asked: “What advice do you have for the parents?” Easy. I have trial and errored many things as a parent and failed a lot. But one thing I got right: “Set a sleep schedule and don’t deviate.” My kid went to bed at 8:30pm every night from 1 year old to 13, and it is the best gift I have given my now 18-year-old (even though this might not be appreciated yet🙂).
Second question: “What advice do you have for the little girl soon to be born?” Harder (because there are so many choices). I immediately responded with a ridiculously practical response: “Start an IRA at 16 with $50.00/month, and don’t touch it until you’re 71; hopefully, you won’t ever need it; if you do, it’s a helluva lot.” That answer gave me some time to think of my real answer:
“Use Your Imagination.”
Everything else can fall away, but if you stick to that, you will go far.
Yep, this isn’t different from what I suggest to those execs I get to work with. Last week, my LI post addressed the most important everyday SKILL a leader should practice: “Be Clear!”
“Use your imagination” is another simple moniker, and it’s the underlying MINDSET that can serve you now and in the future. It’s also undergirds the cornerstone skill of “strategic influencing.”
Like with the little girl being born now into an uncertain world, “use your imagination” is the best chance we have to make a better world for our kids, colleagues, companies, and our globe. It takes a lot of courage to go against the grain, though, and that is usually what stops leaders.
Two quick applications:
- Angle for telling your boss something they don’t know or haven’t thought of. Yes, that will take some research of the landscape, synthesizing, then distilling what you know, and then messaging it to your boss in a way they can hear it and take it in.
- Give space in your team meetings for your team to “use their imagination.” Be open to ideas YOU haven’t thought of before.
How does “use your imagination” show up in your daily goings-on?
How do you demonstrate the COURAGE to do it?
