Post by Geoff Crinean, Senior trainer & business coach Crossposted at Business-insight.biz

You might think you have no choice in who you [...]]]> Leadership training tends to focus on doing. However, one of the most important aspects of leadership is who you are, how you are. Everyone picks up on the leader’s nonverbal cues much more quickly and deeply than on what the leader is saying.

You might think you have no choice in who you are. Not true. We each have a huge spectrum of being – we can manifest in many ways. However, our habitual pattern is to embody only a small part of that spectrum. Great leaders are able to access a wide range of their being, depending on the situation. This is not about pretending to be someone you are not – it’s about accessing parts of yourself you may never have used.

Think about a challenging situation you will face this week. Think of the characteristics you’ll need – make a list of them. For example, it might be a difficult management meeting you need to lead, so the list might look like – “well-prepared, open, humorous, clear-minded, patient, good listener, decisive and firm”. Who can you think of who embodies these attributes? It might be someone famous, or someone you’ve known personally. George Clooney? Oprah? Kofi Annan? Judge Judy? Whoever really embodies those attributes for you.

Then focus on BEING that person – access the part of you that IS that individual. How would that person walk into a room? How would they sit? Practice being that part of yourself – then, in the situation you are preparing for, enter in that manifestation and STAY there for the course of the situation. When you notice yourself drift away from the manifestation, just return to it. You might even carry a picture of who you are “being” and take a peak at it discreetly through the meeting!

To learn to use this process well, always begin by asking: “Who do I need to BE in this situation?”

So, who do you need to be today? Experiment!

Post by Geoff Crinean, Senior trainer & business coach
Crossposted at Business-insight.biz