Mapping Your Polarities as a Manager or Leader, with Cathy Carroll

WHY THIS TOPIC:

Leadership is riddled with paradox. Should leaders be bold or humble? Focus on tasks or relationships? Support or challenge employees? Be patient or demanding? Most leaders have an opinion about what’s more effective to move people in the direction you are going. However, most leaders are asking the wrong question.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

– Leadership is most effective when you replace “either/or” thinking with “both/and” thinking. Most organizations get stuck when they try to solve an adaptive challenge with a technical solution. Polarities don’t have right answers — rather, they are tensions to manage. Mapping polarities opens new possibilities for resolving conflict and managing complexity.
– We will explore how to identify when you are struggling with a polarity, why they are so challenging to manage, and how to address the most vexing challenges of leadership. Through investigating a specific leadership polarity that is limiting our effectiveness, we will explore why it’s holding us back and how to address it.

THIS MIGHT BE FOR YOU IF YOU ARE:

– Curious to identify hidden biases and blind spots
– Struggling to decide between opposites
– Open to learning new ways to address complex problems
– Ready for some fun interaction and self-exploration

***