As your host, Jenni Catron, I want you to pause for a moment amidst your hectic schedule. Imagine the profound impact of leading with grace, resilience, and gratitude. This episode is all about embracing gratitude, reflecting on our accomplishments and investing in personal and professional growth. With the end of the year around the corner, it's an opportunity to appreciate our journey so far. I share my reflections on the significant role of gratitude in leadership and the importance of continuously developing ourselves to better lead others.
Leadership is a sacred duty that extends beyond achieving targets and managing teams. It's about bringing hope, joy, and light into the lives of those we lead. This episode encourages you, leaders, to remember your crucial role, especially during this Christmas season. The outcomes may not always be immediate, but every act of leadership carries immense value. I reassure you that you are valued, wanted, and needed. Embrace the joy of shaping futures for God's glory and the betterment of others. Let's continue our leadership journey with a heart full of gratitude.
Links referenced in the Episode:
Sign up for 12/6 Webinar (How to Prioritize when Everything is a Priority)
Sign up for Women in Leadership
Sign up for Carey Nieuwhof's On the Rise Newsletter
We need your help to get the Lead Culture podcasts in front of more leaders! There are three simple things you can do that truly help us:
As your host, Jenni Catron, I want you to pause for a moment amidst your hectic schedule. Imagine the profound impact of leading with grace, resilience, and gratitude. This episode is all about embracing gratitude, reflecting on our accomplishments and investing in personal and professional growth. With the end of the year around the corner, it's an opportunity to appreciate our journey so far. I share my reflections on the significant role of gratitude in leadership and the importance of continuously developing ourselves to better lead others.
Leadership is a sacred duty that extends beyond achieving targets and managing teams. It's about bringing hope, joy, and light into the lives of those we lead. This episode encourages you, leaders, to remember your crucial role, especially during this Christmas season. The outcomes may not always be immediate, but every act of leadership carries immense value. I reassure you that you are valued, wanted, and needed. Embrace the joy of shaping futures for God's glory and the betterment of others. Let's continue our leadership journey with a heart full of gratitude.
Links referenced in the Episode:
Sign up for 12/6 Webinar (How to Prioritize when Everything is a Priority)
Sign up for Women in Leadership
Sign up for Carey Nieuwhof's On the Rise Newsletter
We need your help to get the Lead Culture podcasts in front of more leaders! There are three simple things you can do that truly help us:
The Art of Leadership Network. Hey leaders, welcome to the Lead Culture Podcast, part of the Art of Leadership Network. I'm your host, Jenni Catron. Each week, I'll be your guide as we explore powerful insights and practical strategies to equip you with the tools you need to lead with clarity and confidence and build a thriving team. My mission is to be your trusted coach, empowering you to master the art of self-leadership so you'll learn to lead yourself well, so you can lead others better. Each week, we'll take a deep dive on a leadership or a culture topic. You'll hear stories from amazing guests and leaders like you who are committed to leading well. So let's keep learning on this leadership journey together.
Speaker 1:Friends, we are approaching the end of the year and I have just a couple of thoughts for you today, actually, some things I think that you probably need to hear as you're closing out the year as a leader. But before we get there, I have a couple of quick announcements and things that I want to make sure are on your radar. First of all, I have a webinar coming up on December 6th, so hopefully you're listening to this episode as it releases. But on December 6th, we're going to talk about how to prioritize when everything is a priority. Does everything feel urgent to you? Is every task a priority? Does anybody else relate to that? So how do you prioritize when everything feels like a priority? That's the question I'm going to tackle in this webinar on December 6th. In a world filled with constant distractions and endless responsibilities, mastering priorities can seem daunting and completely overwhelming. So I want you to join me on December 6th at 11 am, central, to learn how to prioritize when everything is a priority. Some key insights from this webinar are how to determine your true priorities to eliminate overwhelm. How to understand your why behind each task to fuel motivation. How to think quality over quantity and learn the art of effective to-do lists. How to learn practical tips that can help you begin today in taking action. And then you're going to receive a list of helpful books and resources. So remember, friends, if everything is important, nothing really is. So join me as we commit to starting 2024 with greater clarity and less overwhelm. So mark your calendars December 6th at 11 am, central time. And to register, either email me at podcast@ get4sight. com, podcast at get4sight, g-e-t, the number 4, s-i-g-h-t. com, and just put webinar in the subject line and we'll get you registered and set up. Or you can link to the registration in the show notes.
Speaker 1:All right, for those of you ladies who are in leadership are you looking to level up your leadership in 2024? I sure hope so, because we are thrilled to announce that registration is open for our women in leadership February 2024 coaching group. So we kick off in February 2024. So now is the time to get registered. And, guys, if there is a female on your team who needs to be invested in this year in her leadership and her growth which all of us need investment and growth I want you to encourage her to check this out. Imagine a powerful network of like-minded women, all focused on unlocking their full potential and achieving their dreams. At the foresight group, we believe in empowering leaders to lead themselves well so you can lead others better. And so, friends, I want you to join us this February and embark on a transformative journey of personal and professional growth. You'll gain access to expert coaching, invaluable resources and a supportive community that's dedicated to your success. So don't miss out on this incredible opportunity. Visit get4sight. com/ women in leadership to learn more and to secure your spot. I want you to unleash your potential, lead with confidence and make 2024 your year of remarkable success. So, friends, spots are limited. Go to get4sight. com/ women in leadership today to join this group, and the early bird rate ends on December 8th. So right now is the time to get registered and to sign up. And last last update I've got for y'all before we dive into this week's content Are you subscribed to Carrie Nieuwhof's newsletter On the Rise?
Speaker 1:On the Rise is one of today's most read newsletters about faith, culture, the future church and other just curious content. It's written by my friend, Carey Nieuwhof, and delivered directly to your inbox each Friday. Now, personally, I love On the Rise for the very specific and curated content that Carey provides. So if you'd like to start receiving On the Rise, visit ontherisenewsletter. com to sign up. This content is exclusive to newsletter subscribers. It's published nowhere else on the internet. So you have to subscribe to Carrie's newsletter On the Rise to get this content. Again, that's ontherisenewsletter. com to subscribe for free, and when you do you'll get a sample newsletter delivered right away so you can get an instant taste of what it's like. All right, friends, lots of good stuff going on. So I hope you snagged all of that.
Speaker 1:December 6th webinar on how to prioritize when everything is a priority. Make sure you sign up for that. Women in leadership, you need to join us. This is going to be a big year and all of you I hope you are subscribed to On the Rise Carey Nieuwhof's newsletter. It is fantastic, all right. Well, I am recording this.
Speaker 1:The day after Thanksgiving and I suspect most of us you're either out shopping and being super ambitious or you're at home kind of tidying things up or you're just kind of relaxing and resting, maybe getting out and getting some fresh air, hanging out with family. For me, the house is now quiet after a full day of festivities yesterday and a week of family visiting me, and I'm really reflecting on gratitude. In fact, I woke up kind of in the middle of the night just thinking about this and kind of scratched some of these notes out for today's episode. I'm just reflecting on gratitude because, honestly, I feel like gratitude has been a fight for me in the last little bit, and it's mostly a fight for perspective. Because, if I'm honest, I just struggle to be content. Does anybody else relate to that?
Speaker 1:I think that might be a common thing that we as leaders feel is that we struggle to be content. I always see what more could be. I see what's out in the possibilities and what's out on the horizon. I see what needs to be improved. I'm kind of a constant critic if I'm not careful. I just see what could be improved or what could be better.
Speaker 1:I grieve in justice and pain and our world is full of that and when I focus on all of those things, I lose perspective for being grateful for what I do have. Can you all relate to that? Like, I can sometimes be so fixed on what's not good or what I don't have or what could yet be that I miss having good perspective on what I do have. I recently heard someone say that we should be grateful for everything we would miss if it were gone tomorrow. Now, that leaves a lot of things to be grateful for, right, like if you stop and you just think about gosh, what would I miss right this minute if it weren't here? There are a lot of things I'm really grateful for and as we enter the last month of the year Likely a very busy and somewhat distracted month right, there's a lot going on. I Wonder if we could commit to being more present and more grateful, right, I think that requires intentionality. I know that's at least true for me.
Speaker 1:I Notice this year that I'm a little less interested in busying myself or acquiring more things. I Feel a desire for simple, less complicated, less cluttered. I Notice kind of this active resistance in myself to anything that makes me feel Overwhelmed. Right, if something feels like it's gonna be too much or it's gonna be overwhelming, I notice I'm quickly resistant to it. I Don't know about for you, but for me this year has included a lot of overwhelm, and I bet that's true for you as well.
Speaker 1:So as I sit here thinking about you, the leaders, the listeners, the leaders that are daily providing direction, insight, support, care for the people in your sphere of influence, I wonder how are you really? Like if we could sit down one-on-one over a cup of tea and I could just say hey, how are you doing really? What are you carrying as you enter this Christmas season? Is it joy, hope, peace, or maybe fear, doubt and anxiety? So I wonder how are you really? And I wonder if you need to hear that you're just doing a good job. See, so often leaders lack positive feedback, don't we? Especially for those of you that are in a first-chair responsibility, you often don't have someone regularly encouraging you. Right like, you get all the critics, you get all the Constructive feedback. I'm putting that in air quotes, but sometimes you don't have the people encouraging you or just reminding you of how you're doing.
Speaker 1:So I thought, as an act of gratitude for the good work that you are doing as leaders, day in and day out, to lead well, I thought I'd just share three things I suspect that you need to hear. They're not complicated, they're rather simple, but three things that I see are not easy to understand, but three things that I suspect you need to hear. So here we go. Number one Leaders, you're doing a good job.
Speaker 1:Whatever it is that you're responsible for, whatever it is that you're leading, you're still standing. After a lot of ups and downs, you've weathered untold challenges and probably impossible Expectations, and you're still here. You are doing a good job. You're still here. And that leads me to number two, you are needed, wanted and valued. Let that sit for a minute, just for some of you. I know your inner critic is immediately arguing with that, but I want you to hear it again you are needed, you are wanted, you are valued. Your gifts and passion and commitment to your work matter and it's giving hope and confidence to those you lead. So you are needed, you are wanted and you are valued.
Speaker 1:And the third thing that I suspect you need to hear is Is that it's okay if you're tired, because most of you probably are, and it's not weakness, it's humanness. If you're feeling fatigue, maybe if you want to coast the rest of this year, that's not a sign that you're not cut out for this. It's a sign that you're normal. More critically, it's a sign that you need to lead yourself well. It's kind of like that check engine light on your car. It's not an emergency, but it is an indicator that there is something that needs attention. So, leaders, what do you need to give attention to for yourself this year, as you finish out this year and you move towards 2024? What in your life needs repair or care? I want you to be thoughtful about what do you need, and I want you to remember these three things that you are doing a good job, you are doing good, good work, you are needed, you are wanted and you are valued. And then it's okay if you're tired A lot of us are.
Speaker 1:So, leaders, here's the last thing I want you to hear. I'm incredibly thankful for you. Thank you for leading well, thank you for your faithfulness in the ups and the downs, thank you for recognizing this sacred work of leadership, because we need you to lead well. We need your influence, we need you to recognize the significance and the importance of the sphere of influence that you hold these people that are entrusted to your care, that each person in your span of care will be changed and affected by your leadership. And there's both a pressure and a privilege in that statement, isn't there? That the people in your span of care will be changed and affected by your leadership, and that pressure and that privilege I want you to hold. That, rightly, don't be overwhelmed by the pressure and don't be underwhelmed by the privilege. They're both really, really important and really, really sacred.
Speaker 1:I think I'm just getting old enough to start seeing the impact of a couple of decades of leadership. It feels a little crazy to say what I wouldn't give to have recognized the significance of it sooner. Right, I'm just now hearing stories of impact from 10, 15, 20 years ago and those stories where that impact has been good and valuable and significant is so incredibly meaningful. The moments when I've been able to influence somebody, to change your effect, their life in a way that had a positive impact, and they're reflecting on their journey and they're saying thank you, and sometimes it's for something I didn't even realize I did or how significant it was to that individual. So, leaders, I don't want you to lose heart. I think that's why I thought you needed to hear just these very simple things: you're doing a good job, you're doing good work, you are needed, you are wanted, you are valued, and it's okay if you're tired. These are all things that we question or we doubt or we wrestle with, and sometimes we don't hear the stories of impact until much further down the road.
Speaker 1:In this week of reflection and thankfulness, I want you to be encouraged that your leadership matters. We need great, god-honoring leaders, and so I want to encourage you, first, to take to heart those three things that I shared with you and make sure you're leading yourself well, and then, secondly, as we enter the Christmas season, I want to encourage you to look for the moments to bring light, to bring joy, to bring hope to those you lead this Christmas season. Friends, keep leading well. It matters so so much. Keep leading well for the glory of God and the good of others.