Episode 8: Why Every Leader Needs a 360 | 12MinuteLeadership

Leadership 360 feedback is a powerful tool for growth that reveals blind spots and transforms leadership effectiveness. We explore what it is, why it matters, and five key benefits that help leaders see themselves more clearly than they ever could on their own.

• Deep self-awareness that bridges the gap between how you think you're showing up and how others experience you
• Emotional intelligence growth by understanding how your actions affect others' feelings and motivation
• Creation of a feedback culture where honest input becomes normalized and valued
• Alignment between your intentions and your actual impact on others
• Clear development path based on patterns that reveal your strengths and growth areas
• Real-world success story of Robert, who transformed from nearly being fired to becoming a beloved leader

Ready to experience the benefits of a 360? If your organization doesn't have an internal process, reach out to us at www.eliseboggs.com for support. Subscribe to this podcast and check out my book "Lead Anyone" on Amazon for more leadership insights.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to 360 Feedback
• 2:21 Five Powerful Benefits of 360s
• 6:04 Robert's Transformation Story
• 9:06 Recap and Call to Action

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:03

Welcome to the 12-Minute Leadership Podcast where, in 12 minutes or less, I'll share small things that you can put into immediate practice that will make a big difference in your leadership effectiveness. I'm your host, elise Boggs-Morales leadership professor, consultant and coach. For the last 17 years, I have helped thousands of leaders level up their influence and achieve remarkable results. If you want to trade compliance for true commitment and create your dream team, you are in the right place. Get ready for a quick hit of practical wisdom to increase your team's engagement, inspire top performance and retain your best talent. Ready to level up your influence and get better results. 12 Minutes starts now. Hi everyone, elise here, welcome to episode eight why Every Leader Needs a 360. Aristotle said knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. If you're a leader who wants to grow, not just in title but in impact, today's episode is for you.

Speaker 1: 1:10

We're diving into one of the most powerful tools in leadership development the 360 degree feedback review. Last week, I talked about how 360s are often an overlooked solution for accelerating your organization's growth, and this week I'm continuing the conversation by walking you through what a 360 is, why it matters and five of the most powerful benefits it offers leaders like you. It's not always easy to hear how others experience your leadership, but it's always worth it. So what is a 360? Let's start with the basics. A leadership 360 is a feedback process that gathers insights from all around you your direct reports, your peers, supervisors and sometimes even clients or partners. Instead of just getting feedback from your boss, you're getting a full picture of how your leadership shows up at every level. It's not a performance review, it's a mirror, and it helps leaders see themselves more clearly than they ever could on their own. So I'm going to share with you five benefits of 360s.

Speaker 1: 2:21

Benefit number one deep self-awareness. One of the greatest gifts of a 360 is self-awareness. As leaders, we often assume we know how we come across, but the truth is we all have blind spots. You may see yourself as confident and clear, but your team might experience you as abrupt or even unapproachable. And here's the key Growth doesn't come from intention. It comes from understanding your impact. A 360 helps close the gap between how you think you're showing up and how others actually experience you, and once you see it, you can do something about it.

Speaker 1: 3:03

A second benefit of 360s is that they are emotional intelligence boosters. 360s are one of the fastest ways to grow your EQ because they help you tune into how others feel, not just what they do. There is a famous quote, often attributed to Maya Angelou, that says people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. 360s allow you to learn how your tone, your timing and presence affect morale, motivation and trust and leaders with high EQ. They make better decisions, they build stronger teams and they create healthier cultures.

Speaker 1: 3:47

A third benefit for 360s is that they create a culture of feedback. Here's something powerful. When you model receiving feedback well, it changes your team. They start to feel safe, giving honest input not just to you but to each other. You normalize feedback, you take the fear out of it, and that opens the door to real growth for everyone. Whatever you want to create in your organization must flow from the top. That's why I always push for the executive team to complete 360s before anyone else to model the way. I find those leadership teams most resistant to 360s are the organizations that have the most unaddressed challenges that are ultimately undermining results. In cultures that embrace 360s, feedback becomes a gift, not a threat.

Speaker 1: 4:41

A fourth benefit is that 360s align behavior with intentions. One of the most frustrating things for leaders is when our intentions don't match our impact. Maybe you think you're being helpful, but your team feels micromanaged. Maybe you think you're being collaborative, but others see you as indecisive. 360s help you identify those mismatches and realign how you show up with the leader you want to be. A difference in perception is often an easy fix and since perception is often reality for people, a tiny tweak could make a big difference and finally benefit.

Speaker 1: 5:19

Number five a clear development path. 360s give you a clear, focused development path. They reveal patterns, not just one-off opinions. You start to see themes. They reveal patterns, not just one-off opinions. You start to see themes. Maybe multiple people mention your ability to inspire or your tendency to avoid tough conversations. Either way, now you have clarity, and clarity drives growth. Often, leadership can seem difficult to measure. 360s make the most important qualities measurable so you can direct your actions and efforts effectively.

Speaker 1: 5:54

I'd like to close things up here with a story, a leadership 360 story, where a leader went from being on the chopping block to becoming a beloved leader. This is the story of my client, robert. Robert's story is one of the most powerful leadership transformations I've witnessed. Robert had over 30 years of experience in his industry. He was technically brilliant, respected for his knowledge. But there was one big problem His team couldn't stand working with him. In fact, hr complaints about his leadership style had put him on the chopping block. When I first met him as his coach, he was frustrated and defensive. He didn't enjoy leading. He just wanted to get the job done without what he would call interpersonal drama and, honestly, he saw his team as more of a burden than an asset. Does that sound familiar? You feel like you could get more done if your team wasn't in the way. Many leaders feel this way when they get burned out or disconnected.

Speaker 1: 6:55

I recommended to Robert that we do a Leadership 360. He agreed, but when he saw the feedback, he was crushed. He felt misunderstood, he felt like giving up. But here's what I always remind leaders Feedback is a gift because it's giving us data, and data gives us the power to change things. So we picked just three pieces of feedback to work on. One, he was seen as inaccessible. Two, he wasn't mentally present in meetings. And three, he didn't use the team's communication tools. Now, these could be actual facts or they could be perceptions, but either way, this was giving us some information so that we could work on things very intentionally.

Speaker 1: 7:37

So in one month, robert made small, consistent changes. Some of the things that he did to address the concerns were that he set office hours, he responded more quickly to messages, he showed up fully present in meetings and he began mentoring younger team members using his decades of experience. And here's the amazing part His team came back to life. They were more engaged, more efficient, more connected and, robert, he discovered a new joy in leadership. It was really amazing to watch so fast forward. Six months and Robert has become one of the most beloved leaders in the company, especially among younger employees. And years later, he's still thriving. Why? Because he had the courage to face the truth and had the humility to change.

Speaker 1: 8:26

I think this story is a win from several perspectives. For one, the company didn't lose a seasoned employee. The amount of effort, time, money and resources that would have had to be put into rehiring would have been significant. Two, robert got to keep his job. He got to remain in an industry that he loved, just by making some simple changes. And three, he actually enjoyed leading for the first time and began investing in the next generation of leaders. So it was a win all around all because he did a 360, got the information he needed and applied it rapidly.

Speaker 1: 9:06

So let's recap the five biggest benefits of a leadership 360. One, it reveals blind spots and builds self-awareness. Two, it boosts your emotional intelligence. Three, it creates a culture where feedback is welcomed, not feared. Four, it helps you align your impact with your intentions. And five, it gives you a clear focus path for your next level of growth. So here's my challenge for you when was the last time you asked someone who works for you what's one thing I do that helps you thrive and one thing I do that gets in the way? That single question can open the door to the kind of leadership breakthrough a 360 delivers.

Speaker 1: 9:46

Ready to do something more formal in the way of a 360? If your organization doesn't have an internal process, no problem, we can help. Simply reach out to us at wwweliseboggscom. So thanks for joining me today. If this episode resonated with you, share it with another leader who's ready to grow. And remember the best leaders aren't the ones who have it all figured out, they're the ones who keep asking the right questions, like what you heard on today's episode and wanna go deeper. Subscribe to this podcast so you never miss an episode. You can also pick up my book Lead Anyone on Amazon. Then go to my website to check out ways that we can support your leadership goals. From executive retreats to customized training and coaching, my team of experts will help you level up your leadership and accelerate your results. Go to wwweliseboggscom for more info.