Women in leadership are valuable. 

Women play a valuable role in leadership. Men play a valuable role in leadership. Many of us grew up in a family where both parents held a valuable leadership role. Yet each role was different. In most families, the father held the position of authority. In fact, men have held positions of authority in many families, workplaces and communities for a very long time. Suddenly the world changed. We received messages from society that it was time for women to stand on equal ground. And for the most part, we thought we could do it based on our strength, perseverance and will power. Yet we didn’t always account for the power of beliefs and attitudes. Beliefs belonging to women, to men and to society at large.

Beliefs and attitudes can be powerful.

We are programmed by experiences which form our individual beliefs and cultural attitudes. These beliefs and attitudes are responsible for our feelings. Our feelings relate to the way things should operate, how people should behave and how others should treat us. These feelings are not rational and they are unique to us. We may know how we should respond based on the values of the organization but this may not be in accordance with our automatic reactions. Our early experiences and history may not be aligned to that of the organization. While we can work to keep our responses in check, as pressure builds and demands increase, tension increases and people react. We can use this information to identify, isolate and neutralize the triggers, thereby curbing habitual, reactive patterns.

Regardless of gender, our work as leaders is to create an environment that provides safety for growth and boundaries to protect. We need to support women and men to feel safe and supported to gain awareness for their underlying beliefs and attitudes. With awareness, there is an ability to resolve the frozen perceptions to create space for better conversations and more meaningful action!

With family, kids, school, work – and now a pandemic on top of this just to add more uncertainty and stress to our lives – we all have a lot on our plate. We all have different triggers and reactions to how we deal with life – whether it is a lack of patience with the kids, burnout trying to manage work and family, a sense of being overwhelmed with all that needs to get done in a day, or increasing stress levels as we deal with the uncertainly of what will happen as a result of COVID-19. So, take a moment for yourself and read “Thriving in Our Times”. Cathy walks you through the process of identifying your triggers and learning how to effective eliminate them so you can feel more calm, focussed, and confident. So, as you are searching for gifts this holiday season, buy yourself this book. You will be happy you did!

– Amazon Review for Thriving In Our Times: From Reactions To Action Using Logosynthesis (Caswell, 2020)

We can resolve beliefs and attitudes to support women in leadership.

We can show you how to use Logosynthesis® to move beyond habitual patterns, individual beliefs and cultural attitudes. Regardless of gender, as a leader in a group, this work allows you to expand perspectives, cultivate respect and create space for success.  It will contribute to supporting women (and men) collectively to move beyond traditional roles at work, at home and in the community. Men and women are different and as we learn to fully appreciate the contrast, we can respectfully create more vibrant, robust and exciting organizations, families and communities. We can celebrate our differences to truly appreciate and develop the much needed leadership that each of us brings, regardless of age, ethnicity or gender.