Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger, Erin Cressy, President & CEO of Cressy Consulting. We hope you enjoy Erin’s wisdom and perspective.
I had to laugh, and breathe a sigh of relief, as I heard these words come out of the mouth of my 7 year old son, Jackson.
Honestly, I was surprised to hear the kid actually had some limits - until he uttered those words I doubted such boundaries existed for Jackson.
To put this in perspective, Jackson is my youngest of three kids; he learned to speed crawl and climb up the stairs when he was just six months old. At age two he scaled the shelves of a consignment store as I was checking out and happily plopped himself in a toy car that was on display two feet from the ceiling. In my defense, I left him in an enclosed play area and was only a few feet away at the cash register – he was a speedy toddler! While this was a shock to every other mom in the store, this was a normal occurrence for me at home so I quickly grabbed my phone to document the feat, wanting proof of my daily life with Jackson ‘living on the edge.’ In short, Jackson will dream up, and do, just about anything – and he has the confidence, determination, and physical ability to make ‘doing just about anything’ a reality on a daily basis.
Which brings me back to the Skittles comment. One day last year as I was sweeping the kitchen and family room floor I ended up with a pile of dirt, dog fur, half-chewed dog bones, and food crumbs that was bigger than I’d like to admit. I was about to sweep the pile into the dust pan when Jackson came over and spied two brightly colored Skittles right in the middle of the pile. I honestly thought my candy-addicted 7 year old was going to grab the Skittles, plop them in his mouth, and run. But, as the highly trained, 7-year veteran mom of Mr. Jackson, I was ready to pounce and prevent this disgusting feat from taking place. I was pleasantly surprised when Jackson declined the ‘tasty treat’ and clearly, unwaveringly proclaimed where he stood on this issue, “I eat food off the floor all the time, but I am NOT going to eat those Skittles!”
This Is About Leadership…
So what did I learn from Jackson that day? I learned everyone has personal boundaries, and everyone needs personal boundaries. Knowing, and owning, our personal boundaries is a vital leadership skill. It involves the ability to clearly and unwaveringly say ‘no.’
It also involves the ability to know our passions, strengths (and weaknesses), and core values – so that we can easily say ‘no’ to those things not aligned with our core self, and fully say ‘yes’ to those things that are very much aligned.
In the book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, Greg McKeown explains, if it’s not 100% ‘yes’ then it should be a ‘no.’ Apply this rule the next time you clean out your closet. It’s pretty freeing and extremely effective. When you see how well it works there you’ll inevitably be inclined to apply it to your work life.
Similarly, Gay Hendricks, in his book, The Big Leap, describes the 'Enlightened No'. According to Hendricks, being able to say ‘no’ allows us to shed the things we feel we should be doing so that we can step into our zone of genius and do the things we are truly meant to do.
What’s The Risk?
Even the greatest dare devils and candy-lovers among us have boundaries we need to honor – Jackson is living proof of that. There is great power in being aware of and honoring our personal boundaries. Commit to building this leadership skill and you will end up saying ‘yes’ only to those things that can take you to the next level – to your zone of genius where you are passionately engaging your talents for the betterment of yourself, and all those impacted by your leadership. What’s the cost of not doing this? Eating some pretty nasty Skittles off the kitchen floor…
This content was written and shared by guest blogger, Erin Cressy.
Erin Cressy is the President/CEO of the consulting firm, Cressy Consulting, which is based in South Bend, Indiana. With over 15 years of experience in the fields of diversity and leadership Erin blends her academic expertise with her business savvy to design and lead initiatives that create lasting change for individuals and organizations. Erin utilizes consulting, training, professional coaching and facilitation skills to support organizations in leveraging talent and creating a ‘culture of inclusion.’
Erin holds a Ph.D. in Social Psychology; she is a current and founding board member of Girls on the Run Michiana. Erin is also a member of the Board of Directors of Leadership South Bend/Mishawaka.
Connect with Erin via her website, Twitter, or LinkedIn.
