I was reflecting on the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr. last week and found a marvellous piece by Kayla McClurg, written with such grace and simplicity that it has had an profound effect on me and kicked off this post. Like Poe’s raven, Kayla’s words got under my skin and not given me a moment’s peace!

With hand on heart, I can safely say that when I read her words, I did not think for a single moment that they would lead me on a personal journey from MLK to Kayla McClurg, leadership growth and growing onions…which is a wonderful metaphor for the central theme of this post – the need to plan our leadership journey without knowing the final destination.

We may not know where our leadership journey will take us, BUT we can take steps to plan ahead, mark our path, control our environment and respond to challenges with focus and commitment – much like the humble onion!

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Kayla’s post started simply enough but quickly jumped off the page, slapped me across the face and left me shaking my head…such elegance, grace and simple, unadorned beauty. Needless to say, her words resonated deeply with me and kicked me into thinking about how to nurture our own leadership journeys.

He didn’t set out to be a visionary leader, intent on making an impact on the country and culture of his day.

He allowed himself to be created. Slowly, layer by layer, choice by choice, he became himself.

He didn’t choose “leader of a mass civil rights movement” from a list of vocational options.

His identity emerged gradually from within as he yielded to the guidance of the community and listened and read and participated and took the risks of creativity that were uniquely his to take – Kayla McClurg

Love Your Onion

Do you ever reflect on your favourite leaders and ask whether they set out on their journey with a goal to end up as they did? Were they the same at the end as they were at the beginning? How did their journey change them? I bet that in every case the answer is “No, they were profoundly changed along their journey and could not forsee how they would end up“.

I like the idea of an onion growing from a seed, layer by layer, until it emerges as a complete, rounded vegetable – with its own special flavour, texture and appearance. From an innocuous beginning grows something beautiful and unique.

Leaders are the same. Experiences alter them over time. Just as the onion matures over time and is enriched by its environment – the sun, soil, water and nutrients, so to do leaders grow.

We are not born fully formed but rather, evolve over time into something greater than the sum of our experiences.

Over the course of our journeys, we experience all the bumps, scrapes, triumphs, disappointments, highs, lows and everything in between…just as the onion deals with everything that comes its way – poor soil, intermittent water, frosts, insects, wind and clouds – we respond and adjust to our environments and experiences, focus on our singular path and every day…grow a little fuller, add a few more layers, a little more texture and flavor and become just that bit more unique!

Nurture Your Onion

Our delicate little onion relies on a couple of fundamental ingredients to thrive – good soil, water and sunlight. Nice and simple. If we provide these at the right time and in the right mix, we can be confident that our onion will, eventually, thrive. We don’t know how it will look or taste, but we can look ahead with some confidence and faith.

Our leadership journeys are much the same. We all start our paths without knowing what the future will hold. Yet we know that if we provide the right soil, the right nutrition, we will eventually bloom. So what can we do to nurture our onion?

It doesn’t matter what YOUR journey is – maybe a new Project, a new promotion, college graduation or that once-in-a-lifetime trip – you will benefit if you cultivate the right environment for your onion to prosper. Before you set out, take some time to check that you have all the right ingredients in place.

1. Pause – Before you start, just…stop. Draw breath. Gather your thoughts. Look for that quiet, contemplative space where you can think clearly. Don’t rush.

   I love Jesse Lyn Stoner’s words here – “this is the moment of between, the moment that separates you from waht was and what can be.” So true. Before you sow your onion seeds, take a step back and breath in, prepare yourself. There is no rush.

   First it is time to pause. This is the moment of between, the moment that separates you from what was and what can be. It’s an important moment. – Jesse Lyn Stoner

2. Record your thoughts – Make time each day to record your thoughts. Write them down, record your voice, complete an online checklist – the method is not so important as the act of doing. Why? Because self-reflection is a critical part of leadership growth; keeping track of situations, events and how you respond to them will give you some powerful food for reflection.

   Make this a part of your daily routine – block out 15 minutes on your calendar each afternoon – step outside, buy a coffee, sit under a tree and just dump it down. Rough, raw, simple.

   Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action – Peter Drucker

3. Give some mentor-loving – Mentors are wonderful. Prepare by getting in touch with your mentors and planning a path with them. Share a coffee, jot down ideas, tap into their experiences, talk with them, scribble plans, listen to what they offer in return and be open to their advice.

   Mentors are your trusted partners and should be a key part of your leadership journey.

   Think of them as onion soil – warm and supportive but needing a little nourishment from time to time.

4. Set your goals – Of course you cannot know everything that will happen over the journey, but you can certainly set some signposts. Just as we can track our onions by marking the seasons and weather patterns, so we can set ourselves some simple goals and mark out a basic path.

   Draw a simple chart, paste it on your wall and check along the way. Just check in from time to time to see how you are tracking.

   Don’t be afraid to move the signposts if you need to, as long as you remain focussed on the end result – remember that as long as you keep your onion sprout pointing towards the sunlight, it will eventually grow upwards!

5. Feed your network – Touch base with a professional association, a Google+ community or a select few trusted confidantes; commit yourself to connecting with them on a regular basis and talking about your progress. These are the best people for you to bounce off – they will be curious, supportive, like-minded and happy to share ideas.

   I commit myself to 15 minutes every day to check in with my three Google+ Project Management communities; it’s my own time to share ideas, contribute to discussions, encourage others – it is a wonderful way to engage, recharge my spirits and get in touch with others that share my interests.

   This is onion food. It doesn’t need to be a lot, but it needs to be regular.

6. Paint your vision – Your leadership journey is about personal growth. So how would you like to grow? If you had a chance to look into the future, how would you see yourself?
   Be bold. Challenge yourself to set out your leadership vision. Write it down, draw a picture…put it on paper. This is not for the world to see – maybe just you, your mentors and confidantes. But it is an important start.

   Once you take this step, you will have unconsciously committed yourself to an ideal – your view of how you want to grow and be seen by others. I love that. Energy truly does follow thought. Saying out loud how you want to grow is such a powerful motivator.

   Do it. Write it down. The rest will follow.

Your Onion Tastes Great!

I love the humble onion – starting innocuously from a small seed and growing over time, layer upon layer, as it feeds from its environment…with just the right mixture of soil, sunlight, water and nutrients providing the boost it needs to grow. Each onion looks different, each onion tastes rich, vibrant, sweet and utterly spectacular.

So it is with our leadership. We start our journey with no idea of where it will take us, but we too grow, layer by layer as we respond to challenges, bump and bruises. We slowly but surely sprout, take shape and ripen into our own, unique, leader-self.

All good gardeners know that we give ourselves the best chance of growing something delicious if we work the environment as best we can – take the steps early to nurture the soil, feed regularly with the right food and water, provide sunlight and weed carefully. Our leadership is the same. We don’t know what the journey will do to us, but we CAN take steps now to set ourselves on the right path – we can prepare our own environments and give ourselves the best opportunity of growing into something delicious!

As always, I would love to hear your thoughts – Twitter, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, comments – I don’t mind. Please, share your stories and gardening tips!

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