Key Messages
Transform Your Business Into A Modern, Loving Workplace With Evolved Leadership
It is time to transform workplaces from a place of fear and hierarchy to one of growth, empowerment, and love.
In her book, The Evolved Executive, Heather Hanson Wickman provides a blueprint for modern workplaces designed to effectively adapt to today’s fast-changing market.
Not only will this save you money in the long run but it can also help you lead the competition by miles.
This powerful book outlines four mindsets that all evolved executives must possess: empathy and compassion; encouragement of creativity; grounded leadership; and an understanding that a dynamic workplace environment produces better outcomes.
With these mindsets in place, toxic workplaces can be replaced with empowering ones, where employees no longer feel afraid to speak up or take risks and instead are empowered with trust and resources.
The Evolved Executive not only reveals how much money is wasted on toxic workspaces but also shows readers how to replace jobs with roles, establish team accountability systems, create meaningful collaboration among team members, set breakthrough goals that motivate teams, measure performance differently to get better results and much more.
By following these steps it is possible to develop an evolved executive that brings excellence in human-centric organizational development and propels your business forward faster than ever before imagined.
The Need For Change In The Workplace: Taking A Risk To Help Leaders Adapt And Thrive
It’s no secret that the workplace is in need of modernization.
The traditional top-down hierarchical model that worked during the Industrial Revolution is not applicable anymore as we face an ever-shifting business landscape.
This is evident in the fact that only 10 percent of businesses on the 1955 Fortune 500 list still exist today, due to their lack of adaptation.
In order for businesses to keep up with changing times, it’s time to move beyond restrictive models of the past and embrace adaptability and risk-taking from their leaders.
Today’s thriving companies don’t rely on strict authority and supervision; instead, they recognize the value of collaboration and creativity among their employees.
By encouraging employees to speak up and reach their full potential, it opens up innovative opportunities for true success.
Acknowledging fears, doubts and ideas all have a crucial role in allowing executives to grow in both experience and expertise which can be invaluable assets for any business.
If we want our everyday work life to improve overall, then businesses must look into improving their structures and moving away from outdated practices if they plan to survive in today’s competitive environment long-term.
Stop The Fear: Lead With Love To Create A Productive Workplace
The Evolved Executive encourages a modern business model and leadership style which emphasizes leading with love, rather than fear.
The traditional hierarchical structure has relied heavily on fear as a way of manipulating employees – both superiors and subordinates – into submitting to their structured rules.
Fear may have been a useful motivator in the earlier days of industrialism, when there was little else to incentivize workers to collaborate or remain obedient.
But we now know that fear can be an inefficient and toxic form of management, and it often damages the workplace environment even further.
The 2016 Gallup survey revealed that only 13 percent of employees are engaged with their work if conditions are poor.
Additionally, studies by the US Department of Labor have shown that poor work environments can contribute up to 22 percent of a company’s payroll costs due to increased absenteeism and depression among employees.
Even more alarming is the fact that disengaged employees can deplete companies of up to 17 percent productivity according to Gallups’ 2017 survey.
These figures demonstrate why it is important for companies to shift away from punitive managerial tactics and towards models which prioritize humanity at its core: by promoting freedom, autonomy and genuine connections within teams.
Leaders should practice authenticity so that they become role models for others in the workplace who may need more reassurance during difficult tasks or times.
Most importantly, leaders should be unafraid too show compassion for their team – helping them through tough times instead of punishing them with threats or criticism.
The evolved business relies on this kind of collaboration which is rooted in Love rather than Fear in order for it to succeed long-term!
To Lead With Love, We Must First Transform Our Beliefs Through Vertical Learning
For leaders that want to evolve, it all starts with understanding and challenging their core beliefs and habits.
You can think of core beliefs as your “operating system” as they dictate not just behavior but also your perception of others and how you generally think about things.
When they are based on fear, you will see potential threats everywhere and be defensive instead of proactive.
To tackle these issues, the key is to increase one’s self-awareness, or the ability to recognize one’s emotions, strengths, limitations, drives and perspectives.
This falls under what is known as vertical learning or heart learning – as opposed to head learning or horizontal learning where someone acquires a specific skill like creating interactive spreadsheets – and is necessary for adapting oneself and their workplace to ever-changing business conditions.
Evolved Leaders Climb The Corporate Ladder Of Consciousness To Understand Themselves And Change The Workplace
Vertical growth is the key to becoming an evolved leader and unlocking your potential.
To increase your self-awareness, you must expand your consciousness through vertical learning.
This type of learning helps you understand and appreciate yourself better, as well as grow and progress in life.
The Evolved Executive book by Caroline Myss gives us a useful analogy; it says that your consciousness is like the multiple floors of an apartment building.
As you climb up each floor, your view improves, so don’t be afraid to venture beyond what’s on the bottom floor.
When you reach the top floor, you’ll be able to take in more, which will enable greater understanding of yourself and everyone around.
To help you along this journey to become an evolved leader, there are four core mind-sets that you need to develop: connection mindset – becoming more authentic; growth mindset – recognizing change is possible; trust mindset – having faith in yourself and others even amidst uncertainty; and purpose mindset – looking past profit for meaningful understanding.
Each of these mindsets allows for a deeper level of self-observation and growth, allowing you to evolve personally while simultaneously advancing your career or business.
How To Identify Your Purpose: 4 Steps To Gain Personal Insight Through Reflection And Mindfulness
Finding your purpose and living by it can be an essential part of personal growth, as it helps to shape a person’s character and outlook on life.
The Evolved Executive, written by Mark Manson, provides insight into how one can find their personal mission in life.
To make the process smoother, he suggests taking four steps: Storytelling, reflecting on feedback from others, identifying key themes from your story and writing a personal statement that defines your purpose.
The author also recommends adding mindfulness to this routine practice as it accelerates understanding of who you are and why you do things.
In addition to practicing mindfulness for personal growth, we believe that finding your purpose is equally important.
An authentic sense of direction gives you the momentum needed to grow “vertically.” What this means is that by having a more meaningful sense of where you’re going- both beyond simply surviving day-to-day -you have far greater chances of becoming the best version of yourself.
Furthermore, pursuing what matters to you opens up a doorway of opportunities to help manifest our collective potentials working towards making the world better together.
Leading From Fear To Love: How To Transform Your Company Culture
Before any structural changes can be implemented in the workplace, it is essential to first make sure that the company culture is healthy.
Company culture determines how engaged and motivated employees are, and a toxic culture can lead to disengagement and a fear of failure which inhibits creativity.
Therefore it’s important to evaluate the company culture by paying attention to how people interact, how communication between leaders and employees flows, and also noting more subtle signs such as how administrative staff like secretaries or receptionists are treated.
Leaders must lead from a place of love, empathy, trust and honesty in order for collaboration among employees to be active and innovative.
The key to establishing a healthy company culture is by focusing on not just superficial things like casual Fridays or ping-pong tables in the office but rather creating an environment where people feel safe enough to express themselves without fear of reprimand or failure.
When this atmosphere is built up, then fsturctural changes can he implemented without worry of engagement or motivation dropping off.
Transform Your Company Structure To Cultivate Change And Harmony
Lead links and networks of teams are an effective way to create a connected company structure.
Instead of each department functioning independently from one another, organizations can establish lead links within their departments.
Lead links are employees designated with a special role – that of serving as a liaison between different departments.
This ensures that communication and information flow freely throughout the organization, so each department is aligned with the overall strategy of the business.
Establishing networks of teams is also an effective way to improve connectivity.
Multiple teams are formed by allowing employees autonomy to form or disband them.
Each team is responsible for its own recruitment, sales, marketing and project management, resulting in a highly collaborative environment that promotes open communication and empowers employees to make decisions without being restricted by one centralized leader.
This makes organizations more adaptable to changes in the wider market while still having a clear sense of identity.
Though there may be difficulties associated with this sort of structure (such as finding a way to evaluate individual performance), these inconveniences can be outweighed by the advantages it offers in terms of fostering connections and empowering employees to take responsibility for their work.
Experimenting on just two or three departments may help you better understand how it would function before you make any major changes across your entire organization.
Moving To A More Transparent, Collaborative Workplace With Role-Based Practices And An Advice Process
When transitioning away from traditional structures in a company, it’s important to also implement the right company practices.
This ensures that the newly collaborative and connected workplace runs smoothly.
One way to support this is by ridding the organization of traditional job titles and descriptions, instead shifting to roles that are more fluid and adaptable.
This allows for better cooperation between colleagues when conducting tasks and provides employees with the flexibility to shift into different roles as needed.
Another practice that can help foster collaboration among team members is installing an advice process.
Rather than having decisions funnel through a higher authority, this encourages employees to recognize problems and consult with one another before proposing solutions that can then be implemented as a team.
By taking these steps, companies will create an atmosphere whereby team members are empowered not only to solve problems on their own but also to share ideas openly and think collaboratively in light of issues that arise.
Evolved Workplace In Action: Case Studies Of Scribe And Percolab
The Evolved Executive warns that a workplace driven by fear will not last, and yet, many companies are already leading with love.
Two perfect examples are Scribe and Percolab, both of which have revolutionized their respective industries with unique and evolved workplace models that promote transparency, collaboration, and personal growth.
At Scribe, their Whole Self Program is a biannual meeting during which all employees get together to discuss the potential growth of one team member.
During the session, everyone shares honest critiques of the teammate’s strengths as well a what may be holding them back before setting goals for the year ahead.
By creating an environment of support and mentoring, Scribe has helped its employees achieve results they never thought possible before.
Meanwhile over at Percolab, they take transparency even further by holding Open Team Meetings where anyone can join in, including spouses and strangers alike!
In return for this detailed look into their business decisions and operations, Percolab gets fresh insights from these outsiders that help create meaningful change within their organization.
Clearly companies like these are showing us the way forward to an evolved workplace; we just need to continue striving to make it reality!
Wrap Up
The Evolved Executive makes the case for the need to adapt our workplaces in today’s ever-changing world.
Starting with executives, the book argues for getting rid of traditional hierarchies that rely on fear-based motivation and replace them with organizational structures that are modern, adaptable, and transparent.
Instead of fear-based motivation, The Evolved Executive suggests trust and open collaboration as a way of not only improving company culture but also gaining a competitive advantage.
As a final summary, The Evolved Executive offers practical advice when it comes to tackling fearful habits.
Whenever you find yourself inclined to avoid saying something out of fear, think of doing the exact opposite instead.
Recognize what assumptions may be fueling your behavior and ask yourself “What is really at the root of this fear?” Inevitably this will lead you to uncover core beliefs that can help you make lasting changes to your behavior.
