Welcome to the summer leadership book club!
We're starting with a modern classic that will help you emerge stronger and more focused by September
I’m so excited to open the Lead with Intention summer book club today! Although, irony of ironies, there is no summer to be seen here in the UK. As I type this, my daughter’s sports day has just been cancelled due to the rain and I’m tempted to put the heating on. In June!
However, although the weather may be a wash out, that doesn’t change the fact that summer is a really good time for reflection if you want to make changes in your life. A time to read, think, dream and then start to create actions and habits that will take you closer to your goals by the time September comes around and the leaves start to turn…
And speaking of habits, that’s what we’re going to focus on in this free summer book club. Please share with your network so that others can join in!
We’re reading, of course:
Atomic Habits by James Clear
This is one of my favourite books about leadership, although it doesn’t sell itself as a leadership book. But it focuses on personal development and that is key to being an effective leader.
Being self-aware enough to notice where you may have picked up unhelpful habits that you want to break, or productive habits that you may want to start. And role modelling to others (friends, family, teams at work) what that looks like and what the benefits are.
What I love about this book is that the author breaks all of this down into really actionable small steps. I feel like we don’t talk about the power of small actions enough - we tend to focus on achieving the great big milestones, when in reality, cumulative, small steps in the right direction will get us where we need to go and probably be more sustainable for the long-term.
I’ll start a conversation thread today where I’d like you to share your habit goals for this summer (you can be anon if you prefer!) and I’m giving you some prompts below for the first section we’re reading together.
The Fundamentals - coaching prompts and discussion
I want to share a few of my thoughts on the opening chapter The Fundamentals and ask you some questions as you read this section too:
James Clear starts this section with the now-famous story of how the British cycling team turned their performance around from “aggressively average” to a 10 year unprecedented run, all through the power of incremental improvements and small habits:
When you think about the habits you want to either break or create, how many small changes/incremental improvements can you identify to support this goal?
Can you list them somewhere visible and track them?
What systems might you put in place to measure your progress with them?
He also talks about the importance of linking your habits to your identity, so that in changing your habits, you are reinforcing who you really want to be:
For example, as he says on page 34 (how your habits build your identity): “The goal is not to read a book, it is to become a reader.”
This framing really helped me when I used the book to stop drinking alcohol. “My goal was not to give up alcohol, but to embrace a life without it.”
How might this framing help you with your current habits, both personal and professional?
Finally, he talks about the “habit loop” and how to use it for positive ends in breaking or making a habit.
Can you break down the four components of the habit loop and consider what you need to do in each phase to be successful?
What keeps you caught up in the habit loop and what’s a first step that might help you get out of it?
In the discussion thread, I’ll be asking you to share what habits you want to make or break this summer (stay anon if you would like!) and what your thoughts are on The Fundamentals chapter. If you’d like some gentle accountability through the thread, please just shout!
And join me back here in two weeks’ time for the next chapter, The First Law: Make It Obvious.
Louise