Leadership is a Contact Sport
We asked Morgan, SCIL Facilitator, “How has SCIL Changed over the years? What are you doing differently now?” Below is his response:
A couple of years ago, after introducing the graduating SCIL class to the County Board of Supervisors, one of the supervisors said to me, " I've been watching this program with interest in recent years and it seems to be getting better and better. What do you attribute that to?"
I didn't have to think long (and I didn't have long to think). I suggested that the difference-maker was connectedness.
In my mind I was reflecting on the challenge that we SCILsters face when asked to ponder, then share, our Crucible Stories. In my day (2014) it was at the end of the program. Currently it happens in December. It can be a transformative moment. Why? Because the class connects at a deeper level through vulnerability and authenticity. In recent years, if SCILsters were unable or unwilling to share on the day I offered to meet them one-on-one to hear their stories. In many cases I was privileged to have those conversations. And the connection we experienced was profound.
As an educator/speaker I have long felt that Connection must come before Content. It holds true for leadership, too. If we as leaders cannot connect with our people and our teams, the relationship gap is hard to bridge. Trust, commitment, and communication are very hard to establish without connection.
The scaffold of SCIL was set a long time ago (in 1998) and many fundamental elements are still there because they work. The coat of paint that I choose to apply is one of making extra time and effort to facilitate connections. We tell our personal stories of leaders in our lives at the retreat. The campfire at Durward's Glen is an invaluable venue for connecting. We no longer refer to networking as such. Today in SCIL it carries a warmer, more accessible label: Connect-Working. The evaluations from each SCIL session rave about times when we can break out and share our stories with each other.
We are building skills without doing hard work. To acknowledge that everybody has a story that they want to tell and to gift them with our listening is a leadership skill that is hiding in plain sight. Not to mention that it can be enjoyable.
So, my answer to the simple question of "What are you doing differently now?" is equally simple: we place more emphasis on connecting.
It's such a small thing but it's really a pretty big thing. We have a board that gets it and they are very supportive. We have a roster of recent alumni who give a knowing nod and a smile when SCIL comes up in conversation (and more than one has said "I want to do SCIL again!" Um, there's nothing stopping you - it'll be the same but very different when you come through again!). And we are enthusiastic about the evaluations, comments and results that are coming through. Connection works.
If leadership is a contact sport, we are winning through a better connection with ourselves and with others.
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Editor’s Note: Another great way to stay connected to SCIL and learn how things might be different than years past is to sign up for our e-newsletter. We send out monthly updates that include SCIL day recaps, leadership tips and tricks, and more.
