Cultivating Your Ideal Self: Values, Strengths, and the Power of Action
Defining who you are and what you stand for is a fundamental journey for personal and professional growth. In the second lesson in our Audacity in Leadership and Career Acceleration course, Sophie Blum and Stevi Gable Carr dive into how to accomplish this.This process begins with an honest assessment of your core values and key strengths. A practical exercise is to list your top 25 key strengths, providing a robust framework for self-understanding and clearly articulating your unique identity. To further assist in this self-definition, a structured approach can ensure you remain aligned with your aspirations.
Defining your leadership involves deep self-awareness, clarifying values, identifying key strengths, and using frameworks like FLARE (Focus, Listen, Align, Reflect, Elevate) to guide your growth.
Transitioning to your "ideal self" is a conscious decision that costs nothing, requiring intentional action and the courage to embrace opportunities even if you don't feel fully prepared.
True leadership is about acting as your "future self," embracing continuous learning and adaptation, and trusting in your ability to "figure it out" rather than succumbing to paralysis.
To support this journey, the "F.L.A.R.E." framework serves as a valuable guide. "Focus" involves clarifying your values and key strengths. "Listen" encourages you to understand your environment and incorporates others' perspectives into your reflections. "Align" means harmonizing your personal brand and self with your career goals, recognizing that your individual growth is connected to your professional aspirations. "Reflect" prompts you to consider past experiences, both successes and challenges, and integrate these lessons into your evolving definition of who you want to be. Finally, "Elevate" emphasizes continuous learning and growth, fostering ongoing reflection to ensure dynamic personal and professional development.
This framework is not a rigid, one-size-fits-all formula, but rather a flexible construct for defining personal success and purpose. It underscores that truly understanding who you are and what success means to you requires a strong foundation of self-confidence and a clear sense of purpose. This aligns perfectly with intentional change theory, which posits that your "current real self"—your identified strengths and capabilities—can evolve towards your "ideal self," the best version of yourself you aspire to become.
Many individuals hesitate to take decisive steps toward their ideal self, often due to overanalysis or nervousness about the required changes. However, a crucial insight is that the decision to become your ideal self costs absolutely nothing; it's a choice you make, and then you begin to embody it. A compelling illustration of this principle is the experience of building a subsidiary in a new country. Taking on a General Manager role, even when not fully prepared, demanded immediate action. This situation highlighted a critical choice: succumb to paralysis from overthinking, or move directly into action as your future self. This experience powerfully demonstrated that you can become your future self simply by acting on that intention.
Saying "yes" to significant opportunities, even before feeling entirely ready, is paramount. This confidence stems from the belief that you are capable because you have made that decision. You leverage your past experiences and strengths, trusting that you will figure out any new challenges that arise. This isn't blind confidence, but a knowing confidence—understanding your limits while embracing the willingness to try and iterate. This resilient mindset ensures that even if you encounter setbacks, you will not disappoint yourself, because you bravely took the leap and committed to learning.
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