Dare to Lead
During this first phase of the program, we encourage you to think about your sense of self and how this underpins your approach to leading together with your team. Knowing who you are and how your leadership connects to your team is critical to being a good leader, and vulnerability is key to that process. In the LAPH collection of “Get Grounded” resources, is the TED talk from Brene Brown on the "Power of Vulnerability." While you listen to this talk, we would like you consider how it connects to Brown’s book, Dare to Lead. In her book, Brown discusses a few concepts that align with the LAPH model. These concepts include: “rumbling with vulnerability,” “who we are is how we lead,” and “courage is contagious.”
In the first concept of “rumbling with vulnerability,” she describes “embracing the suck” of being vulnerable. This means being able to be real and accept feedback; being able to take in opinions of those who might not agree with you, and partner with them to ensure that all ideas can be critically represented. This is a critical component of our LAPH process. During the program year, you learn from and practice “rumbling” with your team.
The second concept of “who we are is how we lead” connects to developing a strong understanding ourselves and bringing our authentic selves to our leadership. During the upcoming retreat, we will delve further into this with a team building session using the well-known Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). This session will allow us to explore how different innate preferences can enhance or impede communication, collaboration, and decision-making in groups. It is through grounding ourselves in this knowledge of self that we can better grow, learn, and adapt.
The third concept of “courage is contagious” connects to the partnerships we have with those we lead and is critical to advancing our work. In LAPH, we are anchored in partnerships because to truly advance equity in your communities, you must work with others.
Finally, Brown summarizes leading as being about “courage, connection, and meaning.” These three components are necessary to both strong leadership and successful public health endeavors. It takes courage to pursue and push for change, and connection and meaning to see it through.
Image from ted.com