“Leave your ego at the door every morning, and just do some truly great work. Few things will make you feel better than a job brilliantly done.“– Robin Sharma

Q: How much of my leadership is about me?

Q: In what situations do I find it difficult to leave my ego at the door?

Q: How does my leadership style change when I consciously focus on the team or organisation rather than on myself?

Tom’s Reflections on These Questions

We’ve all met or had leaders where pretty much everything they did was about them. About showing off their status and power. Good ideas were theirs. Poor outcomes were due to something outside their control. The organisational cost can be very high because interests are misaligned.

I had one such leader in my first managerial job. Everything was about making him look good. Every situation and story altered to make him the hero. This naturally was highly demotivating for his own team, myself included.

I have therefore long sensed the importance of continually asking ourselves: How much of this is about me?

We obviously can’t complete ignore our needs and desires but at least being aware of them gives us power to respond in different ways.

Programme Overview

The Curious Leaders programme is designed to foster a deep sense of curiosity about who you are as a person and as a leader. It challenges you to reflect on what you can do each day to become a more effective leader. The premise is that before we can truly lead others, we first need to lead ourselves.

It thus ultimately starts with self-leadership. This is about building a practice of reflection and action whereby we become increasingly curious about how our thinking is impacting our actions. This is the first step in building a world in which curiosity shapes leadership.

In this world, leaders aren’t boxed in by traditional thinking or established playbooks. They are open to fresh ideas and diverse perspectives, fostering a culture of exploration and learning. In truth, nurturing curiosity in leadership is essential if we are to address the key challenges of the 21st century.