{"id":4700,"date":"2015-06-01T21:24:44","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T02:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scottcochrane.com\/?p=4700"},"modified":"2015-06-01T21:25:15","modified_gmt":"2015-06-02T02:25:15","slug":"the-painful-road-to-a-leaders-character-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/01\/the-painful-road-to-a-leaders-character-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"The Painful Road to a Leader\u2019s Character Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"

When does character growth in the life of a leader happen most often?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s during seasons of pain and discomfort.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As I\u2019ve been retracing my own leadership journey I\u2019ve realized that seasons of character growth have always been accompanied by a certain \u201cwince\u201d factor.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is not to say you should seek out painful experiences. Rather, it\u2019s a simple acknowledgement that if you are committed to seeing your character grow, you\u2019d better anticipate some periods of discomfort. Because that\u2019s where character growth takes place.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And since leadership growth is directly tied to character growth, this is something worth paying attention to.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Specifically, watch for character growth to take place in the wake of these pain-points<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>When you\u2019ve committed a leadership blunder<\/strong><\/p>\n

As I\u2019ve written before leaders make mistakes.<\/a> If you are a leader worth your salt, you will make mistakes as you venture out and try new things.<\/p>\n

And let\u2019s be honest; mistakes can be painful. They can cause us to wonder if we\u2019ve lost the esteem of our colleagues. Mistakes can make us believe our value has been diminished among our followers.<\/p>\n

These thoughts can cause considerable pain.<\/p>\n

But if you respond with humility and a learning attitude it can enlarge your character.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>When you\u2019ve made a decision that disappoints people<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s face it. Sometimes your decisions as a leader will let people down.<\/p>\n

Some people will be upset with your decisions. Some will be more than upset; some people will be downright angry with the calls you make.<\/p>\n

If that isn\u2019t happening you\u2019re playing it too safe.<\/p>\n

Now, no one should ever enjoy feeling the wrath of those you\u2019ve disappointed. That should sting a bit every time.<\/p>\n

But that sting is telling you that your character is growing just a bit more.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>When you\u2019ve let an opportunity pass you by.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ever zigged when you should have zagged?<\/p>\n

Ever let the \u201csure thing\u201d slip through your grasp?<\/p>\n

Sure you have. Every leader has let a golden opportunity get away.<\/p>\n

And the feeling afterwards can be a hollow, gnawing pain in your gut.<\/p>\n

But don\u2019t wish that feeling away. Once again, if you process this with humility, this can be a wonderful opportunity for character growth.<\/p>\n

No one welcomes pain. No one hopes for discomfort.<\/p>\n

But with a heart of humility and a learning posture these moments can be a springboard into character growth.<\/p>\n

And for leaders, that\u2019s the ball game.<\/p>\n

When have you seen your character grow the most?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When does character growth in the life of a leader happen most often? It\u2019s during seasons of pain and discomfort. As I\u2019ve been retracing my own leadership journey I\u2019ve realized that seasons of character growth have always been accompanied by a certain \u201cwince\u201d factor. This is not to say you should seek out painful experiences.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[738,440,478,581],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4700","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-effectiveness-2","category-failing","category-featured","category-self-assessment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4700","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4700"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4700\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4709,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4700\/revisions\/4709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4700"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4700"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4700"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}