Leadership Transitions and the Excitement of Open Space

With Steve Woodruff at This Year's SOBCon Pre-Party

One of the things I’ve been acutely attuned to recently is my inner “knowing,” particularly in regard to important changes in my life. Answers to life-altering questions appear that were there all along, but which I simply needed to be open to receiving.

I experienced the joy of this “knowing” a few weeks ago when I had dinner with a group of dear friends whom I had met through the SOBCon Conference. One of these friends was Steve Woodruff, the very first person I ever met at SOBCon and my Leadership Chat Co-Founder and Partner these past 20 months.

Steve and I sat next to each other, providing an opportunity for us to have a side conversation while the others were talking. We commented on how significantly our lives and careers had evolved since meeting each other only two years before, and the path down which our collaboration on Leadership Chat had taken us.

And then Steve said something along the lines of, “We both know that at some point between 8 minutes from now and 80 years from now Leadership Chat will come to an end.” Hearing those words made me genuinely sad because of all the wonderful moments Leadership Chat has brought us, but then I smiled knowingly at him and he said, “It’s time, isn’t it?”

And with that, we both knew what we already knew. It didn’t even take us 8 minutes.

Thus, this month is the last month Steve and I will host Leadership Chat. It was bittersweet to tell our dinner mates, but we all toasted to its success.

And then we turned our attention to something much more exciting and, quite frankly, inspiring – the anticipation found in open spaces. Because letting go of Leadership Chat means room for new opportunities to come into our lives. Steve and I have each found roles we’re truly passionate about in these last few years and we each wanted more room in our lives for these roles to expand and breathe.

It was critical for us to recognize this, acknowledge it, and then honor it. Being able to do so in person made it even more impactful.

The same is true for every leader who becomes overwhelmed with tasks and initiatives. Making space by purposefully letting go of initiatives or even businesses empowers:

1. Clarity. Of focus and direction.
2. An opportunity to renew and reenergize.
3. Space needed to be truly ready for new, business-enhancing opportunities to emerge.

What will you choose to purposefully let go of?

Please join Steve and me tomorrow night, May 15^th, when we’ll talk about Leadership Transitions during Leadership Chat at 8:00 pm Eastern Time. It promises to be a lively and thoughtful global conversation! Then mark your calendars and join us for the very last editions of Leadership Chat on May 22^nd and May 29^th. This month just won’t be the same without you! Please help us send Leadership Chat off with a bang!

~

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