Post on 19-Feb-2017
Becoming an Agile Leader Regardless of Your Role
Johanna Rothmanwww.jrothman.com@johannarothmanjr@jrothman.com+1-781-641-4046
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Common Themes
• See a problem
• Brainstorm solutions
• Involve others
• Experiment
• Create a new reality
4
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
What is Leadership?
• Change something about the status quo
• Collaborate with others
• Create effective change when the situation changes
• Adaptability to achieve the necessary solution(s)
5
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
What Leadership is Not
• Heroic
• Something you do alone
• All action
6
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Adaptable leaders create effective change when the
situation changes.
7
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Leadership Requires Courage
• Courage to:
• Take a step for yourself
• Ally with others
• Suggest change with and for others
8
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Courage is not Fearlessness
• “What’s the worst thing that can happen?”
• Manage risks in many ways:
• Socializing ideas
• Trying them yourself
• Developing several options
9
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Focus on the Possible• When you focus, you
change how your brain works
• When you consider the possible, your expectations shape reality
• Source: http://www.strategy-business.com/article/06207?pg=all
11
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Expectations Shape Our Reality
• Expectations shape us
• Everyone on your team has potential—of some sort
• It’s all about mindset
12
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Changing Mindset is Challenging
• We often confuse our roles or titles with our identities
14
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Have the Courage to Become…
• A T-shaped person
• Someone who questions the way things are
• Collaborative
• Change artist
16
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Inspect and Adapt to Change
• Ability to solve problems
• Focus on what could be
• Adaptability
• Perseverance and grit
• Leadership
17
Inspect
Adapt
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
How Do You Solve Problems?
18
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OODA_loop
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
People don’t resist change;They resist being changed.
— Peter Senge
20
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Ways You Persevere
• Explain the value of the change
• Decide how the change manifests your values
• Celebrate incremental progress
21
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Agile is Change
• Cultural change
• Project change
• Process change
• Teams might change
• Each person can become a leader in a self-organizing team
22
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Become a Change Artist
• Invite people to change
• Experiment
• Listen to everyone
• Don’t label people
• Start with the smallest possible change
23
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Artistry is Difficult
• Requires a particular mindset:
• Let’s experiment
• Let’s learn early (instead of fail fast)
• Let’s learn as we go
• Think Growth Mindset
24
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Lead from Anywhere
• Your title is irrelevant
• Your actions count
• Adapt: change to fit your reality
25
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Become an agile leader:
What can you learn here today to consider for your
leadership tomorrow?
26
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
References and Resources
• My questions on createadaptablelife.com
• Pragmatic Manager and other articles on jrothman.com
• Explore more at the InfluentialAgileLeader.com
27
© 2016 Johanna Rothman@johannarothman
Let’s Stay in Touch
• Pragmatic Manager:
• www.jrothman.com/pragmaticmanager
• Please link with me on LinkedIn
28