Why Authentic Leadership?

Do you want to know something?

One of the most powerful things that has helped me grow my own business and achieve my goals is leadership.

But as women, LEADERSHIP is one of the biggest things we avoid talking about.

And did you notice I put the word AUTHENTIC in front of it?

Because often as women, we don’t own the fact we are leaders! The word leadership can be seen as masculine energy.

Driven, demanding and perhaps quite false.

So when I wrote the word leadership, I added the word AUTHENTIC to make it seem softer. More feminine.

Even though real leadership is surely always authentic.

So let’s explore the things you can do to start leaning into this role and seeing yourself as an authentic leader.

A BADASS WOMAN in business, who is changing lives.

But Before We Begin…

I want you to stop and think.

On a scale of 1 to 10…

(Ten is I’m owning this. I am a leader. One is I don’t feel like a leader at all.)

Where are you?

Because this is important. If we’re not seeing ourselves as a leader, other people won’t either.

And seeing yourself as a leader isn’t necessarily about the size of your following.

This is the biggest thing that I want to share with you and where we’ll begin…

Leadership Starts With Self

True leadership ALWAYS starts with you.

So ask yourself:

• Am I showing up as the woman I truly want to be?
• Am I living my values?
• Am I speaking my truth?
• Am I being clear on my boundaries?
• Am I walking my talk?
• Am I being the kind of person I want to be around?

It doesn’t matter if you’ve got 2 people in your space or 2000. It all begins with the question ARE YOU LEADING YOURSELF?

As you grow a business, it’s like a spotlight is shined on this. Because suddenly you’re outside of your comfort zone, doing new things.

You have to learn to stand strong in your beliefs and in your vision.

Yes, you can be flexible.

We want to be that tree that’s deeply rooted and grounded but can sway as the wind blows.

So My Messages To You?

• Every single one of us is a leader. WE’RE BORN LEADERS. We all say things that influence others in some way
• Leadership STARTS WITH YOU
• We often blow up this idea of leadership. It’s not about having a big team, business or following. Even if you have children, a family, a household…YOU’RE LEADING!

How Do We Embrace Being The Leader?

How do we be the lighthouse rather than the busy little lifeboat?

Being the lighthouse means standing tall in your space. And instead of being busy trying to rescue everyone, providing others with YOUR LIGHT.

That’s authentic leadership.

Let me share these 3 points with you (plus one ALL IMPORTANT tip). These points will help you start seeing yourself as a leader and show up more authentically.

Because when we talk about leadership, it doesn’t have to mean that masculine energy. It doesn’t mean being the bossy, loud, table-banging person.

In fact, none of that is authentic leadership. That’s leading from a place of control. And we know true leadership isn’t about control.

It’s about shining your light so brightly that YOU IMPACT OTHERS.

1. Get Clear On Your Values

When you’re stepping up as an authentic leader and purposefully growing your business, the first thing to get clear on is your values.

• What are your personal values?
• What are your business values?

Quite often when we’re starting out in business, we’re thinking about who our clients are and what we’re selling.

But then we’re overlooking the most important question: What are my values?

Because your values are the very foundation of the business you’re building.

• Your values impact how people see you
• Your values impact hugely on the decisions you make
• Your values have a standing on how you show up, what you talk about, the way you present yourself…

Have You Stopped To Look At Your Values?

Set time aside and keep revisiting them.

And then check in to see whether you’re LIVING YOUR VALUES daily.

(If one of your values is freedom but you find yourself people pleasing all the time, you’re not living that value.)

Often we make the mistake of choosing values WE WISH we had rather than things that are TRULY AT THE HEART of us.

I did this early on in my business too.

It’s easy to pick values that sound exciting and pop them on a pedestal. But the question is…are you living them on a daily basis? 

So Firstly…

What do you think your business values are?

And Secondly…

Do you believe you’re living them? What would a fly on the wall see?

Decide which values are true to you. The ones that embody how you live your life and business every single day.

Because growing a successful business isn’t just about doing. It’s about being.   

Who you are being every single day, as you show up, as you create content, as you connect with clients…

Your values live at the heart of who you are being.

And If You Aren’t Living Your Values?

You need to do one of two things.

Either realise the words you’ve chosen aren’t in alignment and get rid of them.

Or change the words slightly so they really connect for you. Get specific.

And then keep checking in. Ask yourself:

How fully am I living this? 

Because we’re all human. We’re on a growth journey.

This isn’t about beating yourself up if it’s going wrong. This is an OPPORTUNITY to embrace this value a little bit more in your life.

Get Clear On Your Top 3 – 5 Values

It might be life values. Business values. If you’re building a heart-led business, they’re probably intertwined.

Make sure you FEEL IT IN YOUR HEART when you say those words.

The truth is, the way you build a successful business is by BEING these values. LIVING these values.

It’s about how you’re showing up every single day.

And I don’t just mean when you press live on a video. I mean how are you showing up for yourself? Your energy? Your true connection?

It Was Only When I Began To Show Up More Authentically…

That my audience began to really grow. It wasn’t because of what I was doing. It was because of who I was being.

So never underestimate the power of this. This is huge.

It’s about magnetism. When you flick the switch on your values YOU ARE BECOMING MORE MAGNETIC to your soul clients.

And that’s how we make our business grow.

2. Know Your Vision  

What is your vision? And don’t be afraid to dream big.

If you were truly setting yourself free…

• What would you create for yourself?
• What impact would you want your life to have?
• What legacy would you leave behind?

Make it big – but make it aligned for YOU.

(I used to set goals about having my own helicopter, but now I just have to laugh. Because I never really wanted one! That was just something I thought I should want.)

So What Truly Lights You Up?

What’s the vision you want to create that has a ripple effect to those around you?

But it’s not just about helping others. What do you want for yourself? Because you get to give from a full cup.

Whatever your desires are, it’s OK to desire those things. (Even if they’re materialistic.)

So Firstly…

Don’t judge the things you want. Give yourself permission.

And Secondly,…

How big do you want that to be? If you weren’t limiting yourself?

Be Unapologetic About Your Vision…

But also be careful who you share it with.

Because if you work on building this beautiful, exciting vision that lights you up, and then you tell someone…

You might hear yeah right, that’s never going to happen.

People are good at shooting down your vision.

So wait until it has grown. Once it’s strong and once YOU FULLY BELIEVE in it, then you can share it with the world.

But while it still needs nurturing, only share it with people who will support you.

So always know your vision.

3. Know Your Boundaries

The third thing to help you step into your authentic leadership and be the leader others want to follow is know your boundaries.

And HONOUR them.

As women we aren’t always good at this. We’re natural givers.

We often give more than is truly aligned for us. Yes, it comes from a beautiful place – because we want to make a difference.

But when we give from an empty cup, we start to feel frustrated.

We feel taken advantage of. Like we’re looking after everyone else, but no one is looking after us.

But Here’s The Thing…

People think the energy of giving is a feminine energy, because you see women around you over-giving all the time. I used to think this too.

Then I realised that giving is a masculine energy.

As women, we have both masculine and feminine energy inside us.

But when we over-give as women, we’re in an unhealthy version of that masculine energy.

It’s in those times we need to flip into our feminine energy, because FEMININE ENERGY is receiving.

Notice Where Your True Boundaries Lie

Between how much feels aligned to give and how much feels aligned to receive.

When you look at your life, do you have a nice balance between what you give and receive?

Or do you give too much? Because if so, you’re blocking your feminine energy.

How Do You Shift That?

By getting clear on what your boundaries are.

If you were waving a MAGIC WAND, what boundaries would you choose for you and your life?

And we know we’re not honouring our boundaries when we start to feel frustrated. When we say yes and then wish we hadn’t.

So we have to start noticing where our boundaries are and what’s a good balance for us. What are the rules we want to set to support us?

And yes, I used to hate the idea of rules. Because I like to feel free!

But rules can set us free. They give us the TIME, ENERGY AND SPACE to do the things we truly want to do.

Where Are Your Boundaries?

In your business and outside of your business?

Where are you saying yes because you feel like you should, rather than because it feels right? And how can you start shifting that?

It might be as simple as stepping back from a conversation and saying you’ll check your diary first, rather than just saying yes.

Taking the pressure off yourself in that moment, so you have chance to decide what’s in alignment.

Soon you’ll start creating more space in your life. That masculine energy of giving and giving will lessen, so you can start receiving.

Receiving for all that work you’ve been doing.

So Here’s Your Bonus Point. The One That Most People Miss… 

5. Always Look Within Yourself First

We are great creatures of judgement.

We’re good at judging other people. And we do need this within us because it keeps us alive.

However, we can over judge far too easily.

And so if you know you fall into judgement quite often, like…

It’s OK for her because… 

Look inside of you first. Notice where that same thing lives inside of you.

For example, if you feel yourself judging someone for being greedy, notice whether that’s something hidden in your own subconscious.

As an authentic leader, we look within ourselves.

Then instead of trying to fix the outside world, we fix it within ourselves.

Because it’s often a WOUND THAT NEEDS HEALING. Or an experience that impacted us and has changed the way we behave.

Things only trigger you when they’re living inside of you.

If You’re Being An Authentic Leader…

And living your values, being the lighthouse, knowing your boundaries, being clear on your vision and looking within yourself first…

Then boom!

You are going to be a POWERHOUSE.

But not from that masculine energy of pushing or control. From the feminine energy of SIMPLY BEING.

Because when you step into your authentic leadership, you don’t need to control anyone.

You don’t need to round up the troops or tell people what to do. People choose to follow you because they’re MAGNETISED BY YOUR ENERGY.

Being An Authentic Leader Is THE KEY To Growing A Successful Business

Because when we show up in the exhausting energy of…

I have to do all the things, I have to show up here, find these clients 

It’s not fun! And people will soon disappear.

So when you start seeing yourself as a leader and embracing the role of leadership within you, it’s like you SWITCH ON THAT MAGNET and your business will grow.

Your audience will bloom. People will connect with you. You’ll start to have more clients…

And it will be in this beautiful energy of who you’re BEING not just what you’re doing.

So Are You With Me?

Are you ready to start becoming that authentic leader this week and explore these questions for yourself?

Because we often put this kind of thing at the bottom of the list.

But it should be at the top, because THIS IS THE REAL WORK.

This is the work that gets the results and makes our business GROW.

So go now and watch me talk about this live in Women On The Rise ADD LINK TO GROUP if you missed it. Feel my love and energy. See for yourself how authentic leadership can look when you allow yourself to just BE.

Much Love

Claire

SOUL BUSINESS ACTIVATION QUEEN