Improving Range and Impact as Leaders by “Shifting our Weight”
Are you familiar with the art term “contrapposto” from drawing or art history classes?
Even if you don’t recall that Italian word meaning “counterpoise,” I’m sure you’ve seen examples of the pose in sculpture (such as Michelangelo’s David), painting and photography. In contrapposto, the figure stands predominantly on one “engaged” leg, which allows the weight and angle of the body to shift and presents a relaxed but powerful composition.
What does this have to do with leadership?
As we grow as leaders we often rely on certain behaviors or attitudes that we have learned serve us well. These form our leadership pose and go-to way of presenting ourselves to others. It’s comfortable, effective, and easy, but unlike Michelangelo’s David we can’t rely solely on that leg forever. We benefit from shifting our weight back and forth to develop range and balance.
In leadership coaching I work with clients to shift their weight across one or more dimensions to improve their range and impact as leaders.
Here are some examples:
Evaluative <–> Developmental
Fixed Mindset <–> Growth Mindset
Achievement <–> Aspiration
Zero Sum <–> Win/Win
Telling <–> Asking
Scarcity <–> Plenty
Thinking <–> Feeling
Outcomes <–> Process
Issue Spotting <–> Ideation
Deciding <–> Curiosity
Whether any of these stances is better or worse than its pair isn’t my point. Rather, I note that many leaders in finance, tech, and legal areas that I coach tend to favor the left-hand element of each pair, sometimes exclusively. This tendency contributes to overdeveloped muscles on one side at the expense of the others. When a situation arises where the other side is needed, we need to recognize that, shift our weight and engage the other side.
In coaching, we work to identify how to recognize when shifting weight to the other side might help us lead more effectively and then learn to engage that other side. We learn to shift back and forth based on what’s best in any given situation instead of always relying on the same (potentially overdeveloped) muscles. When we make those shifts, it’s incredible how much possibility emerges: we see situations differently; others respond to us in new ways; and we become much more effective leaders.
If you would like to learn more about the benefit of these weight shifts in your life and work, connect with me here or at john@aconnectedcoach.com
Photo attribution: Adapted from Michelangelo, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://lnkd.in/emy57CBg>, via Wikimedia Commons