The importance of connecting with other leaders
“It’s lonely at the top.”
Or so the saying goes.
Indeed, the world of healthcare leadership can be lonely. We hear from many of our coaching and consulting clients that they feel like they have very few people to talk to about the struggles they face at work.
While we’ve written before about the importance of showing vulnerability when engaging with your team, it may not be appropriate to discuss the full scope of your challenges with the people you supervise. Additionally, in a healthcare environment there are often few opportunities (and limited time) for leaders to connect within their institution.
TallTrees Leadership® has developed a number of free and paid programs to help facilitate these connections, as we see it as a critical part of helping our clients and community.
Here’s why:
We need to know that we’re not alone
When you move into a leadership role, it can feel like you lose the sense of community you once had as a frontline worker. It may no longer feel appropriate to take coffee breaks with the rest of your team or to engage in activities outside of work.
If you’re in a middle or frontline management role, you may also be facing pressure from above as the leaders you report to impress their expectations upon you.
As we have heard from our clients, this can be an extremely isolating experience. While engaging with a leadership coach or other helping professional is a great way to break through this feeling of loneliness, nothing compares to hearing from a person in the exact same role that they have similar experiences.
Knowing you are not alone helps you to take the pressure off of yourself and understand that you are not the problem—the systems you and other healthcare leaders work within are problematic.
Share knowledge, mobilize new ideas
All too often, we waste time as leaders trying to reinvent the wheel when somewhere, someone else has already found the solution to the very problem we’re facing.
Connecting with other healthcare leaders facilitates the sharing of knowledge, ideas and solutions. It also allows for collaborative brainstorming and problem solving in a safe and understanding space.
Grow your network, grow your career
Finally, as with any career, the more people you know in your field, the easier it will be to grow as a professional. Making an effort to meet leaders in your own institution and in other healthcare workplaces can go a long way towards growing in your current role or seeking new opportunities in the future.
How to connect with other healthcare leaders in Canada
If you’re looking to meet healthcare leaders from across the country, take a look at a couple of programs we’ve created with that purpose in mind:
The Leadership Lounge
Join your fellow healthcare leaders for casual conversations about leadership, hosted by accomplished former senior and executive healthcare leaders Carol Gray and Bruce H. Swan.
These biweekly drop-in sessions are an easy way for you to meet other folks in leadership positions, have candid conversations about your challenges and successes and benefit from the wisdom of two certified executive coaches—all completely free of charge.
Leadership Between the Lines
TallTrees Leadership coaches Leah Wuitschik and Rosa Edinga invite you to join Leadership Between the Lines, a group coaching session for mid-level healthcare leaders who want to make an impact on others through effective leadership practice.
Leadership Between the Lines will help you bridge the gap between thinking and doing so you can turn proven leadership theory into practical skills and actions.
We run this program periodically throughout the year for small cohorts of 12 or less.