Grounded self-leadership, as explored by Dr Gretchen Gagel, is rooted in understanding purpose, values and self-awareness.
Have you ever experienced a situation where you were working with someone, and you began to question their motives? Or perhaps you were not certain that their values aligned with yours? Or even what their values were? Perhaps this person did not have the courage to make difficult decisions, or they were not effectively processing information to make informed decisions. You began to question their ability to lead.
Many people think that leadership starts with how you interact with others. I believe leadership starts with you.
One of the greatest outcomes of writing my book on leadership in the construction industry was that it caused me to reflect upon my time as a leader, my time spent advising and observing leaders in our industry, and my PhD studies in leadership. While our ability to build strong relationships and influence others is a critical component of effective leadership, I believe that strong leadership begins with understanding ourselves. I developed the Grounded Self‑Leadership model as a starting point for reflection and understanding of who you are as a leader.
The Grounded Self-Leadership Framework
Living Your Life Purpose and Values – Think of a leader you admire. I am going to guess that if I asked you what this person stands for, you could answer that question. This person may stand for quality, they may stand for innovation, they may stand for fairness. The point is that you know what they stand for. I believe that great leadership is grounded in knowing your values and having the courage to stand for these values. This, combined with your personal purpose, what you hope to achieve in life, is the foundation of great leadership. People want to follow people who have conviction and passion for what they do, and a strong moral compass that guides their actions and behaviours.
Feeling Courageous and Confident with Humility – The construction industry can be a challenging setting for courage and confidence. Our teams face incredible challenges such as solving the technical complexities of our projects while facing demanding schedules, all while keeping our people safe. Great leaders tap into their internal sources of courage and confidence to make tough decisions and reinforce not only their values but those of the organisation. However, this must be balanced with a strong dose of humility. No one wants to follow a leader who is always the smartest person in the room. Great leaders do not always have the answers, but they know what critical questions their people and teams should be asking and answering.
Thinking Critically, Learning and Reflecting – According to my coach, Vanessa Bennett (yes, even coaches have coaches), the rate of acceleration of learning about the brain continues to increase. Great leaders understand that leveraging critical thinking to sort through the enormous amount of information available to us to discern what is important is a key component of effective leadership. Great leaders leverage what Carol Dweck calls a “growth mindset” to continue to be curious about the world, and to learn and adapt. Beyond effectively using our brain to think and learn, carving out time for reflection and rest is also critical. Lack of rest and reflection lessens our innovation and creativity and reduces our ability to think strategically about ourselves and our teams.
Telling Your Leadership Story – Few of us in the construction industry have formally studied branding but this concept is a critical component of great leadership. It is not enough to know what you stand for, to have the courage to make decisions, and to fully utilise your brain. You must also be intentional in how you take your leadership brand out into the world. Do your actions support your beliefs? Do people view you as the leader you wish them to experience? It is not just about telling your story. It is also about creating feedback mechanisms to reinforce what actions and behaviours on your part are aligned to your leadership aspirations, and to uncover the blind spots we all possess.
I recently recorded a podcast with Harrison Monarth, executive coach and a New York Times bestselling author, about personal brand, and he shared this: “A brand is how you would like to be seen by people. A brand is much more intentional. It is controlled. It’s managed…It is how you would like to be seen by others and the qualities, the traits, the behaviours that you would like other people to perceive in order to optimise the outcomes of your interactions.”
When I work with leaders at all levels, I often ask one critical question: Do you aspire to be a great leader? I often use the example of my golf skills. I do not aspire to be a great golfer but instead an average golfer that enjoys being in nature and time with my friends. If I wanted to be a great golfer, I would invest in much‑needed lessons and spend time practicing at the driving range. People who aspire to be great leaders invest time in honing their leadership skills and understanding their strengths and challenges. I hope my Grounded Self-Leadership model is helpful in providing a structure for you to reflect upon yourself as a leader in our industry. Leadership begins with you.
Dr Gretchen Gagel, GAICD, is the former chair of Brinkman Construction (US) and a member of the Risk Committee for GHD Engineering, the National Academy of Construction (US), the Construction Industry Culture Taskforce (AUS), and the Associated General Contractor (AGC) of America National Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Gretchen is passionate about leading change in the construction industry and developing our future leaders. You can hear more from Gretchen on her Spotify podcast, “Greatness” and her book, “Building Women Leaders: A Blueprint for Women Thriving in Construction”, is available for pre-order on Amazon. Find out more at gretchengagel.com
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