Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright 2009
Overprepare & Then,
Go With The Flow
Look up....waay up....
What does it take to go fly a kite?
Let me take that one step further: what does it take to lead?
The answers are similar...
"Over-prepare and go with the flow"
Kites, as you may know, were a Chinese invention more than 2500 years ago. Silk sails, resilient bamboo frames and strong silk flying line were the ideal materials to constuct art works, often displaying mythological characters. Ingenious tails kept the kites flying forward.
Not just entertainment, warrior kites were designed as a sky-field battleground, with opponents cutting each others lines to show dominance.
Flying a kite...much like leadership. Think about it...
Let me guide you along as you use the metaphor of "flying a kite" to review your leadership style.
How resilient are you?
How sturdy and how flexible your frame?
What is your visible shape and form?
What colours do you fly?
How do you manage tension?
What's your Plan B when the wind disappears, storms hover and environmental conditions are not ideal?
Who is the enemy who cuts your line?
When did you last check the condition of your kite, your tieline?
Who is helping you to untangle the strings, keep you grounded as you prepare to fly?
How do you celebrate a perfect flight?
How much joy results from your leadership?
Is it work and play in harmony?
And finally, what is your purpose?
Metaphors are useful in linking new information to past knowledge. We can speak in metaphors, or we can "play" or "model" images and pictures in action. Go fly a kite - it's not all child's play.
When you feel the perfect balance of tension, the breeze lifting you and the pleasure of going with the flow, you might just understand leadership in a new way.
Overprepare, and then go with the flow.
Perhaps a good team building exercise?
________________________
Maggie Chicoine specializes in Strategies to Think Ahead.
Her MagOhZine appears every Tuesday (leverage day!) at http://www.theideasculptor.com/. Reach her at 1 800 587 1767 or email maggiechicoine@gmail.com
Keynotes. Facilitation. Coaching.
"with a twist of ingenuity"
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