Aloha...

Aloha. Once again, I have had the blessing to be able to visit Hawaii with my family. During the last couple of trips, we have made some amazing friends and they have been more than accommodating, to say the least. We’ve built such friendship that we refer to each other as Ohana, family. We can feel that warmth as soon as we arrive, greeted by their ever-welcoming “Aloha”. It means more than ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’. Kama'ainas, or locals, tell me that ‘Aloha’ is a way of life. It is all we need to rightfully interact with the natural world. It is the attitude of the “Aloha Spirit” or the “Way of Aloha”. This sounds like an incredible philosophy and every visit I try to embrace this as my own. Listening more, respecting diversity, multiple opinions, perspectives, and backgrounds. These should be the qualities of a leader, the qualities of an effective communicator. Look at your team, and think of how diverse, how unique, how different they are, and how powerful using these differences can be to achieving your goals. Think of how many opportunities are within your team and how you can bring more qualities and diversity to life. Let us be inclusive, embrace others and their experiences in life. Effective leaders find their own formula to live with balance, create community and reach out to others. As we start a new week I invite you to ask yourself, How am I expressing love, compassion, acceptance and care for others? Are my team meetings catered to support this philosophy? Do I care about the different personalities and styles within my Team? Successful leaders achieve more by building lasting relationships. There are thousands out there who are just waiting for a holding hand like yours. Are you incorporating the ‘Aloha Spirit’ when coaching your team? Do you want to be a stronger leader? Want to lead more people? It is proven that first we must be willing to walk alongside, before pretending to walk in front, to lead others. Let’s continue our journey saying “Aloha”, with a genuine smile, a caring hand and intense joy.