Exploratory leaders never stop learning. Whether they learn from peers, mentors, or even their own mistakes, leadership requires a lifelong commitment to learning. In order to facilitate the ongoing growth of the people around us, we’ve compiled the following leadership lessons from Exploratory Leaders.
The first of our leadership lessons comes from Ryan Holiday, an author, marketer, and entrepreneur.
Leaders understand that they cannot control everything. In fact, they cannot control most things. What happens in any given situation is out of our control. What we can control, though, is our response.
Exploratory Leadership teaches us that our mindset is one of our most valuable assets. In order to be effective leaders, we must be able to consider the known world and use logic when necessary, but also be able to think imaginatively and embrace curiosity when the world is unknown.
Leadership lessons can come from anywhere, and this one comes from Pilar Gerasimo, a health journalist, podcaster, and illustrator.
Before we can practice Exploratory Leadership and navigate the unknown, we must build awareness of what is known and what is unknown. What is known helps us understand what has happened before, while what is unknown helps us navigate possibility.
True Exploratory Leaders have an acute awareness of whether they are navigating the known or unknown, and they do that through mind and body awareness. Our bodies understand what is going on around us, and when we allow our minds to tune in to that, we can strengthen our skills and awareness.
The next topic in our leadership lessons is from Studio/E ourselves. This is a piece of #StudioWisdom we shared in our book, “Explore or Expire.”
As we have undergone our own leadership journeys, we’ve learned leadership lessons we wanted to share with others, including that wisdom is more than intelligence.
In our experience, the people we most admire are those who have taken the time to reflect on their experiences. They ask themselves about the meaning and impact of their work, what they learn, how they succeed, how they could improve, and take experiences as opportunities. Over time, continued reflection compounds into wisdom.
The last piece of wisdom in our collection of leadership lessons is from David McNally, a thought leader, author, and consultant.
We believe that the best future is the one we create for ourselves, and this advice supports that. Though Ryan tells us that we can’t control what happens, David reminds us that we are our own authors and leaders. We get to write the stories we want for ourselves, or embark on the adventures we choose for ourselves.
The sooner we realize we are the leaders of our own lives, the sooner we can start to make the changes we want to see and create our best futures.
Exploratory Leaders approach challenges with the appropriate mindset, they are aware of the known and unknown, they take time to reflect, and they understand they are leaders. These leadership lessons demonstrate key components of the Studio/E philosophy.
If you’re interested in learning more, consider applying to our Expedition Program to learn the principles of Exploratory Leadership and how to use them in your own life.