The role of a creative leader is not to have all the ideas;
it’s to create a culture where everyone can have ideas and feel they’re valued.
– Sir Ken Robinson
My Credo
What is a credo?
The definition that I relate to the most is from the Cambridge Dictionary. A credo is a set of beliefs that influences the way you live”. I like it because my work is an extension of how I live my life. Let me explain that a bit further.
The definition that I relate to the most is from the Cambridge Dictionary. A credo is a set of beliefs that influences the way you live”. I like it because my work is an extension of how I live my life. Let me explain that a bit further.
Share skills and talents
I would like to share a story with you. My working journey began almost 40 years ago. That does not seem strange to me, there is lots of longevity in my family, my Mom passed away in 2021 at 98 years of age, my Dad is still alive at age 96. My grandmother was a lifelong teacher, politician, and writer. I believe that I inherited my love of teaching from her, I am happiest when I am teaching or facilitating. At this stage of my life, I am committed to using my skills and talents to make a difference in this world, especially with non-profit organizations. Through my work, I help teams develop their abilities by understanding their strengths and their challenges in order to support one another.
I would like to share a story with you. My working journey began almost 40 years ago. That does not seem strange to me, there is lots of longevity in my family, my Mom passed away in 2021 at 98 years of age, my Dad is still alive at age 96. My grandmother was a lifelong teacher, politician, and writer. I believe that I inherited my love of teaching from her, I am happiest when I am teaching or facilitating. At this stage of my life, I am committed to using my skills and talents to make a difference in this world, especially with non-profit organizations. Through my work, I help teams develop their abilities by understanding their strengths and their challenges in order to support one another.
Exemplify transformational leadership
From 2002-2011, while delivering emergency management (EM) training, I would often work very closely with individuals that I could see were struggling understanding their roles in the simulations. My role was to coach and mentor them, and allow them to work through their mistakes to master concepts, and not embarrass themselves. By the end of the two-hour EM exercise, they would not want the simulation to be called to an end and would say that it felt like 30 minutes had passed, not 120 minutes! That is what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes as “flow” – a perfect balance of skill and challenge. I feel proud when I see knowledge building occurring with learners. I design training for adult learners that they can see themselves in and get something out of. I want the sessions to flow and fly by.
From 2002-2011, while delivering emergency management (EM) training, I would often work very closely with individuals that I could see were struggling understanding their roles in the simulations. My role was to coach and mentor them, and allow them to work through their mistakes to master concepts, and not embarrass themselves. By the end of the two-hour EM exercise, they would not want the simulation to be called to an end and would say that it felt like 30 minutes had passed, not 120 minutes! That is what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes as “flow” – a perfect balance of skill and challenge. I feel proud when I see knowledge building occurring with learners. I design training for adult learners that they can see themselves in and get something out of. I want the sessions to flow and fly by.
Challenge myself
I am willing to take on new challenges, that is why I challenged myself to pursue my Master of Education at this age. I believe that to keep myself young and vibrant I need to remain curious with learning new things. Luckily I have the confidence to try new things, and be willing to learn, adapt, pivot when necessary. As a facilitator, I work hard to encourage people to think for themselves. As a coach and mentor, I promote figuring things out, and knowing when and where to seek help when they are stuck. I believe that it is my role to help people to grow and learn.
I am willing to take on new challenges, that is why I challenged myself to pursue my Master of Education at this age. I believe that to keep myself young and vibrant I need to remain curious with learning new things. Luckily I have the confidence to try new things, and be willing to learn, adapt, pivot when necessary. As a facilitator, I work hard to encourage people to think for themselves. As a coach and mentor, I promote figuring things out, and knowing when and where to seek help when they are stuck. I believe that it is my role to help people to grow and learn.
Respect diversity
In my practice, I try to emulate respect for each other’s divergent thinking, and point out that through divergent thinking we generate ideas, and create solutions to problems. A current project that I am facilitating is to implement a reflective consultation practice program in the community. WIth that we will be using critical thinking, active listening, and open understanding skills to appreciate other viewpoints.
In my practice, I try to emulate respect for each other’s divergent thinking, and point out that through divergent thinking we generate ideas, and create solutions to problems. A current project that I am facilitating is to implement a reflective consultation practice program in the community. WIth that we will be using critical thinking, active listening, and open understanding skills to appreciate other viewpoints.
Be emotionally intelligent
Lastly, I continually work on my own emotional intelligence and empathy for others. This means, knowing my limits and abilities, managing my stress level, taking responsibility for my actions, and putting myself in other people's shoes. In one of my roles, through my contract work, I work with people who have been substance users in the past, we all have a story to tell in life, for those who take the time to listen.
Lastly, I continually work on my own emotional intelligence and empathy for others. This means, knowing my limits and abilities, managing my stress level, taking responsibility for my actions, and putting myself in other people's shoes. In one of my roles, through my contract work, I work with people who have been substance users in the past, we all have a story to tell in life, for those who take the time to listen.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Images used are either my own, or used with permission: Images are licensed CC0 Public Domain / FAQ Free for commercial use / No attribution required, the other images used were retrieved from, and/or are used with permission from https://www.canva.com/
Images used are either my own, or used with permission: Images are licensed CC0 Public Domain / FAQ Free for commercial use / No attribution required, the other images used were retrieved from, and/or are used with permission from https://www.canva.com/