Why? How? What?

Why?  Because I want all women, children, and families to feel safe, happy, healthy, like they belong, and to know that they have something to offer to make the word a better place!  I especially want all children to grow up knowing they are special and that they have a unique and special role to play in making this world a better place!!  It’s true!  It’s true of each one of us.

How?  By building self-confidence and self-belief,  by helping people connect to their unique strengths, by working with people to see what makes life worth living for them, and by showing people how they can make decisions that are consistent with who they are and what is important to them.  By helping people experience a life well-lived!!

What? A fun and easy leadership development process!  Everyone is a leader in his/her own life no matter what role they play at work or at home!

What’s your What? How? and Why?  Inspired by….

Leading in Challenging Times: Innovations and Inspiration

For all of my maternal and child health/public health colleagues, please consider the following opportunity.

SAVE THE DATE!
July 22-24, 2012
Hyatt Lodge, Oak Brook, IL

Leading in Challenging Times: Innovations & Inspiration

This year’s retreat is exciting! Our focus is on Leading in Challenging Times; however, we will not talk about this concept in ways that you may expect. We will begin with sharing personal stories of our journey and work with women, men, children, and families. Dr. Michael Frasier, CEO of the Association for Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) will lead us in this process. We will continue to connect with one another through a building common ground exercise followed by a thought-provoking discussion about what motivates us!
During the rest of the Retreat, we will explore and practice various leadership concepts including challenging the assumption that these are indeed challenging times. Change is ubiquitous. Everything is always changing and today these changes are happening at an increasingly rapid pace across all aspects of our lives: the economy, the environment, technology, public health, medicine, music, leadership, etc. As we continue to move forward in ever-changing times, what do we know and do in this day and age to support ourselves, each other, the environment, the economy, and the work to which we have devoted our lives?
We will explore a process that will turn our thoughts about leadership upside down. This will be followed with work about managing change as change is a primary leadership challenge we all face. Finally, we will conclude the program with work on the core act of leadership which involves changing the typical conversations in which we engage so that we can ultimately experience the positive outcomes for women, men, children, and families that we all desire!
The leadership training will be facilitated by Dr. Stephen Bogdewic, PhD, Executive Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs & Professional Development at the Indiana University School of Medicine (. Many of us have had the honor of working with, learning from, and being inspired by Dr. Bogdewic. He is an innovative, thought leader. He is connected with the human spirit and our core desires to make an impact. He has taken what he teaches and implemented it in practice to change the face of the Indiana University School of Medicine.

Please join us for this great program!

For more information visit the UIC MCH website.

35 Powerful Public Health Questions!

Hi everyone!  Attached is a set of 35 powerful public health questions.  These questions are particularly helpful in exploring your own leadership capacity, your passion for public health, what holds you back, and how to move forward with an action step or series of steps!  I find that when I am stuck, if I just choose to explore one questions, I’ll find a piece of insight that will help me start moving again!  Hope you enjoy!  Kris

Co-Active Leadership Presence Program

Hi All and Happy 2012!  In collaboration with two colleagues who are trainers with the Coaches Training Institute, we will be offering a great 3-day program called Co-Active Leadership Presence in Chicago the weekend of April 27-29, 2012.  For those of you who are familiar, this is the I AM typing that is an integral part of CTI’s leadership development program.  It is now, also, an excellent stand-alone program!  This work helped me tremendously to understand more about my innate leadership strengths and capacity.  The daily practice of what I learned helps me to access my own internal resources to lead in my life both personally and professionally on a daily basis!  The learning never stops and the more I explore and practice my particular leadership presence, the more (positive) impact I find I am having in my work and personal life!

Below are more details.  The flyer is attached!  Call or email me with questions or to register (kris@krisrisley.com or 219.730.3164)!  Attendance is limited to 24 participants. The cost of the program is $575 through 3/15/12.  Between 3/16/12 – 3/23/12 the cost of the program is $725.  You can register with a check or online at the program website.

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Co-Active Leadership Presence is an interactive workshop that takes you through an innovative and fun process to identify, build on, celebrate, model, and practice your unique and innate leadership qualities.  This powerful system lets you experience your unique brand of leadership and gives you many opportunities to understand the impact you have on others.  It also teaches you how to maximize your unique effectiveness in any situation.  Of course, like any new learning, it will be your own life-long process to understand and refine how you apply what you learn in this workshop!  To help with this process, there will be a tele-conference one month after the program for you to ask questions.  Additionally, by participating in the program, you will be connected with others who have similar leadership styles so that you can learn and grow and practice together over time if this feels right for you!

This is such an empowering workshop because it works with what is already present in you!  And, isn’t it better (and at the very least more fun) to work with what already works!!

This system was developed by Henry Kimsey-House, the Co-Founder of the internationally acclaimed Coaches Training Institute.  The program will be facilitated by Kate Roseke and Athena Katsaros who are amazing trainers for the Coaches Training Institute.

What Feeds Your Spirit?

I was listening to a TED.com talk by Sir Ken Robinson who was sharing his thoughts about a ‘learning revolution.’  The comment that struck me most was that ‘human talent is tremendously diverse.’  I know this.  We all know this.   I am reminded that this is why it is so important to focus on each person’s unique and natural talents.  So many people I know are unaware of their natural talents!  And, even when people are aware of their talents, no two people will express them in the exact same way.  This speaks to authenticity, the strong foundation of any good leader.  Authenticity creates the conditions under which people will express their passion and our health and well-being will flourish!

In Honor of Steve Jobs

In honor of the passing of Steve Jobs, I’m offering up two of his quotes and am so curious to see what you all think if we apply these quotes in a public health context:

“We’ve gone through the operating system and looked at everything and asked how can we simplify this and make it more powerful at the same time.”

How can we simplify what we do in public health and make it even more powerful at the same time?

“You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.”

We didn’t know we needed the ipod or itunes, etc., so what is it that the public needs (in the context of public health) that they don’t know they need but when given to them it will impact their lives in ways that will forever change their lives for the positive?

Crossroads?

Last month, July 2011, the UIC Maternal and Child Health Program hosted the 4th annual Leadership, Legacy, and Community Retreat for individuals who have devoted their life’s work to improving the health and well-being of women, men, children, and families.  The program was an exciting mix of presentations and conversations about improving health and well-being over the course of an individual’s life; how to talk about what we do and advocate on behalf of women, men, children, and families; how to work within a Community of Practice; and how to appreciate and work with a wide range of diversity! There were many compelling moments and one in particular brought us all to a point of common ground.  The exercise was designed to help us be better listeners.  The question, however, is where the juice was and was a place we could all relate to in one way or another.  Reflecting back…maybe it had so much juice because people were actually listening!  Nevertheless, the question was ‘What is the crossroads you face at this stage of your life (special thank you to our two facilitators:  Cathy Jacob from FireInside Leadership and Juhree Zimmerman from Strategy for Synergy)?’  Wow…in seconds, the room was abuzz with energy!  We could have continued those discussions way beyond the allotted 3 minutes/person!  No matter what our age or stage of life, we all could relate to and answer this question!  For me, it brought me a sense of tremendous satisfaction that for nine minutes 100 of us were all talking about and relating to the same issue! And the funny thing about this experience was that we had two coaches working with our participants and they asked me what we were doing because all the sudden everyone was coming to talk with them about their crossroads!  We’re all different and so similar!

What is the crossroads you face at this stage of your life?  I invite you to think about you answer and journal your thoughts.  If you are really brave, invite someone to ask you this question! Invite them to listen to your answer and ask powerful questions that come from their curiosity, that are personal, and that make you go ‘hmmmmm…….good question.’

To Jump or…..Next Step

Each year on my birthday, I meet with a spiritual counselor to discuss the past year and explore the next year.  I find that this helps me to move any stuck places I am feeling in my life!  In this year’s discussion, we talked about how it feels like I am standing on the edge of a cliff about to jump.  He (the counselor) shared that if I jump it will be completely safe because I will have a parachute to keep me safe.  I shared that I am not afraid of the free-falling after I jump; however, I don’t know how to jump.  He told me that ‘my jump’ is about taking risks.  I reminded him of how much of a risk-taker I already am.  I am always trying something new, learning something new.  He suggested the risks I take are emotional risks.  This felt absolutely true and totally scary.  However, I really want what is on the other side of the jump (for me it is presence and being plugged into something much bigger than myself).  So, I will practice taking emotional risks by sharing things about myself including how I feel about a variety of things.  It all feels quite vulnerable for me but I know this is the next step for me!  What risks do you need/want to take in your life right now?

By the way….my song for this year is ‘The Edge of Glory’ by Lady Gaga.  I picked this song before I had my spiritual consultation. The Universe works in such mysterious ways.

Two Simple and Practical Leadership Lessons

Lesson 1

1 compliment and 1 criticism = negative response

2 compliments and 1 criticism = neutral response

3 compliments and 1 criticism is the winner = positive response

If you will be sharing any sort of critical feedback, also provide three compliments so that the criticism can be integrated in a positive way.

Lesson 2

The most important way to build trust (with colleagues, children, etc.) is to be consistent in your thinking and actions! Know yourself and don’t be afraid to be yourself.  Always act in ways that are consistent with who you know yourself to be.  A recent example of this is that a nutrition colleague and friend of mine attended a work meeting to encourage a busy colleague to offer leadership training for nutritionists.  She showed up to the meeting with an apple and a jar of peanut butter.  Can you imagine if she showed up with french fries and a coke?  There is something about consistency that absolutely creates trust.  With trust, anything is possible – including an amazing nutrition leadership program!

Soul Meets Body

Each year on my birthday, I select a song that I believe will reflect the year ahead.  This year’s song is ‘Soul Meets Body’ by Death Cab for Cutie.  That was last July and I was very pleased with the choice; I knew for certain that the year would be about soul meeting body.  During a meditation this morning the bigger meaning behind this song became much clearer.  The words below may seem a bit abstract; however, I invite you to find meaning for you by letting the words wash over your body rather than trying to interpret with your mind.  Several years ago a dear friend of mine gave me similar advice about reading poetry.  He said it’s not necessary to try to understand the words in a poem.  Instead, feel the words and you will know at a deeper level what the poem means.  Once I started doing this, everything about reading poetry changed for me and I started trusting my feelings and intuition – my body was able to create meaning that my mind couldn’t understand.

In each and every one of us, there lives a soul and body.  Some may refer to soul as spirit, essence, or simply that deep sense of knowing who we are way beyond the superficial.  The body is the very real, tangible, and physical part of us that we share with our friends, family, co-workers, and even strangers on a daily basis.  The soul/spirit/essence of who we are wants to reach out to our physical self.  For most of us, soul and body haven’t officially met yet; they want to meet.  When we invite the soul/spirit/essence of who we are to reach out to the body/physical as if we are reaching out to pick up a toddler from a high chair, the cells of the body expand.  When this happens, the soul/spirit can fill up each and every cell of our body and we have the opportunity to experience our spirit/essence/soul in a very physical/real/tangible way.  This is the ultimate in being alive – being able to experience the physical expression of our soul/essence. The senses are heightened.  There is increased awareness and presence.  There is contentment and satisfaction.  Satisfaction from the inside out.  Imagine creating and living life from a place of contentment, presence, and satisfaction from the inside out.  Anything is truly possible from this place!  Try it!  What is it like for you when you invite your spirit to meet your body?