The Self-Evolved Leader with Dave McKeown

Love in Action

Dave McKeown is a renowned author, speaker, and executive coach. He is also a podcast host, the Program Leader of Box of Crayons, and the founder of Outfield Leadership. His book, The Self-Evolved Leader, is a practical roadmap to achieving leadership excellence, doing more with less, and developing the perfect team. He joins Marcel Schwantes to discuss the contents of the book and how they apply to the workplace.A self-evolved leader views leadership as a calling and a craft that needs to be mastered. “They push for their own growth and development… they have a number of characteristics and behaviors that end up pushing them towards excellence...” says Dave. [4:34]Dave names some ideas in our current leadership models that hinder effectiveness: the fallacy of certainty, an over-reliance on the concept of the “visionary leader,” and the notion that we must lead through acts of heroism. [6:27] Marcel asks Dave about the mindset of a self-evolved leader. He responds that leaders cannot rely on their past experiences to push them into success. Instead, they must focus on helping their team members achieve shared goals. In doing so, they develop into the best versions of themselves. [10:51]Teams that co-develop their vision together are more successful. Even if they disagree in certain areas, they are still more likely to achieve their vision because they have the same end-goals. [14:05]The six micro-disciplines of leadership are: taking a pause, existing in the present, focusing, intentionality, listening, and pushing for clarity. Leaders should focus on developing these skills, as they contribute significantly to effectiveness. [21:57]Some leaders just aren’t good at relinquishing control, Marcel muses. “We tell ourselves it’s not, but it’s an ego thing,” Dave replies. “We use excuses like ‘it’ll take me longer to delegate than it will to do it myself,’ ‘they won’t do it right anyway and/or I’ll have to fix it later’.” Training your employees to do tasks you’ve delegated saves you hours of work, he shares. [26:10]Marcel asks Dave how fear affects performance. Fear makes people feel restricted in their choices. It makes performance dip because people feel like they have no control over certain aspects in their life. They buy in to loops of negativity which eventually becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. [35:24] “Define what success means to you,” Dave advises listeners. “Map out an opportunity for you to work on [success], break it down into key steps, execute them, and then review what’s working and what’s not. Rinse, and repeat.” [39:15]ResourcesDave McKeown on LinkedIn | TwitterOutfieldLeadership.comThe Self-Evolved Leader