The influence is real. It just doesn’t need to wear the title.
Today we start in a new energy. We’re spending our time these next six days with the energy of She Leads From Behind.
This energy is driven by forward progress and vision. In this energy, you can see where something needs to go, a project, an organization, even a relationship, long before anyone else does. But there’s a twist. This isn’t leadership that stands at the front of the room. It’s the strategic advisor, the right-hand person, the one whose counsel and advice shapes the direction even though someone else is holding the microphone.
This energy is personal to me. The energy of She Leads From Behind pairs with and is connected to the energy of She Leads When Invited, the energy we spent time with at the end of July. They’re energetic partners in how I’m wired, two halves of the same leadership story. I’ve carried this quieter, behind-the-scenes leadership in the background my whole life, but at this stage of my life, the more visible side, the leadership that gets invited forward, has become just as active. And frankly, I’m enjoying having steady access to both sides of this leadership story at once.
This energy picks up right where the energy of She Leads When Invited left off, just from a different angle. It isn’t about being out in front. It’s not as vocal and direct. You show up off to the side. I’m often the person who is off to the side, right next to the person at the microphone. I’m not afraid to be at the microphone, clearly, because here I am, but I am also a really good facilitator for the person who is in charge.
I’m good at collecting observations, information, and feedback and funneling it to the people making the decisions. I frequently did this when I was teaching college. It could be relatively little things, such as feedback about a text we were using, or larger things, such as class requirements. When I first started teaching accounting, students were required to take their exams at a specific time and place. That two-hour block was set on the student’s schedule if they were enrolled in the accounting classes. It got in the way of their enrollment in other classes, even though that time slot was only used three or four times a semester. I listened to the students and was instrumental in guiding the department chair to change the policy.
There’s a song that perfectly captures this energy, “Right Hand Man” from the musical Hamilton. If you don’t know the show well, here’s the quick version. It’s the song where a young officer steps in as George Washington’s chief of staff, the one who plans the strategy and shapes the direction while someone else stands at the front and takes the salute. That’s this energy exactly. The influence is real. It just doesn’t need to wear the title.
We’re going to look at all sides of this energy. What happens when the vision gets pushed forward too soon or held back too long. What it looks like when you get it right in everyday life. And what it looks like at its very best, when your influence shapes something lasting, and you’re genuinely at peace with not needing the credit for it.
Find your happy. Love what you do. Make a difference. Come back to me safely. See ya!
