Conviction in Action

**This blog was originally published on iB-LIEVE's Blog. (www.GOiBELIEVE.com/blog)**

FROM STUDENT TO LEADER
I consider myself a student of leadership. I’ve studied leadership by not only engaging in formal leadership positions while in high school, college, and graduate school, but by reading and acquiring knowledge formally through my master’s program as well as informally. In fact, most of my pleasure reading consists of leadership-related books. Of recent, I’ve gained new perspectives and insight from Theory U (Scharmer), Leadership From The Inside Out (Cashman), The Ant and the Elelphant (Poscente), and Me to We (Kielburger borthers). I look forward to continuing my pursuit of leadership learning by beginning a PhD focusing on leadership development this fall.

CONVICTION IN ACTION
My favorite and, to me, the most compelling theory of leadership is known as Conviction in Action. It was coined by Dennis Roberts in his book Deeper Learning in Leadership. Conviction in Action is simply understanding our deepest passions (conviction) and connecting those to our community’s greatest need (action). I love this notion of leadership because it is radically inclusive. It is not about power or position. It is about the person and the purpose with which s/he is leading. Anyone can lead because we all can dig deep within ourselves to understand what we are passionate about. Anyone can lead because we all can find ways to bring about positive change in our local or our global communities.

This definition of leadership can be summed up by David Viscott’s quote, “The purpose of life is to discover your gift. The meaning in life is to give your gift away.”

LEADERS HAVE CONVICTION
I believe that leadership starts with knowing oneself. Great leaders know what drives them, what moves them. But they don’t just know themselves. Great leaders also know their communities. They strive to know what they can do to make the local or global community better.

LEADERS TAKE ACTION
Great leaders don’t just think; they act too. They find a way to make their visions happen – they bring about the change they desire.

As Craig and Marc Kielburger say, “The precise reasons for the success of the world's most celebrated social movements are hotly debated in academic literature and activist circles, but their beginnings are incontestable: somebody did something.”

ADVICE FOR THE LEADER IN YOU
Here is a brief play by play to easily implement Conviction in Action into your life.

• First, design a GOAL. Before you do anything else, you need to know what you are working towards. The goal can be short term (facilitate a staff meeting) or long term (develop a master’s granting university in Nicaragua). See 2 blogs that I’ve written on goal setting here and here.

• Once you create a goal, you need to STOP. Spend time retreating inward. This purposeful pause is an opportunity to create stillness and get to know yourself. But most of all, this is your chance to find mental obstacles that are holding you back. We all have doubts, fears, and worries. Stopping is your chance to get it out on the table. You can stop by going on a walk through nature, while praying or meditating, by journaling, or reflective reading.

• After you have done some mesearch, you can BEGIN. This is an opportunity to ensure success by shifting any negative or limiting thoughts or attitudes to be positive. Prepare for the action by picking yourself up, motivating yourself.

• Next, GO. Literally make it happen by putting into practice those things that will help you accomplish your goal. For instance, you could draft an agenda for a staff meeting, or apply for PhD programs to garner the knowledge and skills for the master’s granting university.

• But it doesn’t just end there. To really ensure success, BELIEVE. Believe in your goal. Believe you can stop, begin, and go. Believe in the process.

I believe we all can lead with conviction in action.