Who is on your “Personal Board of Directors”?
I’m lucky.
But “who luck” is different than plain old luck.
Leadership guru, Jim Collins, speaks and writes about what he calls, “who luck”.
He once shared these words in Farnam Street’s The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish podcast (episode 67):
“People think about luck as kind of “what” luck but I’ve had great “who” luck in my life. And “who” luck is when you come across somebody who changes your trajectory or invests in you, bets on you, gives you guidance and key points.”
So yes, I’ve got some incredible “who luck”.
For nearly the last decade, I’ve be included in a dynamic, close-knit group of middle school principals. We share successes and challenges, tell stories, compare notes, and laugh…a lot. We share the experiences that bring joy and sometimes the sadness that is a part of being a principal in middle school.
In The Learning Leader Show podcast (episode 397), Collins speaks about luck as an event.
You didn’t cause it.
It has a potentially significant consequence, good or bad.
It came as a surprise. The timing, the form, that it happened at all.
Reflecting on my being included in this group, each of these elements are true.
Thinking about what’s drawn us together, (and keeps us together), the list is at first quite long. And it certainly returns to what Collins refers to as a “Personal Board of Directors”.
The members of my “Personal Board of Directors”:
• are curious and eager to learn.
• thrive on continual improvement.
• are willing to share, and to help one another navigate challenges, and grow together.
If you asked the others in this group, I bet their lists have common themes, but may contain a different three priorities that we share. That’s one of the special aspects of this group; we see common problems through different lenses, resulting in each of our decisions being uniquely influenced by the group’s input.
That’s a strong sign of a special Board of Directors.
In many ways, the people in this group influence and impact my decisions, some large and many, small that eventually compound.
The best leaders, like Collins sees himself, are teachers first, and leaders second.
What are the qualities and characteristics of your Board of Directors?
And how does their input influence your ability to lead to to learn?
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