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Culture Change Starts With Where, When and How the Leader Shows Up
“What time will your class finish, Lily?”
The founder of the company and his son asked me this session after session. And every time, they would sit quietly outside the room, waiting for their people to learn without feeling watched.
When I opened the door, they came in and called everyone by name. They made sure colleagues travelling long distances were fed, personally drove them home and ensured everyone got back safely.
But what stayed with me even more was what I saw inside the room. Seniors helping juniors with their name tags, everyone participating wholeheartedly, and a team whose connection was clearly felt.
Those two men never once led from the front of the room. Yet I could see their leadership in every person inside.
Over the years, I’ve seen other leaders make different choices. A head of department who opened a session warmly before stepping out, and a CEO who joined the programme as one of the participants.
Different approaches, but the same lesson: people feel your presence long before they hear your message. And culture change begins with WHERE, WHEN and HOW we choose to show up.