Finding Joy on the Job With Adult ADD

Convert your ADD into the blessing it really is.  In fact, you are blessed with very special and unique powers and talents, not available to those without ADD/ADHD. adult add

Finding Joy on the Job With Adult ADD

by Blythe Grossberg, Psy.D

In the world of work, attention-deficit disorder (ADD/ADHD) can present some daunting obstacles to career success. It's not easy to set and meet goals if there is a constant struggle to focus, set priorities, and avoid distractions that others easily tune out. How can you get things done if you can't get out from under your own desktop clutter? How do you follow through on critical work assignments and projects if your mind automatically moves on to something else?

No wonder workers with ADD often fall short of expectations -- their own and those of the boss.

But the struggle with deadlines or organization is only half of the story. Because, in addition to creating obstacles to job success, ADD provides traits and skills employers admire -- enthusiasm, extraordinary creativity, an entrepreneurial spirit, and, of course, the boundless energy for which ADDers are known. Workers who learn to capitalize on these strengths do very well, indeed.

In this article, we'll meet three people who -- by dint of hard work, openness to new ideas, and help from others -- overcame ADD-related setbacks to forge productive, satisfying careers. Their names have been changed, but their remarkable stories shine through, serving as inspiration for every ADDer who has ever struggled to make a go of it on the job.

KATHERINE

From Struggling Student to Top Attorney

If you saw Katherine L. now, you'd never guess that this articulate 40-something lawyer almost dropped out of high school. Growing up in a working-class area of Los Angeles, Katherine struggled in school. Her reading skills and memory were poor, and she was terribly restless. Teachers were unable, or unwilling, to help. "No one thought I could do much of anything," she says. "I got bored if I sat longer than 30 minutes."

After receiving her high school diploma, Katherine started working as a hairdresser. She spent several years hopping from job to job, and then enrolled in a local community college, where her academic difficulty resumed. Finally, at the urging of one of her professors, she got evaluated for learning problems and was told that her disability had a name: dyslexia.

Following her diagnosis, Katherine started allotting more time for the reading and writing required for her courses. Her grades improved. In fact, she did so well that she was able to transfer to a four-year college. She aced the LSATs, and, with the help of school accomodations, got into a prestigious law school. Soon thereafter, she was diagnosed with adult ADD and started taking a stimulant medication.

Despite the medication, Katherine feared that she would flunk out. After class each day she made a beeline home, where she spent hour upon hour studying. The extra study time helped. So did substituting books on tape for ordinary textbooks. In addition, she began making PowerPoint presentations that summarized the readings. That helped improve her comprehension.

After graduating from law school, in 1998, Katherine won a grant that allowed her to develop a program that provides legal services to ADD and LD children. Today, she helps hundreds of low-income families get services for their kids -- the kind of help that she had been denied. In addition to her work at the center, Katherine runs workshops about kids' legal rights with disabilities.

What's the secret of Katherine's success? Medication helped, of course. So did her ADD-friendly study strategies. And Katherine was savvy enough to recognize that she'd do better in a job that was more -- rather than less -- demanding. (That's often the case with ADDers.) She initially considered paralegal work but doubts that she would have been able to keep all the paperwork organized. Being a lawyer suits her, she says, because "it's more big-picture than details. Law fits into the way I think, on five levels at the same time. I created the program and a job for myself. I can do 10 things at once, and I make it fun."

As soon as a case is assigned to her, Katherine breaks down the workload into discrete steps. That keeps her from feeling overwhelmed. "There are procedures I have to follow to get things done," she explains. "I have to start projects in enough time, and I can't take a shortcut." She still burns the midnight oil -- but only because that's when her office is quietest.

Katherine continues to struggle with reading and writing. But she manages, with the help of a Kurzweil 3000 device, which reads aloud legal briefs -- as well as with the help of colleagues, who proofread her briefs.

Katherine is passionate about work, and she gets a big charge out of helping children. "It's inspiring for a kid who has issues to find out that I graduated from law school after nearly flunking out of high school," she says.

Innovative "Jobs"

We will all miss Steve Jobs who passed away recently. But his life can be in inspiration to others who want to have an impact on the world... He engaged his own life coach for years, Bill Campbell..

 

Innovative "Jobs" by Jamillah Warner

"Steve Jobs was a man who when he returned to rescue Apple in 1997, had a clear vision of the problem and a clear a vision for the market.  He understood our shrinking attention spans and the fact that you have seconds to get your audiences attention. He reignited a company around a simple idea — think different. And it worked.  With a lot of hard-work, blood-sweat and man-hours…it worked.

He had the guts to make it work.

In “12 Ways To Be Like Steve Jobs,” Laurel Delaney asks: “Is it possible to integrate his brilliance into our work ethic?”

Well, if we choose to care as much as he cared and push as hard as he pushed and market as well as he marketed - then I think the answer is yes.  Two core things about Steve Jobs that we can use in our own business?
Love and passion.

Love What You Do, Then Go The Distance

Thomas Friedman, Laurel quoted this New York Times columnist, says Jobs:
“. . . was someone who was ready to pursue his vision in the face of long odds over multiple years.”

When others would have quit on an idea, he keep going.  He loved what he did.  And that’s important because it’s difficult to be innovative without passion. But passion alone is not enough.

Share Your Passion, Then Market Mystery

A great product is just the beginning. There must also be dynamic and creative/effective marketing. In “7 Habits That Made Steve Jobs A Success,” Susan L. Reid says: “Under Jobs, Apple cloaked itself in secrecy to build frenzied anticipation for each of its new products.”

Mystery was a standard marketing strategy for Steve Jobs.  Love what you do so that you create something that matters. Then reveal it in a way that builds mystery and excitement.

Who Are The New Icons?

In “Who Will Be The Next Steve Jobs And Sam Walton?” John Mariotti says:
“I am looking for the MVPs of wealth creation, the builders of great new enterprises that will shape America’s future.”

I’m thinking it begins with your passions and ends with your work. What do you love? And how much are you willing to do for that love?"

Should You Hire a Life Coach?

When hiring a life coach or a business coach or career coach, look for experience and pick the right coach for you.

Paying for specialized advice can give your career a boost

By Kimberly Palmer

When Mary Knebel, a 30-something in Washington, D.C., was laid off from her corporate job a few years ago, she wasn't sure whether she wanted to find a new one or follow her dream of launching her own website. To help figure it out, she hired Kimberly Wilson, a yoga teacher, author, and businesswoman who offers one-on-one mentoring sessions for $150 per hour. "[Wilson] was helpful in giving me the confidence to go forward and say, 'This is possible,'" says Knebel.

Knebel is one of a growing number of professionals hiring coaches to help them achieve their dreams. Whether it's to find a new wardrobe for a job search or to get business advice for a new venture, people often turn to coaches during times of transition. "The primary reason is that they're not achieving their goals in the workplace, and they want some help to position themselves for upward mobility," says Lois Frankel, author of Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office. One growth area has been among people affected by layoffs. "We're finding that as people get laid off, they're trying to figure out why were they laid off and not someone else," Frankel adds.

The most common goal is to earn more money, says Bill Dueease, founder and president of Fort Myers, Fla.-based Coach Connection, which helps connect clients with coaches. "With people getting laid off and saying, 'I don't want to get back in the rat race,' that's the perfect time to hire a coach," he says.

All coaches are not created equal, however. Frankel warns that when it comes to business coaching, it's important to make sure the coach has specialized expertise and experience. She recommends looking for people who have 20-plus years of experience working inside a corporation, masters degrees or higher, or a certification from the International Coach Federation. According to a recent survey by Harvard Business Review, the median cost for one hour of coaching is $500, but it can range from $200 to $3,500.

That warning also goes for life coaching, which is sometimes called "personal coaching." "It's not regulated, so everyone can call themselves a coach. Maybe 50 percent of the time, they are not providing coaching," Dueease says. Websites like his FindYourCoach.com, which has screened thousands of coaches, can make sure people find trained coaches.

Getting started. For business coaching, the first step is to give the client feedback about how others perceive them. "A seasoned coach can usually sit with someone for an hour and figure out why they're not getting promoted," says Frankel.

Frankel once coached a manager who was surprised to hear that his employees felt he didn't care about them. To fix that problem, Frankel recommended that he hold more staff meetings, offer personal development in the form of guest speakers, meet one-on-one with staff at least once a quarter, and walk around the office more for casual chats. Frankel calls that last technique MBWA, or managing by walking around.

Another client, an information technology professional, tended to talk too much in meetings and dominate the conversation. Frankel suggested that he never speak first in a meeting and that when he did speak, it should be to comment on what others had already said. That way, says Frankel, he learned how to become an active listener.

Life coaching, says Dueease, usually starts with a conversation about who the client is and what his preferences are. "The coach asks questions about you to get you to open up and reveal things that you've never revealed before," he says. The coach might start by asking what the client thought about when he first woke up in the morning, for example. "You discover what all of your passions are, and what the self-imposed obstacles are," Dueease adds.

Before Kimberly Wilson meets with clients, she asks them to fill out a questionnaire about their goals and vision statement. She says the women she works with often want to grow or start a business, but they feel stuck. A mentoring session can help them see what they need to do to move to the next step, she says.

That's what happened for Camille Moses-Allen, a 20-something yoga teacher based in Baltimore. She was feeling stressed out and underpaid teaching 15 yoga classes a week. Wilson pointed out to her that she was spending too much time in the car and recommended that she create a website where she could offer yoga-related services, including workshops, which can pay more than classes. Moses-Allen launched her own website and began offering workshops.

"She helped me find out what would be more lucrative instead of giving 110 percent of my energy for something that wasn't working," says Moses-Allen. Wilson also offered some personal advice: Moses-Allen had suffered a bad break-up, and Wilson urged her to use the personal ads to find someone new.

After meeting with Wilson, Knebel launched her own website, www.selfhelpgoddess.com. One of her favorite pieces of advice was to "act as if you're already living the life you want to be living," down to what she'd wear and who she'd spend time with. Says Knebel, "It definitely had an impact."

Have You Found Your Calling in Life?

Whether you call it finding your dream job or going to play everyday dont' we all want to find the passion in our lives? career coach, best job

Have You Found Your Calling in Life?

from 5 Effective Tips on Removing The Obstacles to Your Success - by ... by DLM Writers

One of the questions I tend to get asked frequently by people who start reading my blog is “How do I find my passion?” or some variation of that question. It’s a tough question to answer because there’s no real formula for it. It’s not “if you do A, you’ll find B.” It’s a question that requires you to look within and usually it’s the start of a lengthy, but very fulfilling journey.

While I haven’t quite figured out if there really is a formula for finding your passion, I am starting to get a sense for how you know you’ve found it.

    •    Time Ceases to Exist or Just Flies
The other day I was out in front of my parents house skateboarding. I usually listen to music while I skateboard and before I knew it 40 minutes had gone by and my playlist was finished. I had entered a state of “flow” and the idea for this post actually came to me in that exact moment. I was so caught up in what I was doing that my sense of time had become distorted. Look for when and where this happens in your life and make note of it.
    •    
    •    You no longer distinguish between work and play
It’s said that if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life. When I ran the the travel blog I was working on, with the exception of meetings I had to attend every few weeks, I rarely saw it as work. It was more of an opportunity for creative expression.

My friend David might as well be labeled the Picasso of of Powerpoint when you look at things like the Anti-Resume. But talk to him about the process of putting this stuff together and he doesn’t see it a work. When you look at your work and you feel like a kid in candy store or a five year old in a tub of legos, you’ve probably found your calling.
    •    
    •    You look forward to to every single day
I think that the 8 hour work day doesn’t make any sense. This structure of work has caused far too many people to live for the weekends. That means you only look forward to 2/7th of your life. I don’t know about you, but I want more out of life than a fraction of what’s available. When you look forward to every single day, it’s a sign that you’ve found your calling.
    •    
    •    You’re addicted to whatever it is you love
I’m an addict. It’s just the way I’m built. When I love something I want it to be part of my life as much as possible. The pursuit of waves has just amplified that addiction. Every wave, and every turn is like the stroke of a paintbrush allowing me to paint my life into a work of art that I’ll look back on and think “ this belongs in a museum.” Look for your addictions (as long as they’re not the kind that kill you)
    •    
    •    You’re inexplicably happy
You don’t need a reason to pursue a passion. I can’t tell you why I want to surf the world. I just do. It sounds like an amazing journey and something tells me I’ll find some answers along the way.

Keep your fingers on the pulse of the moments in your life that make you feel like this. Those are the signals that will let you know you’ve found your calling in life. Class dismissed.

Life Coach Lesson: I’m a Ball of Stress. And That’s OK.

I found this article on stress and life coaching.  You can read more about getting a life coach at here.

 

What’s it like to have a life coach? Patch editor Lisa Rossi found out.

I recently met with a life coach with one mystery I hoped he could solve: How could a working mother, wife and journalist do it all without feeling, well, a little stressed out?

Claudio Toyama, 41, who lives in Columbia and has clients around the world, set out to help me find my answer.

He is part of the burgeoning movement of life coaches across the country. The industry has seen huge increases in new coaches, according to a recent story in the New York Times. Coaches interviewed for the Times made anywhere from $25 to $400 per hour in the practice of their craft.
I first met Claudio when he saved a duck from wandering in the kitchen at Lakeside Café in downtown Columbia.

Several months later, he offered me three complimentary life-coaching sessions.

I figured if he could save a duck, maybe he could save me.

Toyama is also a business consultant who helps companies discover what determines consumer brand loyalty. Toyama, who has coached a variety of clients, including students, entrepreneurs and small business owners, received his life coach training through the New Field Network, which according to its website, encourages coaches to “challenge” the thinking of their clients.

Which is exactly how Toyama approached our first meeting. I told him I was stressed, and he asked why.

I said it’s because my to-do list is too long for the hours in the day.
He challenged me to consider the origins of that problem as well.
Are you in the right profession, he asked?

I started to feel uncomfortable at this point, and Toyama could sense that. I told him there was no negotiation on my career; I loved it, and that wasn’t going to change.

I just needed to figure out how to relax.

He continued to listen to me. I told him how I’ve pretty much always been a ball of stress, losing sleep and getting ill over finals in college and freaking out about my grades in high school.

That was the extent of our first meeting.  We didn’t talk solutions. Toyama just listened.

We met again later for what he called  “guided meditation.”
“Guided meditation is a way to have your mind quieting down, so you can really listen to what’s inside,” he said. “There is a lot of wisdom in your own body, in yourself, when you quiet the chatter of the conscious mind down.”

For this exercise, I visited Toyama at his home, where he asked me to sit on his couch and closely watch the burning flame of a candle on his coffee table.

Toyama asked me to watch the flame until my eyes became very heavy and they closed.

He then asked me to visualize a variety of relaxing scenes—quiet rooms, rolling cornfields in Iowa, trees, sparkling lights.

As I did, I saw paper doll images in my brain pop up of my husband, my sweet toddler, and oddly, a typewriter.

I left feeling relaxed, but also grateful.  What am I so angst-y about all the time?

I have everything I could ever want.

Of course, my problems aren’t completely solved—they never will be.  This is just my personality and it’s worked for me.

Toyama helped me realize this as well.

After we concluded our three sessions, I asked Toyama about how the guided meditation worked for others he had coached.

Toyama said he’s had many people cry through meditations—and in at least one case—laugh hysterically.

“The craziest was this lady—and she came in, and she went into this deep meditation, she started laughing and she couldn’t stop,” he said. “It was this belly laugh. What happens is when you connect all those things… what comes out is what is suppressed.  … In developed societies you’re not allowed to express emotions.”

Toyama, who was born in Brazil, also said the single biggest obstacle to people’s success is self-sabotage.

“People either have fear of failure or fear of success,” he said.

Those who can, leave

I found an interesting articlie that talks about transitioning in your career. Also read about - career changes career coaching

3 February 2012 | by Lisa Gazis, Mahlab Recruitment

Despite years of training and a secure job in a good firm, many still choose to leave the law. Lisa Gazis, managing director of Mahlab Recruitment in NSW, looks at the options, as well as the need to think twice, for those who want a career overhaul. 

 

Recently I met a lawyer who told me that they had left the law after many years of practice.  The lawyer said they simply had had enough. They woke up one day and decided they needed to take a break.  They sought leave of 3 months from their employer.  During their break they decided they could not return to practice.  They wanted more control over their life than what their role could offer and they wanted to get away from legal work, the pressures of billing and client demands. They resigned. The next two months were spent Googling employment agency sites, job boards and networking to get an understanding of their options and to let others know they were available – but, for what?  They could not see what they could offer beyond legal knowledge and experience.

 

For some lawyers there will come a time when they question what lies beyond the practice of law.  Some will conclude that for the most part they enjoy being a lawyer and stay in the law.  Some will transition to another career because they seek another challenge while others will make a change because they simply do not enjoy being a lawyer.  Today there is no stigma in leaving the law and a career change is often applauded or even envied.  Gone are the days where legal practice is a “cradle to grave” profession.  

 

Some lawyers move beyond the practise of law early in their careers.  Being young, and typically gen Y they seek different  challenges, are less risk averse, are confident of their abilities and are open to all the possibilities.  Many of these young lawyers are focused on achieving moves into the corporate world with growing successful organisations.  They are not fussed about how many careers they will have in their working life as long as they are engaged, learning and developing and of course, earning a good income.  They are not looking for a backward or easy move; they are simply using their career in the law to open up other options.

 

Senior lawyers moving outside the law tend to do so with more trepidation than their younger colleagues.  In part, due to the financial and personal risk involved – the stakes are higher.  For others their identity is more strongly linked to the role they perform or after many years in the profession it is very difficult to see an alternative path.  

 

Throughout my career I have spoken to many senior lawyers wanting to move.  Some of those have not been entirely satisfied with their careers, have thought about an alternative but have not done anything to make a change.  After many years, a significant event can happen which impacts on their lives and forces a career change.  This event can sometimes be job related, for example a restructure which may result in the loss of the role they are performing or a personal event such as a death of a close relative or friend.  What is most interesting though, is once the event occurs and change happens they find they survive and learn a lot about themselves, their resilience and the value of their legal experience and knowledge in the market.  Most of all, they appreciate there is life and career beyond the law. For those that do make the choice and the move, they feel ‘liberated’.  

 

Senior level lawyers who have planned and taken an alternative career path have often advanced into more senior positions with greater influence.  Many have moved into commercial roles as senior members of business and corporate teams, others set up their own businesses and consultancies often outside of the law.  

 

In my years at Mahlab I have seen many lawyers move from legal practice in to other careers. Many have gone on and become extremely successful. Examples include John Colvin (ex Freehills partner and now CEO and Managing Director of the Australian Institute of Company Directors), John O’Sullivan (ex Freehills Partner and Ex General Counsel of the Commonwealth Bank, now Chairman of the Australian Investment Banking Department of Credit Suisse (Australia) Limited), David Krasnostein (Ex NAB General Counsel and Ex Telstra General Counsel, now CEO at MLC Private Equity).

 

But success stories aside, I recommend lawyers think carefully when considering a career change. This is particularly those who seem disillusioned with legal practice. Lawyers who are disillusioned by their current role need to differentiate between a bad job choice and a bad career choice. A common complaint by lawyers is that they are working unreasonable hours and want to obtain work / life balance. Often the job is not right for them. Some lawyers opt out of law because they believe work / life balance is not possible in law. It is possible. It may mean downsizing from a larger to a smaller legal practice, changing practice areas, for example changing from a transactional practice to an advisory focused one or working part-time or on a contract basis.

 

Lawyers sometimes complain that their roles do not give them enough people contact. They rarely see a client, work on part of a transaction and never see the effect of their work on the business. It may be that of a move to an in-house environment is more appropriate than a career change.  

 

After many years in one profession, it was hard for the lawyer I mentioned earlier to appreciate the skills they had developed.  Legal practice allows lawyers to develop strong transferable skills.  These include analytical and reasoning skills, research skills, organisational skills, communication skills, business development and marketing skills and, problem solving skills.  

 

During this journey this lawyer also reshaped their definition of success.  It is interesting that when lawyers decide to make a transition out of law many will reconsider what success means to them.  Money and a high powered career are lower priorities and success is defined as being happy, achieving goals and having a positive impact on others.  

 

Analysing how one views themselves on a personal and professional level are part of the journey in deciding to transition out of law and in understanding what you want.  A transition requires self analysis and understanding.  You need to know the skills, abilities you have that may be transferable and what interests you.  You can then begin to research and consider what other careers can offer you.  This research and analysis has helped many lawyers make successful career transitions and not romanticise a career move. 

 

You also need support.  A career change is a big move.  I remember many years ago wanting a career outside of law.  When I was offered a role at Mahlab I was unsure as to whether I could be successful.  Were it not for the support and encouragement of those close to me I may never have made the transition.  Here I am 20 years later. 

 

We live in times where career transition is possible. If work is not “doing it” for you, the best thing you can do is seek out the options and be willing to move when you find your new career.  Do your self analysis, determine your priorities and values, what interests you and seek out opportunities. You will be very pleasantly surprised with what lies ahead.

 

“Come to the edge, he said.  They said: We are afraid.  Come to the edge, he said.  They came.  He pushed them and they flew” – Guillaume Apollinaire.

 

Lisa Gazis  is the Managing Director of Mahlab Recruitment (NSW). She manages the NSW recruitment operations and is also actively involved in the strategic recruitment of legal professionals, partner and legal team recruitment. She works closely on senior corporate and partner level search and recruitment campaigns.

Your leadership trump cards

From Is stress ruining your leadership-development efforts? | SmartBlog ... by Guest Blogger

Eileen N. Sinett, author of “Speaking that Connects,” is a coach-consultant and keynote speaker whose knowledge spans several cross-functional disciplines: the speech arts, communication sciences, psychology, career management, and training and development. She is committed to promoting confidence and clarity in speakers worldwide, enhancing personal and business relationships through communication improvement, and raising the bar on speaking performance with her unique presentation training brand, Speaking that Connects.

What influences you? How do you make decisions? When credentials, experience and reputation are equal — what tips the scale?

Think about the last contractor you hired. Perhaps you needed a roof repaired or a professional to troubleshoot your computer. Maybe you asked trusted friends and colleagues for referrals. Maybe you checked the Internet. You probably narrowed your search to three candidates, met with each one and compared estimates to help you with your choice. But how do you decide when all are equally qualified with almost identical fees? What factors break the tie?

As with the contractor selection process, leadership influence — the ability to persuade colleagues, departments, organizations and teams to rally around your ideas — extends beyond name, rank and specialized expertise. Most professionals with leadership roles are experienced and knowledgeable. But are they approachable and likeable? Do these qualities matter? I think so.

Your ability to communicate is one of your leadership trump cards. Your words anchor and explain your strategic vision and plans, yet they are only a part of your communication. Personal image, body language and voice also have impact for sure, but they aren’t the complete communication picture either. Instead, it’s more the integration of one’s inner voice (conviction, sincerity, kindness) and outer voice (tone, emphasis, cadence and pause) that influence audiences to nod “yes.” Well-articulated and voiced ideas are essential, and they represent one of the leadership trump cards.

When I began my career in communication, I learned to see and to hear what most people overlook. As a speech pathologist from behind one-way mirrors, I was trained to observe behavioral details I initially didn’t notice and to listen “between the lines” and beyond the words. This training continues to be valuable to me as a presentation coach and communication consultant, and to the professionals I support to communicate at their best. Over the years, I have observed that when it comes to leadership communication, what you see and hear is merely the tip of the iceberg.

Beneath the iceberg are the “invisibles,” the most potent of the leadership trump cards: passion and compassion, intention and conviction, authenticity and engagement, honest, integrity, respect and trust. These are the qualities that bring people to your corner and drive your ideas forward. Simply put, it’s the who you are (presence) in what you do that attracts people to you; sharing that depth of your unique self with others (connection) is what influences people to follow your lead. What you sense and feel, rather than see and hear, is frequently, the influencing “tie-breaker.”

People listen to facts, but they buy on feelings that get stimulated when leaders risk being authentically present. Leaders who align their behavior (what you can see and hear), with the inner qualities, project likeability, attract respect and engage trust. When you like someone, you’re willing to go all out for them.

Middle and upper management lead and set direction. By communicating clearly and integrating thought, behavior and the invisible qualities of heart, “gut” and spirit, leaders charge these three communication “circuits.” As a result, they are more likely to connect with and influence their listeners. This is because, as human beings, we are innately programmed to respond and resonate to communication that stimulates those centers in us.

Remember clients, colleagues and employees are human beings first. Their technical talents are overlaid upon a more primal self. When you as a speaker or leader appeal to this depth in each person, you create an authentic bond, a personal connection. People want to follow you and your ideas. They trust you because you have touched them with your unique and genuine self.

Just think of how different John Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign might have been if he had been able to integrate these invisibles with his image and experience. Isn’t Mitt Romney struggling with the same problem today?

The best leaders are comfortable in their own skin. They are well-balanced emotionally, physically, intellectually and spiritually. They are self-aware, “other-conscious” and authentically present. And, as a result, their influence goes way beyond ideas and experience.

Develop your inner invisibles, clearly communicate your vision and project your unique presence. These are the leadership trump cards that will magnetize others to follow your lead and bring your ideas to fruition.

Image credit: SimmiSimons, via iStockphoto