When people ask me about my credentials as a leadership coach, I automatically go to my corporate experience leading teams from early on my career as a Management Trainee at Marks and Spencer up to a few years ago when I built and lead a team of nearly 100 coaches across EMEA for wonderful employee and customer engagement project for Ford Motor Company. (The picture above is me with one of the dealership teams I worked with who I’m still in touch with – we had great fun together!)
And yet my journey as a leader started long before that.
At school I was always chosen by the teachers and the students for various roles – from Deputy Head of House, to Head of House to Head Girl, to Head of Halls at university to Head of the Alumni Association at Ashridge for a number of years.
And although I never really thought of standing for those positions myself, I was always asked to run, and I chose to. Why was I asked? I can only assume that it was because I was never shy about speaking up in a way that represented views of the people, I felt I was a part of – not as their representative, but as one of them.
Those years taught me to canvass opinion, to collaborate, to see things from other people’s point of view, to make decisions and be accountable for the consequences, to communicate, to look after those who had chosen me to represent them, to be there for them.
Those years formed my leadership style so that well before I started my professional career, I already had beliefs and values that shaped me as a leader. I also had already started to learn the skill set required.
Thankfully, those skills saw me through difficult challenges, like stepping in to manage a team of seasoned professionals at Marks and Spencer whilst being a trainee. All of them older than me and with years of experience in retail!
Had I learned it all by then? NO!!!!!
Am I still learning? OH YES!!!!
Do I still get it wrong? OF COURSE!
But do I get it right more often? YES!!!
And do I love it? ABSOLUTELY!
There’s nothing better than seeing other people thrive, enjoy their jobs, bring the best of themselves to their work everyday and be able to count many of them as friends too.
What’s your story? Comment below or email me at sonia@soniagavira.com – promise I read every comment!
