What We Think, We Become

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSXYHqs0KPo]

M.S.clip

Do you ever realize that sometimes you end up watching the absolute best and simply worst movies on a plane? You never know what you are getting into. On the flight back from my Leadership Outbreak in Sri Lanka I watched the movie the Iron Lady on the life of Margaret Thatcher (what an amazing performance from Meryl Streep) and really enjoyed the message it had to offer. There were plenty of examples on the importance of sticking to ones principles and values on things that matter, even if it results in disagreements (see my previous blog: Creative Conflict). However the highlight of the film for me was when she quoted her father, Alfred Roberts, saying:

“Watch your thoughts for they become words
Watch your words for they become actions
Watch your actions for they become habits
Watch your habits for they become your character
And watch your character for it becomes your destiny
What we think, we become”

It specifically resonated with me as I had just spent the last 4 days with the top 30 leaders of a financial services organization talking about leadership; on how they want to work together to lead the organization and what they should do to translate their vision into actions.

To get yourself (let alone a team) to think and act synchronously is not a small act. However, when you do get people to work together everything is possible. This is what the team in Sri Lanka was able to achieve. They ‘stormed’, came together and decided what they needed to do. Now it’s up to them whether they are able to translate their thoughts into actions.

This is normally the point where I ‘hop-off’ the transformation train for any team. This time however I have the opportunity to continue to coach and guide the team to make their actions became a habit. For me, this is an exciting new prospect and one on which I will continue to report and share my learnings.

– Paul Keijzer