Years ago, a close friend of mine went back to school for counseling. She shared that in her first class, within the first minute of instruction, the professor said, “Counselors need their own counselors. If you don’t have a counselor, your homework is to get one immediately.”
More than a decade later, I remember this anecdote and the important truth that likely drove the homework: Change is hard. People work is hard. And helping people navigate through change requires personal growth and an evolving perspective.
At Matterlab, we’re in the business of people work — and we do that through developing communications skills as leadership skills. Just like counselors need their own counselors outside of their practices, leaders need their own leaders outside of their organizations. This is because great leadership is what you get when you combine an evolving perspective and subject-matter expertise.
Matterlab’s expertise? Communications.
We help leaders develop their communication skills through a combination of identity, strategy, and practice.
- Identity: Who are you and your organization?
- Strategy: What do you aim to achieve?
- Practice: How can communications help you get there?
The practice piece is key. It allows leaders to be vulnerable, to make mistakes, to fail, and to learn — in a setting that is meant to foster exactly those things. For most leaders, that opportunity doesn’t exist in their day-to-day jobs. They need, crave, and deserve a space to grow in their leadership skills. A Columbia Business School article said it simply, “Executives who work with coaches also develop leadership coaching skills to bring back to their organizations.” That bringing back of new perspectives is where organizational evolution happens.
At Matterlab, we believe that communication is a critical leadership skill, one that calls for leaders to have leaders of their own. To guide them. To expand their perspectives. To assure them that their challenges are common and solvable. To help them steward important organizational changes. And to teach them how strategic communications can help them get there.
If you’re a leader who is navigating change, and you don’t have a leader to support you, your homework is to get one immediately. We’re here to help.