As a leadership coach, what do you
see as the challenges of our time?
Harrison: I think one of the big
challenges is learning how to change
more deeply. To solve some of the
wicked problems of our time, we
need to dismantle old systems and
the mindsets that support them and
discover new ways of putting our
world back together. That requires a
lot of letting go, and a big bold leap of
courage into the unknown.
The leadership challenge that goes
with that is learning how to radically
reorient. So, we shift how
we see the world, rather
than focus on surface level
change within old ways of
thinking.
A close second would be
learning how to embrace
difference. To see different
viewpoints as the start of a
creative and generative process,
rather than something innately
threatening. So, we become a
lot more comfortable with open,
exploratory conversations, where
we don’t know the answers and aren’t
trying to convince others of our point
of view. Leaders have an important
role to play in creating environments
where those kinds of conversations
can happen, safely.
What kind of re-orienting do you
see happening?
Harrison: In the leaders I coach,
it’s often about detaching from an
Achievement orientation and finding
an orientation that’s more about
Contribution or Purpose.
So many of us are driven by a need
to achieve, thinking the next thing
is going make us feel good about
12 milkshake
FOUNDER, WILD COURAGE
ELLE HARRISON
LEADERSHIP COACH SHARES THOUGHTS
ON THE FUTURE OF WORK
As the author of “Wild Courage: A
Journey of Transformation for
You & Your Business,” founder
of Wild Courage and Certified
Executive Coach, Elle Harrison is
focused on coaching leaders to master their
inner game, maximize their impact, and navigate change with confidence
and calm.
Her clients are CEOs, Founders, strategists, and those setting
the direction of their team or organization. Most are involved in
transformation—soulful, creative change that reimagines something
genuinely new, whole and sustainable.
She believes that solving the wicked problems of our time demands wise
leaders. And those leaders need coaches who listen, challenge, reflect and
go deep with them. That’s a role she loves to play.
in the workplace is common practice!
Similarly, Brené Brown’s 2010 TED
talk brought vulnerability into the
spotlight. Leaving a corporate career to
become freelance or an entrepreneur
has also become a well-trodden path. I
remember leaving the corporate world
because I couldn’t see how I could have
a lifestyle where I would be able to be
present with kids and have a rich and
meaningful career. In the post-COVID
Great Resignation, more and more
people are making that same move.
I think we are starting to see that
many of our human systems are
broken. That the change we need is
systemic and transformative, not just a
little tweak. Whether we are discussing
sustainability, climate, healthcare or
even education, it feels like there’s
more readiness to see that something
substantial needs to change.
If you were to add another
chapter to “Wild Courage,”
what would it be?
Harrison: “Belonging.” And by that, I
mean “belonging” behind the level of
identity.
So many of the challenges of society
come from a tendency to anchor
ourselves. But we often
abandon ourselves and
our deeper needs on this
path. We achieve results
by being who we feel we
“should” be, rather than
by drawing on our unique
gifts. Which means so
many of our gifts are
left untapped. That’s a
great loss, for both that
individual and society.
It’s not to
say achieving isn’t a satisfying
phenomenon. But only being oriented
to achievement can get in the way of a
deeper kind of fulfilment and creativity.
The book has stood the test of
time. Why not write another?
Harrison: I do hope to write another
book, but the small matter of raising
two small children has delayed the
timeline!
I do agree, though, that the core
principles of “Wild Courage” are as
relevant today as when I wrote it back
in 2010. I think they’re also becoming
more mainstream. When I wrote “Wild
Courage,” stillness was a very strange
idea to business, but now mindfulness
December 2021