A company I worked for had a line-in-the-sand title/level where middle management stopped and executive management started.

To cross this line required psych evals, executive sponsorship, peer support, and ultimately the direct support of the CEO. Advancing past the line had all kinds of soft and hard benefits, a dedicated admin, private office, professional coaching, etc.

For years I resisted pushing for that title, while many type A leaders around me fought for it.

I performed and was compensated as if I was at the level, so what?

Even after I left the company to be a CIO, I returned not to challenge that line.

Until one day, I realized that in order to drive change, I needed that title/level. It was for others, not myself, that I went to the CIO and said “I am not here to ask for the title for me, I want the title to be able to drive initiatives for those around me".

I came to understand that my personal barrier to crossing that line was my idea of power.

I had defined power for all those years as domination. This I wanted no part.

Another concept of power is orchestration, the power to bring people together to do collectively what they cant do on their own.

This was for me, and worth fighting the sharks for the level and title.

Thoughts:

A great discussion on Farnam Street with Margaret Heffernan https://fs.blog/2018/03/margaret-heffernan/

Dr Dana Ardi’s https://www.amazon.com/Fall-Alphas-Connect-Collaborate-Influence/dp/0312681933

Original linkedin post: http://bit.ly/2Pkxvei