Your Diamond Life

This is part 3 of 3 on how you became you, and why understanding that matters for leadership. In parts 1 and 2, I’ve talked about the Pattern of Being You. How and why the human onion forms. You can watch them now if you’ve not seen them.

The Pattern of Being You

Understanding the Pattern of You

Human Onion is the idea that there is a multi-layered / multi-faceted you. Deep in the centre of the onion there is core-you. Perhaps who you really are, your innate self. By one description the layers of the onion represent the different facets of you. By another description they represent the patterns of armoury you have built for your safety and success.

At the surface layer of your Human Onion is the strongest of the protection layers. We might call this the ego layer. It is designed to defend you. There is much to celebrate at this layer. It’s had your best interests at heart throughout your life, it's given you a unique and interesting personality, and a number of superstrengths.

However, it may also include some default behaviour that no longer serves you, and it is prone to living life behind a mask. The distance between core-you and ego layer you is the greatest distance in the onion.

I want to introduce a concept that connects to the human onion and Character Formation. It's called Your Diamond Life. Think about the journey of your life as a diamond. This is core-you and this is your life timeline. This is where you come into the world, and this is where you leave this mortal coil. (See video)

In the first half of your life you form and repeat patterns. The ones that are for your safety and defence, and the ones that are your strengths and strong suits. Somewhere around mid-life, you realise you are about as far away from who you really are as you ever want to be. Perhaps this is what a mid-life crisis is about. But if it is, then I want to make the case for calling it a mid-life gift. If you are lucky you recognise the moment, and spend the second half of your life navigating back to who you really are.

This is the moment you get to liberate your leadership, find your voice and become the leader you want to be, and the leader your people and organisation need you to be. It’s quite possibly the moment you get to liberate yourself and your life as well.

It’s about growing up, waking up, and cleaning up!

Leaders who know themselves (their ego including the good, the defended and the shadows), are able to get out of their own way and into making the biggest difference in their world. Understanding these things gets you unstuck. It's like getting the keys to unlocking your personality prison. 

A good vehicle for exploring this work is called The 5 Character Structures. The 5 Character Structures is a fantastic workshop to run for senior leadership teams where you get to learn about each other's strengths and challenges in a way that connects you for more productive team working.