The Leadership Vision Podcast

The Power of Alignment in Leadership

• Nathan Freeburg • Season 8 • Episode 5

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What happens when alignment is missing in an organization? Miscommunication, disengagement, and inefficiency. But when strategy, leadership, and culture align, teams thrive. In this episode of The Leadership Vision Podcast, Nathan Freeburg, Dr. Linda Schubring, and Brian Schubring break down the four key areas of alignment—organizational, leadership, team, and personal—and share practical ways to cultivate alignment at every level.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

  • How organizational alignment fosters clarity and momentum.
  • Why leadership alignment sets the tone for team success.
  • The role of team alignment in creating a high-trust culture.
  • How personal well-being impacts leadership effectiveness.
  • Practical steps for ensuring alignment within your team and organization.

Key Quotes:

  • "When an organization is aligned, people feel enthusiastic, energized, and connected." – Brian Schubring
  • "The speed of the leader is the speed of the team." – Linda Schubring
  • "When leaders communicate their vision clearly, their teams feel seen and heard." – Nathan Freeburg

Resources & Additional Material:

Join the Conversation:

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Send feedback or questions to Nathan at nathan@leadershipvisionconsulting.com, or join the discussion on social media.

Listen now and take the next step in aligning your leadership and team for success!

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The Leadership Vision Podcast is a weekly show sharing our expertise in discovering, practicing, and implementing a Strengths-based approach to people, teams, and culture. Contact us to talk to us about helping your team understand the power of Strengths.

Speaker 1:

Have you ever worked on a team where everything just clicked, where ideas flowed, trust was high and people weren't just doing their jobs but actually engaged in a shared mission? Now think of the opposite an environment filled with miscommunication, conflicting priorities and a sense that nobody was on the same page. Well, that's the power of alignment, or maybe lack thereof. Hello everyone, my name is Nathan Friberg. Welcome to the Leadership Vision Podcast, our show helping you build positive team culture. To learn more about us, you can click on the link in the show notes or visit us on the web at leadershipvisionconsultingcom.

Speaker 1:

Today on the show I have Dr Linda and Brian Schubring and we're going to be talking about how alignment is one of the most crucial and often overlooked elements of leadership. Alignment isn't just about having the right strategy on paper. It's about creating the conditions for trust, motivation and sustained success. And here's the kicker you ready for this? It's not just a leadership theory. It's deeply rooted in neuroscience and psychology Some of Brian's favorite easy reading things to do on vacation. So on the show today we're going to be breaking down alignment into four critical areas. Number one organizational alignment. How well your company's strategy, culture and execution fit together. Without it, confusion and disengagement thrive. Number two leadership alignment. How well leaders' values, decisions and actions match up, because when leaders are misaligned, teams are just going to follow that pattern. Number three team alignment. The key to high performing teams, positive team culture, is more than talent. It's about trust, motivation and clarity of purpose. And number four personal and interpersonal alignment how your emotional, intellectual and physical even well-being impact your ability to lead effectively.

Speaker 1:

Misalignment at this level leads to burnout and poor decision making. Now, which of these is the most important? Well, that's what we're going to talk about here today. Honestly, they're all interconnected, and a misaligned leader creates misaligned teams. A misaligned organization struggles to execute its vision and the leaders themselves aren't aligned internally. Well, everything else just kind of falls apart. So today we're bringing in neuroscience, psychology and real world leadership examples from some of our clients with the names, of course, obscure to protect their identities to help you understand why alignment matters and how you can build it at every level. So let's get started. Brian and Linda, are we all in alignment today on what we're going to be talking about? I feel like we've planned this out. Do we have? We are as aligned as usual. I think that's great.

Speaker 3:

Let's not talk about. We're not aligned.

Speaker 1:

Yes, we are aligned. Some days we're not aligned in terms of technology. Some days we're not aligned in terms of technology. Some days we're not aligned in terms of we don't have enough coffee. Some days we're not aligned because we're looking at the wrong document. But I feel pretty good about this. Today, as I said in my intro, we're going to be talking about neuroscience, we're going to be talking about psychology, but first and foremost, we're going to be talking well, all of us in the context of alignment. So would one of you like to maybe? I don't know. You heard my intro set this up anymore. Do we need any more? Can we just get into the four sides? Where are we at here?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I'll give a little more, because I want to start on a positive note.

Speaker 2:

We work with a lot of organizations of many different sizes, and one of the things that we know to be true is that when an organization and whoever that is that does this next thing, when they sit down to think about who are we, what is our vision, what do we want to do, what are our values? What we know is that they're usually really well aligned the topics they discuss, the values they identify, the strategies that are aligned with their business model. We find, over and over again, a lot of alignment there, and so I think that companies do a relatively great job setting the foundational work to create the types of alignment that they're looking for. It's the after that usually is a problem, or not spending some of the time to identify the behaviors and the emotions and what does performance look like to align with these values. However, at the beginning, we think that people do a really great job at it.

Speaker 3:

I think that's such a great start, and it is true that the organizations that we work with often have great leaders that are repeating a message, so that when, when we're interacting with members of the team, when we're interacting with members of members of the organization, there's almost a an understanding of everyone is kind of going in the same direction. I think it's sometimes the fine-tuning, because we're so familiar with the message and the intention for some of the alignment conversation. It's the fine tuning where it starts to feel like that's out of tune. There's something breaking down here, it doesn't match exactly where we're headed, and I think that allows us to get curious and start asking questions Well, is this just a person? Is this because of outside pressures or inside pressures? And I think that's part of the conversation that we want to have today.

Speaker 2:

And the reason why I want to start with this example is because if you are a part of a company or a part of a team and you've ever been a part of one of these meetings or an offsite event or an all-employee meeting where the values were shared, the vision was shared, the strategy was shared, just that experience alone does so much to the human psyche and the emotional side of who we are.

Speaker 2:

Because people are all gathered together, we're talking about the things that we believe in, we're amplifying the cause of why we're all showing up.

Speaker 2:

People feel great about that, they feel enthusiastic, they feel energized, they feel connected to each other, and usually these events are happening with people that we work with, creating greater social bonds and even elevating levels of trust. We're all going to go in the same direction. The reason why these sessions are so important is because it creates that kind of human-to-human connection that people need so much. Just that event itself is usually a time when people are emotionally invested, they are intellectually stimulated and they feel a sense of connection with their people, so that emotional and psychological memory. When you start to bend away from that, when things begin to maybe get a little off-center, people feel that first, before they recognize that the actual mode of work or not meeting our objectives is causing us to feel a sense of disconnection, a lack of harmony, a lack of synchronization, and that's really where people begin to sense that something's out of alignment, because they're feeling differently than when the initial expression of this is who we are happened.

Speaker 1:

So this is a great transition into this first side of the frame, part one, if you will, about organizational alignment, and I think we could all think of organizations that struggle with this misalignment between strategy, culture, execution, whatever it is, but perhaps share a couple indicators or markers that organizations use to know hey, we are aligned, we are all going in the same direction, these things are matching up. What should folks be looking for to elevate positive alignment, if you will?

Speaker 3:

I remember one of my mentors once saying to me that the speed of the leader is the speed of the team and I remember when he shared it with me I thought I don't even know what that means.

Speaker 3:

I can assume I know what it means and then we have seen it lived out and there are some examples that we have of partnerships with leaders who are so aligned and bought in to their vision or the collective vision of where the organization is going. That speed that that leader is taking indicates the speed of the organization and we've been working with an agency for a while now and as we have heard this leader speak and interact, we hear remnants of her voice at all levels of the organization and for me you can feel it as you walk around on the entire floor and even you can feel it when you talk to people in a Zoom call or in some sort of off-site meeting, and we find that a leading indicator of organizations that are very much aligned have a leader that is willing to walk the tightrope with their arms out, helping balance the whole organization.

Speaker 1:

So, linda, we're talking about organizational alignment. The second part, which we'll get to in a second, is leadership alignment. You just gave an example of the leader. Is this, that and the other thing, to know if your organizational is aligned? Help me understand why that's important.

Speaker 3:

Yes, and what I'd like to share is that how I see it as different. Share is that how I see it as different. The organizational alignment is this all-encompassing? What is the overall feel? Is the organization headed in the same direction, and that usually comes with a single leader, or usually single leader that paints that horizon so clearly that that's the motion or momentum that the rest of the org is taking. It's different than leadership alignment, because then it's not just a single leader but often a leadership team, whether it's executive, senior or even middle managers.

Speaker 2:

And.

Speaker 3:

I think that's the distinction we're making and that's why I think the leader's voice within organizational alignment is so critical.

Speaker 1:

Brian, what do you want to add to?

Speaker 2:

that. Now this is where my mind goes. When we ask the question about organizational alignment. I almost have this vision of people saying I'm all in for the cause and the purpose of what this organization stands for, that they step across that threshold from the outside world into the organization every day and they're saying I'm here to support this organization's cause because they feel that part of their identity is aligned with the organizational's alignments. How do we get there?

Speaker 2:

And I think that part of how we get there is that an organization is clear on their messaging Like this is who we are and this is what we're doing, the organization is able to say this is the direction that we're headed and they can support it and they know why.

Speaker 2:

Organizational alignment, I think, has a lot to do with the organization's understanding of how they got to where they are, cause that's the kind of cause knowing an organization's history, knowing an organization's track record people can you know, they can actually touch that, and that also reinforces whether they can trust the issue to take us into the future.

Speaker 1:

So give me some examples, like specific, from our clients. What does that actually look like to know the organization is aligned and going into the future?

Speaker 3:

It's talking to some of the staff that are going through an experience with us and we'll ask them how they arrived at the organization and they could say I read the mission statement on the website and I knew that's where I wanted to. You know where I wanted to be. The reputation of this organization made me feel that I could really contribute or add value. When people get excited about even the written documentation of who an organization aspires to be, it's almost a rallying cry to join in and be a part of that. Oftentimes then people will come in and be like wait a minute, this is not what I. I thought we were more of this and I think that's where we find that the executive director, the CEO, the person in charge, is saying this is where we're headed. It will take time to get there, but to be a part of this organization means you're aligned and you are even aligned in your ideals or purpose to be a part of the motion to get where we want to be.

Speaker 2:

Organizational alignment isn't intuitive. It's pretty pragmatic and practical. It's something that you can measure. It's something that you can see. Organizational alignment is being able to see how the risks that were taken have brought us to where we are and are keeping us heading in the right direction. And same thing with decisions.

Speaker 2:

Organizational alignment happens when the decisions that are being made are all kind of falling in the same direction. They're headed towards the same point on the horizon. Even the changes that are made, organizational alignment is seen when changes are actually adapting back towards an original vision or a solve or some type of opportunity that we're moving forward and we're kind of just nudging as we go. Nudging as we go, there's a synchronicity in the momentum because more than one person or more than one team is involved. That's when you know something is aligned within the organization is when people start to behave similarly. They kind of sound the same way. They're repeating some of the same language. That's some of the tells of organizational alignment. Interesting Even how people address, how people address how they show up the things they do for hobbies. I've seen organizational alignments and how people spend their free time. They kind of have the same kind of interests and that's always surprising me, but not surprising.

Speaker 2:

It's like well, of course they're going to have interests that are the same, because they're kind of doing the same kind of work.

Speaker 1:

So what you're saying is, if the employees are drinking the kool-aid or they understand, they can articulate it then you know that at the top, the organization has done something.

Speaker 2:

Yeah right there, if yeah if, if, if.

Speaker 1:

No employees at nike are actually wearing nike, something's wrong, but, as we know, most of them are all decked out on nike wherever they go okay there's something I mean, that's a different exactly, maybe a bad example, but you get the idea.

Speaker 2:

That's a great example. But just change the company name and we find, when organizations are aligned, people are acting, behaving, believing, in similar ways. The examples here are just abundant give a couple. We have some organizations where when there is a community event, celebration or something, they all show up everybody shows up. Not everybody, but most people show up. Yeah, that there's just they're involved in the events that say this is who we are. There are other organizations where they do look similar.

Speaker 2:

They kind of dress the same way and that kind of shows that we can be comfortable and serious and super smart. But we don't have to dress up to be here when work styles are similar, when people really try to meet their goals and the commitments that they made in a timely manner. We've seen organizations where you know that that level of work is expected. They play into it, and you have people there that have high achievers. They love to check things off their lists. They just have that kind of way of doing. We've been a part of organizations where there's humor there and I think that's part of what represents organizational alignment is that people have a certain way of having fun together, and those are all things that say you know what?

Speaker 3:

there's unity here among the people, and that's something to be celebrated Does that make sense, yeah, or the ways that they live out the values or the mission. So there are some organizations I'm thinking of where they dress sharply. I was going to say dress to the nines, but I don't even know exactly what that means.

Speaker 1:

I know what it means, but what does that mean?

Speaker 2:

Why not the tens? Nobody knows. Nobody knows, ten would be better or eleven. This one goes to eleven.

Speaker 3:

But dressed to the elevens, the volume only goes up to ten, unless you're in one movie. Anyhow, what movie is that?

Speaker 2:

It's not Space.

Speaker 3:

Spinal.

Speaker 2:

Tap. Spinal Tap Volume's up to eleven. Yeah, it's a special amp.

Speaker 3:

Okay. So there is an expectation, when certain people are visiting or certain presentations are happening, that people act, interact, dress up for that specific event. Or, once again, in the language, once again in how we detect Right, how we detect right, whether a level of excitement, once again it's not necessarily personality based, like everyone has to be wild and outgoing, but there's a sense of no. I see, I have a line of sight into how I can contribute, because I know what it means to be aligned.

Speaker 2:

So we're saying is it's important that organizations are aligned on their strategy, their culture, their vision, their values. It's also and that organizational alignment is also seen in many of the ways that people show up their work patterns, their interpersonal and social patterns. That's where you can also see organizational alignment. And the reason why I think this is so important is because when people feel like they're within those expectations or they're within those communities, they feel a greater sense of belonging. And then we also know that people that may not fit, for whatever reason, they'll also feel a dissonance because they don't feel they're a part of that inner circle or that community and culture.

Speaker 1:

So, like this, the first side of the frame, organizational alignment. The second side of the frame is leadership alignment, and that is really about the role of individual leaders in maintaining personal and strategic alignment. So, as we know, leadership starts at the top. And your earlier quote, linda, about what was it?

Speaker 3:

The speed of the leader determines it.

Speaker 1:

So how do you think leaders ensure that their values, their decisions, their actions and again we're talking about, you know, maybe the individual team leaders, not necessarily the CEO how do we ensure that that remains in sync? Maybe speak about it briefly, philosophically, and then share some examples.

Speaker 2:

Philosophically. We think it's important that leaders and leadership teams spend time reminding themselves of what it means to be aligned, reminding themselves of what their objectives are, what their big projects are, what they believe in. Because every time that you remind a leadership team or any team for that matter of why we're here and reminding people of why they're committed to the work, that increases the potential of social bonding that happens among that team. When that happens, people feel relationally closer to individuals because they feel that they, as a leadership team, are aligned. And the reason why I want to emphasize leadership team is because when that leadership team comes together, they're also bringing the teams that are reporting to them, the teams that they're leading and the people that they represent. And when people feel like they're risking together, not only is that trust elevating, but that responsibility to ensure that their teams are cared for. That also increases that social bond, that social connection.

Speaker 3:

Even if, and especially if, there's great diversity in those leadership team members.

Speaker 3:

So, for example, we worked with a group of three leaders who are leading, kind of on the leading edge of this organization.

Speaker 3:

They're going through a lot of change and these three leaders could not be more different and we did an exercise with them that we've done with other companies as well, and this exercise was name three words that describe the culture of the organization, and we gave them a little bit of time to think and this group of three came back with very similar words Once again, words out of their own experience and even ratings of how you know how good the culture is as well as then had them think about some of the aspirational values or ways that they would detect culture several months from now.

Speaker 3:

And same thing happened very much aligned Once again, different words and different examples, but this clarity and excitement was building as they were kind of nodding like, yeah, or actually I would fine tune it this way or I would edit this. Is that kind of what we're looking at. And that exercise really demonstrated to me that you can be very different people, different backgrounds, different motivations for even being in your role, and can be very much aligned, because what it allowed people, that group of three, what it allowed them to do, was to demonstrate what is okay and not okay to the rest of the organization, and what they were doing is almost closing the gap of the lack of alignment that there had been historically. So it was. It was an exciting.

Speaker 2:

And the reason why we're focusing on leadership alignment so much is not only do leaders represent their teams and the people's responsibilities and the organization responsibilities their teams have.

Speaker 2:

What we've also come to realize and seen over and over again, is that some of the executive leadership teams that we work with are the most diverse teams within an entire organization.

Speaker 2:

And when a leadership team learns how to become aligned, not just in what they're doing in their area of expertise, but aligned around how different each of these executive leaders are.

Speaker 2:

They're usually very different ethnically, culturally. Their education is very different, their levels of expertise are vastly different, and so the distance between the people is pretty great. When an executive leadership team learns how to work across those gaps, learns how to see the value of someone else's perspective and learns how to listen in different ways, when they understand what taking trust risks are, then when they lead their teams, they are uniquely equipped to deal with a team that is probably more aligned with their skill level, their background, because they've learned how to wrestle across greater differences. When they do lead their teams, they're better equipped for how to create a positive team culture where high trust is present, where people work through conflict and challenge in constructive ways and where people can know each other in unique ways level. Then they bring it to their teams and they know what to actually look for, what to expect and how to motivate when they're working with their specific teams of responsibility.

Speaker 2:

I believe, that big time.

Speaker 1:

I love that, and this is clearly part three then.

Speaker 3:

Yes.

Speaker 1:

How teams function when they are aligned and what happens when they're not. Do you think this is when they are aligned and what happens when they're not? Do you think this is, I don't want to say, the most important level or the most important place for this whole frame to work? Because, as we said, there's all, they're all connected. But when you think of the individual leader, when you think of the team as a whole, how, uh? What's my question here? Maybe be like how does a leader do that? Very specifically? You know, just buying matching shirts, doing lots of team dinners, like what are those hats? Okay, hats and shirts, the collection go together.

Speaker 2:

I like it well, nathan, this may not be in the podcast. I think the most important level is what the individual needs, professionally and emotionally, to feel like they are aligned, and the team environment is the context where someone finds their alignment. It's in that place, but it is the person saying you know what for me to feel aligned, these are some of the tactile things that I need. This is the kind of clarity that I need and it sounds like a very selfish question, but it's that that individual feeling safe enough to say I need to know how my contribution is actually helping us get to that deadline or I need to know that my opinion matters.

Speaker 2:

So when you talk, then look on the team. I think it's within the team where, when, when teams are aligned, people feel and experience three things, and we've seen this over and over again People feel seen, they feel heard and they feel understood. And when they, when those three things happen, those are some of the immediate indicators that there's a psychological safety happening on that team, where people know that they belong. Because when they talk, people listen. When people are feeling like they're really struggling emotionally, not only can they vent what they're feeling emotionally, but their leader actually hears with a sense of compassion that they're struggling with something, does that make sense?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it makes sense and it makes me think of some of the examples of where we've seen great team alignment and where we haven't. When a leader of a team can be succinct with that team about what the purpose is for that team, that contributes to the overall organizational alignment game over. When those team members understand that their work in finance helps the whole, when they understand that their work in IT helps the whole in selling, so on. Where we find alignment breakdown is often when that leader of a team you know maybe they're really aligned with the leadership team. Then they go to their team and be like well, I don't know how this is going to happen and if a leader gives excuses to team members of why they don't belong, or I guess this won't work.

Speaker 3:

That's where some of the fractures and fissures come. When it comes to alignment within a whole organization, it kind of bubbles up to that leadership level and teams. Then they can almost feel like this sense of energy growing, of like yeah, we're either way. They feel, feel this energy of like yep, and this is why we're different and it's never gonna work and we're gonna just sit over here and watch how this thing is gonna explode. Or they can say this is how I directly impact the mission, the values of the organization, and that's where catalytic breakthrough happens. Huh, that's really good.

Speaker 1:

So this then, linda, sounds immediately like going to part four the personal, interpersonal alignment how individuals manage their own well-being, how they're able to sustain high performance. I mean, this is everything from you know. How are you managing your own stress? How are you managing your own workload? How are you taking breaks when you need it? In some ways, I feel like this almost should be the starting point of this, but maybe not. Maybe there is no starting point, maybe they all happen distinctly. How does part four fit in with the whole?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I'm not sure it would be helpful to get into the chicken and the egg when it comes to what you need to do to get ready to be a contributing member to an organization, or how you're going to help individually be aligned and demonstrate that you're aligned and contribute to the alignment of the overall.

Speaker 3:

Sometimes there are individuals that have a lot of needs and sometimes it's the good leaders that look at those individuals and say I know you're not getting all your needs met.

Speaker 3:

I just need you to row in this direction.

Speaker 3:

This is where we're going and we find, with a lot of the leaders that we work with, when there is misalignment in the team or misalignment with individuals, really it comes down to a culture fit. Really it comes down to the leaders that are saying like, maybe I'm not, maybe I'm not going where everyone else is going anymore, and sometimes getting clear with do you have a line of sight to see how you belong to this organization, how you belong to the cause, how you belong to the future lean of wherever this org is heading? Do you find meaning in the day-to-day, do you understand why you're here, that there's often this cognitive leap that happens that just says yep, even though I don't have all my needs met, even though I haven't maybe slept the best, or I have pressures at home or conflicting needs around in my environment. So sometimes I think it just for leaders, for individuals, it begins with getting clear in why you belong and why you want to be a part of this in the first place. Why are you, what are you thinking about as you're?

Speaker 1:

listening to me. That was good. Wow, very good, brian. What would you add to that?

Speaker 3:

Don't act so surprised.

Speaker 1:

Oh my gosh, can you believe what she just did, doctor?

Speaker 3:

Well, why Explain why this is what we live and breathe?

Speaker 2:

I believe all that you said. It's really, really important. It wasn't what I was thinking, but it's important for a person to be able to ask and answer those questions and to give themselves whatever time it takes to arrive at that place, because I believe that that's so important to how someone shows up. I was just thinking about alignment before someone shows up.

Speaker 3:

Oh, tell us more about that, oh.

Speaker 1:

Oh, you can't just say that and then be like wait why?

Speaker 3:

I was gonna say something really brilliant, but I'll wait for it.

Speaker 2:

No, I was thinking about a person being aligned before they show up.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, talk about that.

Speaker 2:

When an organization is aligned. I feel that I often see people who are aligned and we work with teams where we feel that the team isn't functioning in alignment. I often hear that individuals kind of question like there's some things about their life that are not aligned either. And so I really believe that this question about alignment it kind of settles into how aligned are we as individuals, like how self-aware are we? What do we need so that we can arrive in an emotionally stable state, like what does that alignment look like? What are some of the self-care practices that we engage in so that we're promoting our own well-being? I'm like what does that look like? And oftentimes we only pay attention to that when things seem to be out of alignment. Then we think about what are the adjustments I need to make?

Speaker 2:

But oftentimes it's just that simple consistency of ensuring that each of us are aligned, whether that's in an intellectual way, relational way, physical way, emotional way. In an intellectual way, relational way, physical way, emotional way. Because when we have that sense of alignment within ourselves, that means that our stress levels are low, our cortisol levels are low, before we arrive into an organization or a team where there could be stress and tension and anxiety. There we're more able to adapt. We may be better equipped to handle the stress outside if we feel like we're aligned with who we are as individuals. I believe that when people are aligned with their own identity, then they then have a choice of how they want to express themselves in the world within which they work with the people. That they work for the betterment of others because they know what they themselves need. Because I know personally I'm sure that the two of you can attest to that that when I feel like I'm out of alignment, it may be felt by others or heard by other people.

Speaker 3:

What does that tell me more.

Speaker 2:

What does that tell me more? So, when individuals prioritize their health and their wellbeing, I feel that people are aligned themselves. When we have a more healthy, more aligned individual, show up to a team that can promote others to align more quickly, because we trust one another to be able to know and care for each other as is needed, and we also know that context can shapeshift all of that.

Speaker 3:

So, I've seen the other angle, where someone comes in and they're really grounded and they've been taking care of themselves and they're ready to just go, and the intensity of the environment, the pressures from the outside, the pressures of the industry, began to erode that individual alignment. And I think that's why individual alignment is only a part of the four sides, knowing that, okay, as an individual, I'm starting to feel crushed, but what can I do as a member of the team? What can'm starting to feel crushed, but what can I do as a member of the team? What can I do to help my leader, what can I do to help the overall organization or repeat the messages of what the executive director is speaking? So?

Speaker 3:

So sometimes it just really like people can get crushed in the alignment and I think then sometimes people are blamed, blamed for the pressures and the things that are outside of our control. Then I think we get closer to knowing that, okay, how do I prepare differently, not how do I just run a little bit more and eat a few more vegetables, but how I mean it does help a lot. Sleeping also helps. However, there are times when you just need a higher level call detecting how you act in an emergency, how you act when there's a sense of urgency. It's do or die, and we do find that, no matter how poorly you might be aligned, if you care about your team members, if you care about the organization, there are times where we see the best from humanity.

Speaker 2:

One of the things that Linda said is abundantly true is that people often lose track of their own well-being to be aligned with an organization because that culture has such a strong pull Psychologically, neurologically. There is such a strong need for a human being to belong to something that they're likely to sacrifice some of their own unique behavioral patterns and preferences to belong, even though they know that by surrendering or giving up a sense of being healthy for themselves to belong, they have a stronger need to belong than for self-care.

Speaker 2:

It's like that guy that cut his leg off with a pocket knife. Like I need to live.

Speaker 3:

Okay, maybe that's a bad example. Was it his arm?

Speaker 1:

Yeah, it was the 87 hours movie, but that's interesting because don't you think we all sacrifice a little something to be in relationship with others? I mean, certainly parents do that.

Speaker 2:

Certainly.

Speaker 3:

Oh, you're looking at each other with the loving eyes.

Speaker 2:

There's so much Sacrifice, sacrifice daily.

Speaker 1:

Is how do you know if you're aligned with, like it's okay that I don't always get to eat where I want to eat when we go out. That's okay, because sometimes I do and I would rather make my family happy. You know, you could probably get a work example in there, a lot of work examples in there, and so it's interesting to think about for the individual. Are you healthy enough that you know what your hills?

Speaker 1:

proverbial hill to die on is versus, like you know what, I actually don't care about the color of the flowers in the lobby or whatever.

Speaker 3:

Sometimes people see the word alignment and they think compromise, or they think it's all or nothing or this is what it means, and I think compromise is good. But there's also the give and take, and so it's not compromising who you are, not compromise your contribution, not compromising why you even showed up to this organization or this team in the first place.

Speaker 3:

So, when I think about alignment, I think that we're not always aligned, and so it's how do you, what kind of levers can you pull whether organizationally, as a team, leadership, individual in order to promote greater alignment? I think that's really the heart of what we're inviting people to think about.

Speaker 1:

And I think from this conversation and if you look at the show notes, you'll see it all written out. But this idea that there's four parts to get everything aligned is not just the CEO has to have a really good mission and vision statement, it's not just that you have to have a really great leader or a great team or all the people, it's just it all works together. And to your earlier point, linda, we don't need to talk about the chicken or the egg here. It's kind of all happens at once. It all happens first and it all happens second, and it's not easy.

Speaker 1:

And it's not easy. I was listening to uh u2 songs of surrender album recently where they've all their popular songs. They've rewritten some of the lyrics and there's a lyric in beautiful day that I actually looked up and it's a quote from a mexican poet laughter is the evidence of freedom. And I was like, oh, that's interesting. I wonder if that's why I like laughing so much and like you are so free.

Speaker 1:

making other people laugh is because it's an indicator of something else, an indicator of alignment, that when I am aligned with myself, with my team, it means that, I don't know, I laugh more. Maybe it is laughter, Maybe it's I sleep better and I'm not falling asleep at four o'clock in the afternoon or whatever that is. Perhaps that's some homework we can give our listeners is to think about. You know, for me personally, Nathan as an individual, Nathan as a team leader, Nathan as you know, any one of these four things.

Speaker 1:

What is that indicator of alignment for me Off the top of your heads, brian and Linda? Do you have something that you would say for either one of you is? I know that I'm aligned in my job, in my life, whatever. If this one particular thing is present, if I'm, does any of that make sense?

Speaker 3:

Mm-hmm and you.

Speaker 2:

Those are all the things I can't say.

Speaker 1:

All the things you can't say. I know Brian does not want to make this negative.

Speaker 2:

No, this is not negative, because I spend a lot of my time observing what's aligned in my life and how I feel.

Speaker 1:

Okay, um, where is this going?

Speaker 3:

I know I'm I'm sitting back and waiting.

Speaker 2:

Let me ease into this.

Speaker 1:

Okay, here we go.

Speaker 2:

The other day we were in a meeting with a CEO and a CFO and it was clear from the moment the cameras were on that these two were aligned. Their facial expressions were the same. When they got serious, they both if one got passionate about the vision, the other one did too. It's like they were finishing each other's sentences and they were just talking about others that agreed the same way. No matter what the level of the organization, you knew that they were aligned in those same direction. They were complimentary of each other.

Speaker 2:

We've been in other conversations just this week where you can tell that they're not aligned by the language that they're using, how they talk about their team members, the questions that they ask, the amount of stress they're bringing in the conversation. Both of these examples points to where I'm going. People pay attention to what is reinforcing their feeling that they're aligned yeah, and people pay attention to when they're not aligned. They can name them. Then the important thing is then what do you do with that information? Linda and I have a lot of conversations about the way that we're feeling and things that are happening in our lives, about you know that were that reflect whether we're in alignment or not on the meta level, you know, do we have a consistency in getting away and going on vacation?

Speaker 2:

that's alignment even to like having healthy meals. That's alignment for me personally. Like I sometimes feel the most aligned when you know I'm in an environment where there, I'm surrounded by competitive athletes, we're working out together and there's a sense of unity there, um, like you're in a lane of a pool with six other people and you're just like you're killing it with each other. I just love that sense of like we're on the same page. You know we're working together. We don't have to say why we're there, you just know it. And when you're on a team where that happens too, when we show up somewhere and we know that that team is driven, no matter how intense the situation is or how difficult the lifting is, you can just feel that this group is about one thing they're creating something really important. They're willing to make the sacrifices for themselves and for their teams because they're just aligned on what needs to be done. You can just feel it and that to me, you can just feel it, and that, to me, is important on all levels.

Speaker 2:

I don't know. That was a long answer to. I don't even know what the question was.

Speaker 3:

No but.

Speaker 1:

I think it speaks to.

Speaker 3:

I think sometimes in business.

Speaker 1:

We want a number, we want an indicator that this is working, that this is aligned, be that an know, an roi, a blah blah, blah number, whatever. And there's some element of this that it's more art than science, that you can to your point, you can feel it, you can uh, you know, you're laughing more. Like there's just there's a certain things. Like we were just traveling with another family to disneyland and there was alignment in how we were navigating the parks, like you could just kind of feel it. There wasn't ever the stress or pressure to run to the next ride, but there was also an urgency because we wanted to do a lot and the two families were just really in sync and aligned in a way that just felt good. It wasn't like, okay, let's sit down, all right, we're going to do this at this time, and it just kind of worked.

Speaker 1:

And I wonder, sometimes in business it's harder because there's obviously more people and there's more on the line, but you have to sort of know each other well enough. We know these families, this family from these things. It speaks to some of that trust stuff Put in the work to get to know these people at a personal level. So, on your team. How are you doing that? Make sure that you understand what your organization is about, what they stand for. And then I don't know, and also I think you know, there's a preschool at the end of our street has a giant sign out that says progress, not perfection. And how often is that?

Speaker 2:

Yes.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, yeah. How often is that? Do we need that as a reminder in all of life that we're just, we're progressing towards alignment. It doesn't have to be perfect, but we're moving the needle towards a more aligned personal, interpersonal, team, organization level.

Speaker 3:

I think every time we get aligned is the is an opportunity for like some wheel to fall off. So for me, if what?

Speaker 1:

yeah to yeah, it's not very positive yeah well, no, get, so get this well, that's kind of extreme.

Speaker 3:

But, nathan, in your question of you know what are some of the indicators for us? I thought if my check engine light comes on it's usually because I'm not having fun.

Speaker 1:

You're not driving fast enough. You mean In your car.

Speaker 3:

No, in me.

Speaker 2:

That's why I think how we check in light comes on, you go faster. Well, in my car, that's what happens.

Speaker 3:

But in my life, if I would look at how aligned I am to the work I'm doing, who I'm doing the work with and how I'm individually aligned. It could be that I'm just out of sync. It could be not actually find hard work very fun, very exhausting as well. So for me, that's my indicator, and I think we all have one, and I think it would look different for some people. So if I'm not having fun, it's like oh, which area do I need to focus on to bring back that kind of alignment?

Speaker 3:

Because, like you're saying, nathan's, it's not alignment that you arrive at yeah it is a maintenance that happens, it is a shape-shifting, it is making sure that you're making progress, and I would say that we still drive for some level of perfection, but totally anyway, you still try for sure the.

Speaker 1:

The other thing I'm reminded of, and not to just kill our listeners with metaphors but if you play an instrument, you can get it perfectly aligned. Take a guitar, for example. You get all six strings perfectly aligned and in tune. But the more you play it it just naturally goes out of tune and you have to play. If you're not going to play it, what's the point of tuning it? So with a team you can be like okay, we're perfectly in line, Don't touch it. But that's not what you're supposed to do. An instrument is supposed to be played. It's supposed to get out of tune and a little wonky every once in a while, because that means you're learning, you're making progress. Then you take some time and get out the tuner Ding ding, ding, ding ding.

Speaker 3:

Next one.

Speaker 1:

It's a little annoying If you're on stage. Everyone's got to wait, but it's part of the process.

Speaker 3:

Guitar lessons at the preschool for progress. That is my favorite story.

Speaker 1:

This is a long podcast here.

Speaker 2:

That's a really good metaphor you like that?

Speaker 1:

It just came to me, brian Linda. Thank you so much, this is fun, thank you, it's always fun. That's a really good metaphor. You like that? I just, I just it just came to me in my. Brian Linda, thank you so much, this is fun, Thank you, it's always fun. It's always fun. And thank you, listeners, for listening to the Leadership Vision Podcast, our show helping you build positive team culture.

Speaker 1:

If you found value from any of this, we'd appreciate it if you could share it with someone that you think might benefit from learning more about alignment or any of our other resources at leadershipfishingconsultingcom, about helping you become a stronger leader yourself, about having a more aligned team or an organization that is clicking on all cylinders. And just one thing, kind of final reflection, something to think about what is one area that you're going to focus on this week around these ideas of alignment? Is it your personal well-being? Is it your role on a team? Maybe you have a higher level or higher role of an organization, and then I guess the other thing I would pose to you is also the same question I did to Brian and Linda on the spot is what is an indicator that you're in alignment in any one of those areas. So report back. Think about that, let us know. You can send me an email, nathanleadershipvisionconsultingcom, or just share it on our website comments area on social media. Wherever that is, my name is Nathan Friberg.

Speaker 3:

I'm Linda Schubring.

Speaker 1:

And I'm Brian Schubring. And on behalf of our entire team, thanks for listening listening ooh, that was very in line. I think that we really what note was that?

Speaker 2:

D.