development principles

Confucius writes: “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is the noblest; second, by imitation, which is the easiest; and third, by experience, which is the bitterest.”

The most important thing a leader can have is space to get up on the balcony and just quietly observe the dance floor below, reflecting on how her team is interacting, how they are flowing, how they need to flow for the future, and what direction they need to travel. Time out is essential to slow the brain, and leaders do not get enough of it. Mettle knows how to facilitate this time out so that the most powerful forms of innovation and collaboration occur and the leader’s self-awareness is continuously challenged in a safe and down-to-earth environment.

We base our leadership development design on the latest findings on what elicits behaviour change—findings that now incorporate even the neurosciences. These findings argue that behaviour change will occur when three conditions are present: 

1. The individual comes to the insights themselves about the types of behaviour change required of them to support the desired strategy and culture
   
   
2. These insights often occur in a workshop where leaders are able to quiet their minds (slow down their brain wave frequency) and get up on the balcony to look at the patterns that are shifting on the dance floor and how they need to respond
   
   
   
   • The individual needs to visualise the benefits of the change themselves and believe that it is highly possible to make these changes
     
     
   • Research from pain relief shows us the power of simply believing that pain can be reduced. People who believed that they were getting real pain reduction medication were actually given placebos. It was noted that there was a change in the pain sensation circuitry and chemistry of their brain and, over time, the new pain sensations pathways will become more and more “cemented” despite the fact that the pain relief was a placebo.
     
     
3. An individual’s behaviour is reinforced constantly by those who practise them on a day-to-day basis. Leadership workshops are effective for generating the initial inspirational insight for behaviour change. However, to make behaviour change stick, regular coaching and observation is required in situ—meaning on the job