Walking the Talk
This morning’s post is a bit of a diversion from our usual things all related to medical transcription and healthcare documentation. The past week has been a strange one for me, lots of things going on, and I’ve been in one of those deep thinking moods for a bit now. I also realized from many of the postings on Facebook that our leaders in our professional association are in Washington, DC, this week for the advocacy summit. In addition, of course, no matter what side you stand on with healthcare reform, we saw some monumental things happen this week in our government. Note this post isn’t to tell you if I think those are good or bad, simply to reflect on leadership and my thoughts for the week.
I have been a long time fan of the company Simple Truths. They do some great inspirational books, some awesome short movies, and I just love their things. People who have worked with me will remember that we often did things for MT week and the holidays with inspirational sayings on them, and that’s where those things come from. This morning, I am having my coffee from one of the mugs I got from there with this saying on it: “Dare to Soar: Your attitude almost always determines your altitude in life.” Isn’t that a powerful statement?
My email this morning contained a short video from Simple Truths that I would like to share with you today, along with a challenge from me. It’s about leaders and the need to “walk the talk.” In some area of our lives, each of us is a leader. It may be in your own home with family, children; it may be in your work place and with your coworkers; it may be with the professional associations you belong to; it may be with your friends. Remember that leadership doesn’t mean title or position, it simply is what it is. People tend to follow leaders who live by their values. Because of that, it’s important to walk the talk. When leaders fail to live by their values, it impacts everyone around them. I’m sure you have seen that in your own lives, I certainly have. And while I’d love to say I’ve always managed to be true to my values, I must say I’m simply human and haven’t always managed to do that. Most of the time, yes, but sometimes it is a challenge. Sometimes we slip.
Take just three minutes today to watch this video. It speaks to walking the talk. How does it challenge you? What might you do differently as you think on these things? I will look forward to your responses!
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Tagged with: Goals • leadership • leading with integrity • writing your life story
Filed under: Goals • Professional Development
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Kathy,
This just made me realize how important it is that I pay attention to my attitude and actions every minute, because my 2-year-old daughter is watching me every minute and absorbing everything! I want her to grow up to “walk the talk,” and the only way that is going to happen is for me to do it!
Thanks for the video.
Irene
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Kathy Reply:
March 23rd, 2010 at 11:19 am
Irene, great point. Sometimes we get so tied up in our professional lives that we forget our families are also watching what we do. It is only through leading by example and with integrity that our kids will get it.
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I thought the movie was great, and I would like to be able to forward this to some people I know in email. How can I do this? I believe the “Walking the Talk” is something that should be shared with everyone, and it would be a good thing to be sharing with elementary school classes also! It’s important to start building “character” at a very early age…in fact, BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE! Commitment, Honesty, Accountability, Respect, Courage, Ethics and Integrity may be “just pretty words,” but without them it’s like you will never stand for anything with any amount of credibility, you will never really be trusted because others may think your words are as shifty as sand in the desert. Without all of these things together, we might not get the kind of respect we all want from others. They are pretty words, but what a pity if we don’t hang onto them for all they are worth and WORK WITH THEM for all the benefit we can get while we are on this earth? It’s the right thing to do!
Sherry Evans
Sherry Evans
[Reply]
Kathy Reply:
March 23rd, 2010 at 11:19 am
Sherry, I emailed you the link. You are so right that it DOES matter and we can’t start soon enough to instill character.
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