Over the weekend at IMD, we had the experience of a lifetime. I don’t think any of us will forget the High-Performance Leadership program facilitated by Professor George Kohlrieser. It was truly a transformational program with so many eye-opening moments.
The High-Performance Leadership program aims to develop and improve emotional intelligence skills. This in turn helps leaders to discover how to engage in high performance relationships with their teams. The program introduced numerous role-play opportunities:
- managing dialogue and conflicts
- influencing and persuading
- dealing with conflicts and negotiations
- channeling grief as a source of strength
- finding our secure bases as leaders
Professor Kohlrieser’s career and life experiences brought a unique perspective to the program. As a clinical psychologist, hostage negotiator and a four-time hostage himself, he was able to introduce new models. Using these will help us in leading and managing high-performing teams in future.
“Put the fish on the table”
This statement from Professor Kohlrieser will definitely continue to echo in our minds in the foreseeable future. He highlighted the importance of bringing up hidden issues and causes of toxicity during situations of conflict and dialogue both in personal and professional scenarios.
The weekend was full of deep reflections and some teary moments. Professor Kohlrieser definitely provoked our emotions during the session on grief. This focused on how to work with grief in breaking down walls and enabling bonding. The session got quite emotional when we started to open up to fellow classmates, sharing stories about struggling with grief and loss. Understanding how bottling up secret battles can limit our performance and ability to bond was an eye-opener. From the experience, some of us discovered the immediate relief of sharing stories and finding closure.
As the session came to a close, one of the important reminders which many of us will hold on to is the importance of freeing ourselves from emotional and psychological bondage. The widely used line by Nelson Mandela from Invictus rings true,
“I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul”
We have the power of choice. We decide how to react and exercise control over our feelings and life regardless of the prevailing circumstances.
Looking forward to attending the full 5-day program soon.
