Hello Friends,

I've been watching the tiny little blossoms on the bulbs pop out and marveling at what a miracle is present when Mother Natures gives us the first signs of Spring . Imagine those crusty little bulbs buried under all that dirt, surviving torrential rains and freezing temperatures, and then one day these gorgeous, fragrant flowers burst out like popcorn.  I'd like to share a metaphor of how this relates to me personally and my on-going discovery of what it takes to live a contextual leadership life.

While I never have thought of myself as a perfectionist I do have VERY high expectations of myself and others. When something goes 'wrong' at work, even little meaningless stuff, I generally get annoyed and have a 'tizzy fit.' While I generally try to keep my reactions to myself it spreads all over my team like a virus. They tend to get nervous or cautious about my mood and start questioning themselves about what they may have done wrong.

That is not an environment that I want for my team or me. When I took a closer look at what the prevailing context was that produced the outcome of 'tizzy fits' and disempowered team, I realized that it was something like "mistakes are bad and they shouldn't happen." Now of course I know better than to believe that mistakes are bad and they shouldn't happen but left to my unconscious default context, that is what happens on my shift. This is like those crusty little bulbs of my true intentions buried under all that dirt, surviving torrential rains and freezing temperatures and years of habitual 'tizzy fits.'

Having discovered the downside of that prevailing context, and the behavior and impact that it has, I chose to 'trade up.' My new context is "It's just a hiccup on the road to excellence!" This gives me a whole new freedom to 'be' with breakdowns and not have 'tizzy fits' or dump them on my team. I'm very excited about the new possibilities and have asked my team to give me reminders about hiccups. I'm excited about blossoming as a better leader and giving my team a bigger field in which to make their contribution. Thank goodness that we all have the capacity to 'trade up!'

As I mentioned in my last newsletter we are undergoing some very exciting staff changes in 2004 and in addition to the ones mentioned last issue, we are blessed to have Helen Waters on board as our new Director of Consulting Services. Helen comes to us with a stellar background in many business disciplines including finance, operations, and management consulting. Helen brings both a brilliant mind and a playful sense of humor to IWL so she fits into our culture very well and is a real hit with clients. Please feel free to contact directly if you would like to know about our new and improved consulting services.

Another wonderful addition to our team is Jody daSilva. Jody is a very seasoned business leader and leadership trainer with many years and thousands of satisfied customers to her credit. is training to be the first person to lead the Women Leading Change program without me and I couldn't feel better about her capability. I will be co-leading with Jody for awhile but then she will lead solo as we wrap up 2004.

Jody and I will be co-presenting a session at the upcoming Women in Technology International (WITI) conferences throughout the US. The session is titled, 'Transforming Your Future' and will be conducted in Houston (May 5-6) San Jose (June 8-9) and Chicago (October 20-21). IWL alums will receive a special 5% individual discount to any of WITI's conferences in 2004 if you notify our office in advance of registering.

IWL will also have a booth at the upcoming Professional Business Women of California (PBWC) conference on May 4th at Moscone Center in San Francisco . Please stop by to say hello and pick up your nametag star that identifies you as an IWL alumnae. We are always looking for ways to connect you with other alumni in hopes of being a resource for each other.

Our Women Leading Change (WLC) program will be breaking new ground in Alaska in late April. We have been hired by a large energy company to conduct an in-house program for their women employees as well as a few scholarships for some native Alaskan women. We hope to be there in time to witness the Northern Lights as well as the transformation of the community as it integrates the skills of Contextual Leadership.

Our Executives Leading Sustainable Change (ELSC) has received a great deal of publicity not only because it was the cover story on the award-winning San Jose Mercury News business section but it was picked up by the Knight-Ridder wire service and made appearances In major newspapers all over the US. We now have been approached by both a local and a national television news show to do a special segment on the leadership work with horses. Our WLC alumna and business colleague, Ariana Strozzi-Heckler, will be featured in this groundbreaking work of 'equine education.'

We have been approached by the Centre for Business Dynamics School of Management, University of the Free State in South Africa which is in the process of establishing the 'South African Women's Leadership Institute.' They are seeking expertise and collaboration from experts around the world specifically relating to training and are extremely impressed with what IWL has to offer. I'll tell you more about this as it unfolds but at the very least we may be able to claim the presence of Contextual Leadership on yet another continent!

2004 promises to be the best year ever for IWL in so many ways. We are excited about the growth opportunities that await us as well as the ongoing privilege of being a resource to you and your organization. Please drop me a line and let me know what is new and exciting in your life and especially if there is any support you need in living a rich and rewarding life while you make the contribution you are destined to make.

With love and gratitude,

Rayona Sharpnack
President
Institute for Women's Leadership