Hi, we’re Helen Zink and Dr Cathryn Lloyd. We work closely with leaders and teams, and we know that leaders face an array of challenges. We’re sharing a series of 10 coaching superpowers for leaders to experiment with.
We’ve broken them down into two categories:
5 Mindset superpowers: How you think and show up.
5 Behavioural superpowers: What you do, your actions.
These superpowers often blend together.
⭐ Superpower 3: character
Who you are impacts the way you lead a team. Character in leadership is the foundation of trust, integrity, and consistency. It’s about leading with values, making principled decisions even when it's hard, and being accountable. It’s not about perfection; it’s about showing up with authenticity, making the hard calls with integrity, and owning mistakes as much as successes.
Leaders with strong character and a clear moral compass inspire confidence, and help to create a culture of psychological safety, and positive impact. All vital in effective teams.
A few ways to deepen understanding of your own character:
💡 Articulate your values: Core principles that define you.
💡 Tune into discomfort: When you feel uneasy or out of alignment, check in.
💡 Identify triggers: Situations that seem to test you consistently, what’s under the surface.
This superpower is linked to superpower one, self-awareness. Leading with character requires high levels of self-awareness and self compassion.
📌 Practical tip - character check-ins
As part of your regular self-reflection routine (refer to superpower one), take time to review key events and recall how you felt in those moments. What emotions arise as you reflect? Are there any physical sensations or discomfort? These could indicate a misalignment between your character, values, ethics and actions.
Consider: how can you adjust your approach next time to align more closely with your values?
Small exercises like this help you become a more thoughtful and curious leader. Stay tuned as we share more coaching superpowers.
We’d love to hear how you are experimenting and applying these ideas.
Image: Cathryn Lloyd
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