You Should Consider Proximity Essential to Your Leader Design

Visual proximity establishes a relationship with things nearby and helps the viewer make sense of what they see more quickly. Elements mutually exchange meaning and weight with other elements they are proximate to.

As a leader, we need proximity to a community of people around us. The lone ranger leader won’t last very long. Having people in our life helps us grow and helps keep us honest.

We all have blind spots, areas of our lives where we’re missing, but we don’t see it. Sadly these areas are often painfully obvious to others.

Priority in Proximity

You can’t be besties with everyone. It’s normal to have different levels of people with whom you maintain proximity.

I have two guys I connect with weekly or every other week. We share what is happening in our lives and pray for each other. We keep one another honest and accountable to the priorities we have established.

We talk about work, we talk about family, we talk about faith. We reflect back to one another how we’re doing at keeping alignment in these different areas of our lives.

I have a broader group that I don’t connect with as regularly and deeply, but I still ask for their feedback regularly. Then I have coworkers who I see almost every day but engage at varying levels of depth.

The frequency and depth of these relationships ebbs and flows through different seasons of life.

The depth and length of relationships, and the type and quality of interactions vary a lot from person to person and over time. Who we are proximate with is dynamic. It may be that your proximity to someone else is just for a short season in leadership.

It’s not just about being around others. It’s about being transparent, honest, and open. It’s about time together. Some friends live in different cities, but I would say I have a high level of proximity to them because we connect both regularly and intentionally.

Who is Your Leadership Community?

As you think about who you have proximity to as a leader, I encourage you to look at it through three categories:

1. Who you’re following.
2. Who you’re journeying with.
3. Who you’re guiding.

Want to go a step further. Think back through past seasons. Who played critical roles in your life and leadership during those times?

Who you spend time with will shape you as a leader. Your leadership community can be your leadership super power.

How are you doing in each area? Is one a little thin or too infrequent?

Right now, write down an action step to grow in one of these areas. Got your action? Now send a text to make it happen. Schedule a call or coffee with the person you just identified.

Sometime we serendipitously find community. But most of the time it requires intentional sustained action.