Introducing: The Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC) - Save 50% During Launch Phase
Every week, you’ll get insights and actionable steps to help you navigate personal growth and professional success.
Over the past week, we’ve delved deep into Brené Brown’s “Dare to Lead,” exploring how its four key skills apply to the challenging world of city management. As we wrap up this series, let’s bring these threads together and envision what truly daring leadership can look like in our municipalities.
Let’s recap the four crucial skills we’ve explored:
We’ve journeyed through vulnerability, values, and trust in our exploration of Brené Brown’s “Dare to Lead.” Today, we tackle the final crucial skill: Learning to Rise. The ability to bounce back from setbacks is the crescendo that brings the entire symphony of leadership together…and as someone who’s tasted the dirt at the bottom of the valley, I’m rooting for your bouncebacks to be far higher than you can even imagine.
Brown describes ‘Learning to Rise’ as the ability to get back up after a fall, face hurt in a way that brings more wisdom, and reset faster after disappointments. For city managers, this skill is not just beneficial—it’s essential. In the unpredictable and often harsh world of municipal leadership, setbacks are not a possibility; they’re a certainty.
For a city manager, learning to rise might look like:
In our journey through Brené Brown’s “Dare to Lead,” we’ve explored vulnerability and living into our values. Today, we tackle the third crucial skill: Braving Trust. From the lens of my experience as a leader and executive coach, I’ve observed trust functioning as the fulcrum upon which the entire balance of effective city management teeters.
Brown defines trust as “choosing to make something important to you vulnerable to the actions of someone else.” As a city manager, trust is the invisible thread that weaves together your team, your relationship with elected officials, and your connection with the community. It’s not just about being reliable; it’s about creating an environment where risks can be taken, difficult conversations can be had, and innovation can flourish.
For a city manager, braving trust might look like:
In our last post, we explored the power of vulnerability in city management. Today, we’re diving into the second skill Brené Brown highlights in “Dare to Lead”: Living into Our Values. In my own leadership journey and now as an executive coach working with city managers, I’ve seen firsthand how clearly defined and consistently applied values can transform leadership and organizational culture. Sadly, I’ve also seen how the values that hang from the wall alongside the mission statement are often mere words, never used to foster a thriving culture or drive desired results.
Brown defines values as “a way of being or believing that we hold most important.” In city management, your values are your north star, guiding decisions and actions even in the stormiest political waters. They’re not just words on a plaque in City Hall; they’re the principles you embody every day, in every interaction and decision.
For a city manager, living into your values might look like:
As city managers, you’re often expected to have all the answers, to be infallible decision-makers steering municipalities through calm and stormy seas alike. But what if I told you that the key to more effective leadership lies not in perfection but in vulnerability? This might sound counterintuitive, but it’s a core principle in Brené Brown’s groundbreaking book, “Dare to Lead.”
Brown defines vulnerability as “the emotion we experience during times of uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure.” She argues that far from being a weakness, vulnerability is our most accurate measure of courage. It’s about showing up and being seen, even when there are no guarantees.
In the context of city management, vulnerability might look like: