Leadership from behind the throne

My favourite character in West Wing, is President Bartlet's Chief of Staff, Leo McGarry, the behind-the-scenes fixer, loyal right hand person, whatever you want to call him.

I was thinking the other day about the various times over the years when I've gone for promotions and not got them. Or stood for elections and lost. In the context of politics, it’s common to make a leadership bid and then have to work with the victor if you lose. You're still been on the team, but now it's being led by the person who got the role you went for.

Years ago, I was Exec Director at a charity which lost its Chief Executive unexpectedly. The trustees thought it would be a good idea to interview all of the executive directors for the interim role while they decided what to do. I didn't get it. My colleague did. She was in the office next to mine and I remember going into her room to congratulate her. I told her not to worry and that I wasn't going to be weird. It broke the ice and we're still close friends. In fact, I offered to help her in any way I could. Which led to me taking on more responsibility and learning and leading and it felt good to be part of the solution.

You don’t play against the guys like I have to

I was really sad to see the comments about the Williams sisters in Jane Campion's acceptance speech at the Critics Choice Awards. It just felt so odd and unnecessary.

Interesting and useful links 🖇️

The Sheila McKechnie Foundation new guide, It's All About Power, is published here.

There are some great resources on the ACAS web site. Here's a useful one: How to deal with a problem raised by an employee.

And Scope launched the new Disability Equality Awards

Learning points 🎓

Don't just say you need an EDI plan, ask yourself why you need an EDI plan?

Day of the Week 📆

It was St Patrick's Day in the week. Clare and I visited Downpatrick last summer, site of his last resting place.

What am I reading? 📚

I'm reading Jenny Diski's collection of essays, Why didn't you just do what you were told? at the moment. She got me at the title, tbh!

What am I watching? 👀

We just started watching the new series of Ozark and it took us a while to realise that the reason Ruth seemed so familiar, is that Julia Garner also plays Anna Sorokin in Inventing Anna.

Two very different and brilliant roles.

What am I listening to?👂

I love this rendition of Talking about a Revolution by Daisy Chute

Joy-giving things 😍

Here's a whole collection of cheery social media accounts for you to have a look at.

Have a good weekend. Sending love

Lucy x

If it’s your first time reading this newsletter, find out more about me here.

I write this newsletter because I believe in sharing ideas that help us work towards a truly equal world, particularly in the workplace.

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ChangeOut is created by Lucy Caldicott. You can find more about my work at ChangeOut.org. If you’re looking to have a chat about culture, leadership, purpose, equity, or a facilitated team discussion about any of those things, get in touch. You can also find me on Bluesky, Instagram, and, LinkedIn.

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