One of the people who was incredibly generous and helpful to Anthony when he launched his book recently was a woman he had heard about but didn’t really know, Lolly Daskal. Lolly helped promote the book, wrote articles about it, and more - which shows a bit of the type of person she is. Lolly has a new book coming out, herself - The Leadership Gap: What Gets Between You and Your Greatness - and Anthony highly recommends that everyone grab a copy of it. What he loves most about Lolly’s book is that she artfully weaves together stories and data to show that every leader has “shadows” within themselves that inhibit their most effective leadership and that those who deal with those shadows wisely and well will rise to the levels of greatness they truly desire. You’ll enjoy this insightful conversation, so be sure to listen.

The leadership gap is real. Great leaders will admit it and go to work on it.
When Lolly Daskal talks about the “leadership gap” she’s referring to the things about each of us that hold us back from being the best leaders we can be. Saying a statement of that sort is asking for immediate resistance, but Lolly says that the leaders who really get the importance of what’s being said don’t push back, they embrace it as true and get to work on it. Find out how Lolly has outlined her thoughts through the use of 7 archetypes and what she says leaders today need to do in order to step into their greatness, on this episode of In The Arena.
Confidence doesn’t come from affirmations, it comes from capabilities + competence.
Every leader wants to lead from a place of confidence. Lolly Daskal says that what she’s discovered in her years of personal development and leadership consulting is that true confidence does NOT come from standing in front of the mirror each morning, telling yourself how great you are. Affirmations like that simply don’t work. The thing that fuels confidence is the combination of your capabilities and your competence, both of which can be and should be growing all the time. On this episode of In The Arena, Lolly uncovers what she’s discovered about how that growth process takes place in leaders who are diligent in dealing with what she calls, their “shadows.” It’s an intriguing and powerful conversation.

Great leaders are as great as the people they surround themselves with.
One of the caricatures of leaders you often see is the bossy, know-it-all sort that can’t accept help or even admit it’s needed. Lolly Daskal says that a true leader is exactly the opposite. Great leaders are only great because they surround themselves with others who are great. They learn to make opportunity for and leverage the confidence and capabilities of those around them. As Lolly and Anthony chat about her new book, “The Leadership Gap,” you’ll get a glimpse into the things Lolly has discovered about great leaders and the way they deal with their own limitations, and how that approach enables them to become even greater.
Who leaders are is more important than the what, how, when, and where.
Many leaders think it is their role to provide their teams with the what, how, when, and where. But it’s really not. Who a leader is, is much more important than whether or not they have all the answers. It’s character-backed competence in leaders that inspires people to follow and serve up to the level of their potential, and Lolly Daskal has made a study of how that kind of leadership comes about - and what prevents it from being realized. You’ll learn a lot by listening to her conversation with Anthony on this episode of In The Arena.

Outline of this great episode

[0:44] Anthony’s introduction to Lolly Daskal.
[2:20] What IS the leadership gap and how did Lolly discover it?
[5:11] The 7 archetypes Lolly has discovered.
[11:58] What is the imposter syndrome?