Episode 8: Why Every Leader Needs a 360 | 12MinuteLeadership

Leadership 360 feedback is a powerful tool for growth that reveals blind spots and transforms leadership effectiveness. We explore what it is, why it matters, and five key benefits that help leaders see themselves more clearly than they ever could on their own.

• Deep self-awareness that bridges the gap between how you think you're showing up and how others experience you
• Emotional intelligence growth by understanding how your actions affect others' feelings and motivation
• Creation of a feedback culture where honest input becomes normalized and valued
• Alignment between your intentions and your actual impact on others
• Clear development path based on patterns that reveal your strengths and growth areas
• Real-world success story of Robert, who transformed from nearly being fired to becoming a beloved leader

Ready to experience the benefits of a 360? If your organization doesn't have an internal process, reach out to us at www.eliseboggs.com for support. Subscribe to this podcast and check out my book "Lead Anyone" on Amazon for more leadership insights.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to the 12-Minute Leadership Podcast
where, in 12 minutes or less,I'll share small things that you
can put into immediate practicethat will make a big difference
in your leadershipeffectiveness.
I'm your host, eliseBoggs-Morales leadership
professor, consultant and coach.
For the last 17 years, I havehelped thousands of leaders

(00:25):
level up their influence andachieve remarkable results.
If you want to trade compliancefor true commitment and create
your dream team, you are in theright place.
Get ready for a quick hit ofpractical wisdom to increase
your team's engagement, inspiretop performance and retain your
best talent.
Ready to level up yourinfluence and get better results

(00:47):
.
12 Minutes starts now.
Hi everyone, elise here,welcome to episode eight why
Every Leader Needs a 360.
Aristotle said knowing yourselfis the beginning of all wisdom.
If you're a leader who wants togrow, not just in title but in

(01:07):
impact, today's episode is foryou.
We're diving into one of themost powerful tools in
leadership development the 360degree feedback review.
Last week, I talked about how360s are often an overlooked
solution for accelerating yourorganization's growth, and this
week I'm continuing theconversation by walking you

(01:30):
through what a 360 is, why itmatters and five of the most
powerful benefits it offersleaders like you.
It's not always easy to hearhow others experience your
leadership, but it's alwaysworth it.
So what is a 360?
Let's start with the basics.
A leadership 360 is a feedbackprocess that gathers insights

(01:52):
from all around you your directreports, your peers, supervisors
and sometimes even clients orpartners.
Instead of just gettingfeedback from your boss, you're
getting a full picture of howyour leadership shows up at
every level.
It's not a performance review,it's a mirror, and it helps

(02:12):
leaders see themselves moreclearly than they ever could on
their own.
So I'm going to share with youfive benefits of 360s.
Benefit number one deepself-awareness.
One of the greatest gifts of a360 is self-awareness.
As leaders, we often assume weknow how we come across, but the

(02:34):
truth is we all have blindspots.
You may see yourself asconfident and clear, but your
team might experience you asabrupt or even unapproachable.
And here's the key Growthdoesn't come from intention.
It comes from understandingyour impact.
A 360 helps close the gapbetween how you think you're

(02:55):
showing up and how othersactually experience you, and
once you see it, you can dosomething about it.
A second benefit of 360s is thatthey are emotional intelligence
boosters.
360s are one of the fastestways to grow your EQ because
they help you tune into howothers feel, not just what they

(03:17):
do.
There is a famous quote, oftenattributed to Maya Angelou, that
says people will forget whatyou said, people will forget
what you did, but people willnever forget how you made them
feel.
360s allow you to learn howyour tone, your timing and
presence affect morale,motivation and trust and leaders

(03:39):
with high EQ.
They make better decisions,they build stronger teams and
they create healthier cultures.
A third benefit for 360s is thatthey create a culture of
feedback.
Here's something powerful.
When you model receivingfeedback well, it changes your
team.
They start to feel safe, givinghonest input not just to you

(04:02):
but to each other.
You normalize feedback, youtake the fear out of it, and
that opens the door to realgrowth for everyone.
Whatever you want to create inyour organization must flow from
the top.
That's why I always push forthe executive team to complete
360s before anyone else to modelthe way.

(04:23):
I find those leadership teamsmost resistant to 360s are the
organizations that have the mostunaddressed challenges that are
ultimately undermining results.
In cultures that embrace 360s,feedback becomes a gift, not a
threat.
A fourth benefit is that 360salign behavior with intentions.

(04:45):
One of the most frustratingthings for leaders is when our
intentions don't match ourimpact.
Maybe you think you're beinghelpful, but your team feels
micromanaged.
Maybe you think you're beingcollaborative, but others see
you as indecisive.
360s help you identify thosemismatches and realign how you
show up with the leader you wantto be.

(05:06):
A difference in perception isoften an easy fix and since
perception is often reality forpeople, a tiny tweak could make
a big difference and finallybenefit.
Number five a clear developmentpath.
360s give you a clear, focuseddevelopment path.

(05:26):
They reveal patterns, not justone-off opinions.
You start to see themes.
They reveal patterns, not justone-off opinions.
You start to see themes.
Maybe multiple people mentionyour ability to inspire or your
tendency to avoid toughconversations.
Either way, now you haveclarity, and clarity drives
growth.
Often, leadership can seemdifficult to measure.

(05:47):
360s make the most importantqualities measurable so you can
direct your actions and effortseffectively.
I'd like to close things up herewith a story, a leadership 360
story, where a leader went frombeing on the chopping block to
becoming a beloved leader.
This is the story of my client,robert.

(06:07):
Robert's story is one of themost powerful leadership
transformations I've witnessed.
Robert had over 30 years ofexperience in his industry.
He was technically brilliant,respected for his knowledge.
But there was one big problemHis team couldn't stand working
with him.
In fact, hr complaints abouthis leadership style had put him

(06:28):
on the chopping block.
When I first met him as hiscoach, he was frustrated and
defensive.
He didn't enjoy leading.
He just wanted to get the jobdone without what he would call
interpersonal drama and,honestly, he saw his team as
more of a burden than an asset.
Does that sound familiar?
You feel like you could getmore done if your team wasn't in

(06:49):
the way.
Many leaders feel this way whenthey get burned out or
disconnected.
I recommended to Robert that wedo a Leadership 360.
He agreed, but when he saw thefeedback, he was crushed.
He felt misunderstood, he feltlike giving up.
But here's what I always remindleaders Feedback is a gift

(07:09):
because it's giving us data, anddata gives us the power to
change things.
So we picked just three piecesof feedback to work on.
One, he was seen asinaccessible.
Two, he wasn't mentally presentin meetings.
And three, he didn't use theteam's communication tools.
Now, these could be actualfacts or they could be

(07:29):
perceptions, but either way,this was giving us some
information so that we couldwork on things very
intentionally.
So in one month, robert madesmall, consistent changes.
Some of the things that he didto address the concerns were
that he set office hours, heresponded more quickly to
messages, he showed up fullypresent in meetings and he began

(07:51):
mentoring younger team membersusing his decades of experience.
And here's the amazing part Histeam came back to life.
They were more engaged, moreefficient, more connected and,
robert, he discovered a new joyin leadership.
It was really amazing to watchso fast forward.
Six months and Robert hasbecome one of the most beloved

(08:13):
leaders in the company,especially among younger
employees.
And years later, he's stillthriving.
Why?
Because he had the courage toface the truth and had the
humility to change.
I think this story is a win fromseveral perspectives.
For one, the company didn'tlose a seasoned employee.

(08:33):
The amount of effort, time,money and resources that would
have had to be put into rehiringwould have been significant.
Two, robert got to keep his job.
He got to remain in an industrythat he loved, just by making
some simple changes.
And three, he actually enjoyedleading for the first time and

(08:54):
began investing in the nextgeneration of leaders.
So it was a win all around allbecause he did a 360, got the
information he needed andapplied it rapidly.
So let's recap the five biggestbenefits of a leadership 360.
One, it reveals blind spots andbuilds self-awareness.
Two, it boosts your emotionalintelligence.

(09:16):
Three, it creates a culturewhere feedback is welcomed, not
feared.
Four, it helps you align yourimpact with your intentions.
And five, it gives you a clearfocus path for your next level
of growth.
So here's my challenge for youwhen was the last time you asked
someone who works for youwhat's one thing I do that helps
you thrive and one thing I dothat gets in the way?

(09:39):
That single question can openthe door to the kind of
leadership breakthrough a 360delivers.
Ready to do something moreformal in the way of a 360?
If your organization doesn'thave an internal process, no
problem, we can help.
Simply reach out to us atwwweliseboggscom.
So thanks for joining me today.

(10:02):
If this episode resonated withyou, share it with another
leader who's ready to grow.
And remember the best leadersaren't the ones who have it all
figured out, they're the oneswho keep asking the right
questions, like what you heardon today's episode and wanna go
deeper.
Subscribe to this podcast soyou never miss an episode.

(10:23):
You can also pick up my bookLead Anyone on Amazon.
Then go to my website to checkout ways that we can support
your leadership goals.
From executive retreats tocustomized training and coaching
, my team of experts will helpyou level up your leadership and
accelerate your results.
Go to wwweliseboggscom for moreinfo.