Our first blog this month, Developing Your Leadership Style, provided an activity to help you identify your leadership strengths. In this blog, we suggested that personal reflection on your leadership strengths and aspirations is as important as consulting external leadership resources.

There are lots of leadership books out there, and that is great. We are not anti-book, and there is certainly a lot of helpful information available that could help you become a better leader. Looking at external sources for inspiration, however, has its drawbacks.

Occasionally, when discussing strengths-based approaches and growth mindsets with nonprofit leaders, we ponder whether we might inadvertently fuel the phenomenon of 'toxic positivity' in the workplace.

This week we are hosting a Lunch and Learn on board innovation. The theme is about shifting to a dynamic or growth mindset at the board level.

According to Clifton Strengths, strengths-based organizations ‘integrate strengths development into their mission, vision, values and processes, as well as into how people work and collaborate daily. It's a culture in which conversations about strengths in the workplace are frequent and productive -- shaping people's mindsets and approaches to work’.