Balancing Wellbeing and Leadership Using The i4 Neuroleader Model

As a leadership coach and a health and wellbeing kinesiologist, I’ve found these roles haven’t been integrated into mainstream leadership circles yet. With the rise of wellbeing-related issues in the general community, this integration is where my interest lies in supporting organisations. The i4 Neuroleader Model provides a perfect opportunity to merge these areas in a practical way which can be easily digested.

The i4 Neuroleader Certification has been a wonderful experience to integrate my two areas of interest; wellbeing and leadership. Reflecting on my original reason for choosing this training, the key insights I have taken away from this training are:

• The model is set for the current and future Imagination Age, and is fit for the challenges within organisations.
  
  
• The four competencies (Performance, Collaboration, Innovation and Agility) are so well aligned with the volatility and uncertainty we experience in a VUCA world. The 4 ‘i’s’ (Integration, Inspiration, Imagination and Intuition) really highlight this and identify how leaders need different things in this new external environment.
  
  
• Educating leaders about the brain and neurobiology, and how these relate to the competencies is very useful. The model easily explains the importance of the brain-body connection in a simple and refreshing way so leaders can understand what will make a positive difference to them. For example, an analogy about the brain was mentioned by Silvia Damiano using an orchestra. If all the parts of an orchestra are not working properly or are not perfectly in tune, we will no longer have harmony.
  
  This same disharmony is seen when our brain (and the various areas in the brain) and body do not work together. This link between the mind and body shows us the importance of keeping our brains in a good state of balance, because if we do not, it will impact our behaviours with others and the decisions we make. Also, the model stresses the importance of brain integration and rest on how leaders perform. Taking a rest and calming the mind gives your brain greater access to the subconscious and imagination. It was also interesting to learn that the brains of effective, inspirational leaders show similar brain patterns.
  
  
• It’s a simple model with a lot of depth and breadth. While it covers broad competencies and has 16 pillars underpinning it, the i4 model is made so simple by the design and colour coding. Also, the model shows how it relates to personal leadership and leadership in business using simple slides for each competency, including a summary for what a good or bad environment for the individual and business culture will look like. The supporting tools for both a participant and a coach are excellent. The online training and the workbook are so easy to follow and can be used to design your own personal action plan.
  
  
• As a coach, I found the video examples of debriefing and the explanatory videos of the assessments extremely helpful. I will definitely review these videos again prior to taking my first client through an assessment. However, they are straightforward, and with the supporting self-debriefing option, a client would be able to review the assessment and take the insights they needed. Strengths and limitations are easy to access, allowing you to clarify questions or to refresh yourself.
  
  
• I love how explicit the model is about strengths and leveraging them, but I also appreciate the language used around developmental areas and areas a leader might highlight to transform in their life and work. The use of blind spots for both strengths and limitations is also hugely beneficial for a leader to understand where they might need to reframe their own point of view about themselves.
  
  
• Personally, for my work, this model is aligned to my philosophy and allows me to further integrate and simplify my message around wellbeing and leadership for organisations. It also provides an opportunity to integrate my wellbeing approach with the ‘harder’ aspects of leadership that are familiar within organisations. 

The i4 Neuroleader Model focuses on personal leadership and the ‘whole person’, which represents the increasing trend and focus on wellbeing and the integration of the whole person at work.

Jessica Stratford

Taking Action With The i4 Neuroleader Model

My action plan as a result of this training is two-fold. First, I’d like to work on the areas I have identified from my 360 report and become more familiar with the model, the assessment and the workbook. I’ve already taken good insights from the model and applied them at work and at home. I also have a list of additional reference books I will review over the coming 6 months, or whenever I feel the time is right. 

My second goal is to integrate the i4 Neuroleader products into my business so I can begin to have these conversations with potential clients. 

This will involve things such as:

• Being clear about the products and the training reference material, the IP and the pricing
• Writing my own vision detailing what I would like to achieve with the product, why I want to achieve it and what I believe could be challenging
• Practising a debriefing with a colleague or friend 
• Placing information about the availability of the model on my website 
• Informing stakeholders, potential clients at networking events and current clients that I am using the model while explaining the benefits 
• Including some information about the model and my use of the model in my newsletters
• Discussing the model and the link to wellbeing in the women’s group and the local small business group I attend
• Educating my individual kinesiology and coaching clients about the affordability and benefits of doing the self-assessment

Thank you for a wonderful learning experience at the workshop. Every part of the workshop was informative and interesting. It delivered above what I was hoping to receive. I really appreciated the energy, knowledge and positive approach from your team. There’s also such a wealth of materials and references available which will surely keep me coming back for more! Thanks very much.