I took the Energy Leadership Index™ (ELI) assessment
in April 2019 as part of my iPEC coaching program.
A few weeks later, I remember myself waiting impatiently with the other peer coaches to see the result. And there it was.
My first reaction? Surprise! But not with the feeling of: seriously? It can’t be me! It was a feeling of: wow! Now it all makes sense! All the pieces of the jigsaw fell into place.
The amazing thing about it was that it wasn’t only about home & work. It was about everything: my family & friends, my relationships, my finances and my well-being both physical & mental.
However, there was something even more revealing. On the piece of paper in front of my eyes, I had the tangible data on how I can react & act when I’m faced with stress.
“However, there was something even more revealing.”
You may think: “Oh, I know how I react in stressful situations”. Well, to some extent, yes, but with a few coaching questions I was able to pinpoint what drains me. Moreover, I realized how my reaction to stress influences all my areas of life and how it blocks me from being more successful, efficient, and in the end happy.
ELI was my moment of realization of how my way of perceiving the world and my way of thinking has been impacting my feelings and my life choices.
ELI confirmed that I’ve always approached life from level 4, which is a “care giver”.
I’d always thought about others first while putting myself second. The problem was that, in many cases, I didn’t get the same from others, both at work & life. I’m sure you can now figure out how it ended.
As a leader in corporate environment, my team members had always been first no matter what. In my personal life – my own values where sacrificed for the needs of others. Almost every time, it triggered my reaction to stress and every time I landed on level 1 as a “victim” as this was my normal reaction to stress (and still is). What’s more, most of the time I was blaming myself for the situation which as you can imagine didn’t help.
“ELI confirmed that I’ve always approached life from level 4, which is a ‘care giver’.
ELI helped me to understand my own filters which I see the world through and where they are coming from. At the time of taking the assessment, I was already in the process of change. ELI helped me tremendously to close the missing gap of self-consciously knowing who I am. And while taking care of others was (and still is) important to me, I started learning how to keep a healthy balance.
Fast forward 5 months later. September 2019.
I’m sitting at the doctor’s office with my medical results and I’m listening to a series of recommendations of what I can and cannot do. Most of the things listed started with “can’t”. No running, no volleyball, no mountain biking, no tennis, no horse riding, no intensive household chores e.g. cleaning (excellent idea but not realistic 😉!!!) and few more.
One thing sounded like a life sentence: “forget about weightlifting” You may not know, but weightlifting was my top choice for gym training. After 2 years of training with Paweł, (highly recommended personal trainer), at my best I was able to lift 80 kgs and there was room for more.
“One thing sounded like a life sentence…”.
You may now be wondering about my reaction.
A year back, I would have been devastated and would sit on my sofa indulging in my “victim” mode (level 1) for a few weeks at least.
However, this time it was different. Of course, I cried! This is my primary reaction to stress. But the difference was that it was only for a minute. The difference was my approach to the situation. I could sit and cry but I consciously chose not to. I decided to approach the situation from a higher level. Why? Because I knew there is a different way to look at things. A way far that is more effective, constructive and inspiring.
Now it’s your turn. Think about the last situation which drained your energy; or when you reacted with frustration or anger. What if I tell you there is a different way? How interested would you be in learning it?
How’s that possible?
Unlike the other assessments, ELI is an attitudinal assessment, not a personality-based one, which helps to identify how we view the world through filters based on our experiences, values and assumptions — they either limit what you see or expand it. Assessment helps to realize how your perception affects how you show up in different situations and could even be holding you back from realizing the full potential in yourself, your life, and your career.
It was created based on the 7 levels of leadership and the work of Bruce D. Schneider and the Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC).
The ELI is a research-based tool that takes something abstract, like the way we view the world, and turns it into something tangible —a metric, in other words, a chart that describes how we see and feel the world around you.
The assessment is subjective. You can think of it this way – if you’re wearing blue glasses, the world appears to be blue. If you’re wearing pink glasses, everything looks pink. Your perceptions determine your reality. The assessment measures how YOU read and perceive the world. More importantly, the assessment reveals not only how you approach life when things are going the way they normally do for you, but also it shows your most common reactions to stress.
ELI uses seven different energy “levels” to describe the types of energy a person experiences and expresses; starting at the lowest level of a “victim” and finishing at a “creator” approach.
When combined with the personally-tailored debrief, the ELI assessment can help you look closely at where (and how) you’re investing your energy. In this way, you’ll be able to make a plan and adjust your priorities in support of your work and life goals.
In essence, Energy Leadership will help you lead by example, with power, purpose, and passion.
What’s more?
ELI has been ranked in the Top 3 assessments, which every executive and manager should take by the Forbes Coaches Council. Click here for Forbes ranking
‘Assessment provides a unique lens on self-awareness and emotional intelligence, two key ingredients for any leader. Situational awareness of yourself and others is critical for a leader to respond appropriately to the people in their charge. Understanding where you are at any moment and how you respond to stress can make all the difference.’
The Energy Leadership Index assessment changed my life – are you up for the change in yours? 😃
This article contains Dotway interpretation of the copyrighted work of Bruce D Schneider (with me on the photo) and the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC).
