The Gift of Leadership
Tomorrow marks a significant occasion for one of the most impactful leaders I’ve had the privilege of working with. Leo Massi, Executive Director of Haldimand-Norfolk REACH celebrates the conclusion of his 34-year-long career with this fine organization. He is known for his compassionate approach to developing people, providing consistency and a safe space during times of change, and has an abundance of personal integrity. It has been a great pleasure to work with him and learn from him. Since early 2020, I’ve been able to serve on this Board of Directors, including this year in the capacity of Vice Chair. Last night, I had the special honour of chairing Leo’s last meeting in his official capacity of ED and so we took a moment to talk about legacy.
I think we all have a personal understanding of what legacy means, or even what kind of a legacy we want to leave for others. But when you look it up, the word legacy means gift. Leadership is a gift. It is a gift we can give to others and it is a gift we can choose to receive. Nonetheless, leadership like that which Leo has provided HN REACH with for decades, is rare and lasting.
My leadership journey has taken me to places and spaces I never dreamed I would be invited to. Often, I was glad to be included and other times, it was those contrasting experiences that showed me my true heart and helped me define my own personal boundaries and both accept and (as of late) celebrate what makes me unique. Good leadership will gift you that opportunity and I have had the very good fortune to work with incredible, genuine, human leaders in recent years. Leo being a very special part of my life that way.
As Leaders, and probably moreso as those who report to them- we hopefully know the difference between positional and purposeful leadership.
What’s the difference?
Positional leadership is:
Leading because you’ve been appointed to a ‘role’ in the hierarchy of things.
A title.
A caste.
Purposeful leadership is:
Leadership through living by example
Keeping your word
Setting healthy boundaries and managing the expectations of others
Being transparent and encouraging collaboration
Helping people see opportunity where they may see obstacles
Sitting with people during times of difficulty
Supporting others to find their own solutions (aka, realizing there is more than one way to do things)
Owning what you don’t know
Getting ok with knowing that you’ll disappoint people sometimes
Doing what you can to uplift those around you, and ultimately,
Doing your own ‘work’.
Purposeful leadership takes courage and a healthy dose of self-reflection. It is possible, and in my opinion, one’s duty to be both a positional leader while being a purposeful one. Leo’s legacy, his gift of Leadership for everyone involved with HN REACH will live on in the fabric of that organization- its people- for many, many years to come. Incoming ED Wendy Carron knows this deeply and she is positioned to take this beautiful organization into its next chapter and help operationalize an upcoming new strategic plan. Are you curious about HN Reach? We are always looking for qualified and passionate Directors and I encourage you to DM me to learn more about how you can make a difference in your community through a purposeful (and ok, positional) Leadership Role on this Board.
