The hardest part of leadership? 
Leading yourself.

Interrupting the pattern

Once you’ve named your patterns, the next step is noticing them in real time. This is the moment when self-awareness moves from concept to practice. You may feel rushed and hear your tone sharpen. You may overexplain when you feel challenged. Discomfort may make you go quiet.  

These small cues are signs that an old script is starting to run the show.  

“Conscious leaders learn to pause long enough to notice what’s happening inside them and around them,” Cheryl says. “That perspective is what separates reaction from response.”

Conflict without the tailspin

Conflict happens every day. What matters is how leaders stay engaged when values feel poked or the room gets hot.

“We all have a conflict sequence,” Cheryl says. “For me, I start by assessing risks and advocating for my view. But if I get triggered, 
 I want to disengage. That’s when I must pause, notice what’s happening, and stay in the conversation.”  

Moments of conflict reveal whether awareness is a concept or a practice. The urge to check out—“to stop listening or take your toys and go home,” Cheryl says—is a signal. Staying engaged means asking what value or belief just got pressed.  

“It’s not about avoiding disagreement,” she says. “It’s about staying in it without losing yourself or shutting others down.”

Cheryl says the leaders who navigate conflict best are ones who can do three things at once: 

The cost of unconscious leadership

When leaders stop noticing their own behavior, the fallout is seldom immediate. But it’s always inevitable. The first signs may be subtle. Maybe there are fewer ideas in meetings, slower responses from direct reports to make changes, or a silence that settles when you enter the room.

Over time, those silences transform into turnover.  

“It costs you your leadership,” Cheryl says. “People won’t line up behind you. They stop bringing you hard news, which raises risk for you, your team, and your organization. And good people leave.”  

Leading without self-awareness often hides behind good intentions. Leaders may believe they’re being decisive or protective. In reality, they may be micromanaging or shutting others out.  

“You can build trust through 10 small acts,” Cheryl says. “But one reactive moment, one sour tone when someone shares bad news, can contaminate the relationship. The way you respond in those moments defines whether people keep bringing you the truth.”  

On the surface, the cost may seem small. But when you dig more deeply, you’ll see missed opportunities, slower progress, and fading trust.

Make it a practice, not a checkbox

Conscious Leadership isn’t a milestone you reach. It’s a muscle you constantly work and build. You strengthen it through reflection, feedback, and the courage to keep looking inward.

“It’s hard work and practice,” Cheryl says. The progress is circular, going from awareness, feedback, reflection, and adjustment. “You have to get feedback about who you are, be clear on your purpose, and disrupt yourself when old habits show up.”

That rhythm runs through every one of our learning experiences. Each program meets leaders at different points in their journeys, but the backbone is the same: Self-awareness and leadership.

Across all three levels, Cheryl says leaders start seeing how their beliefs shape their behavior and the results they get. “Once you see that link,” she says, “you can lead differently.” 

Everything expands with Conscious Leadership

Conscious Leadership shapes the development of self, others, and the culture you create together. It’s the primary foundation that helps develop other core elements.  

“Once you see the connection between what you believe and what you do, everything else opens up,” Cheryl says. “It shapes how you think strategically, how you develop people, how you optimize teams, and how your organization can adapt to change.”

Each elements grows once you know yourself well enough. From that root, high-level performance can flourish for you, your team, and your entire organization through awareness in action.