With 37 years experience in major corporate finance and leadership development, Laurie Battaglia designed a model with five success factors that align your work with who you are and what makes you happy. She calls it The Aligned at Work® model and she uses it to help senior management build leaders, unify teams and get to business goals. Laurie’s passionate belief is that if we understand ourselves and what we need in each of the five success areas, then we’ll know what will motivate and engage us. As leaders, if we provide an environment that allows each of our team members to do the same and discuss these qualities openly, we can’t help but have collaborative, driving workplaces where people feel engaged, valued and happy. With her husband, Joseph, Laurie does management consulting to stop the revolving door of employee turnover to create successful, high performing workplaces with the understanding that when you’re aligned at work, you’re aligned for life.
Dr. Nancy commented on the statistic that shows more than 50% of people are not happy with their work. Imagine, she said, if everyone loved what they did and the companies they worked for–what a positive impact that would have on the world. Laurie agreed and told about the Lean-In Circles she had developed a few years ago, based on Sheryl Sandberg’s book, Lean In. She said that although the male upper management supported the circles, the senior female managers would often send their team members in their place, prioritizing their work over their self-development. This devaluing of your own needs and not assigning time for yourself is a shortfall for women in the long run. Laurie explains that the most successful leaders understand themselves and what they stand for, which is why you must develop yourself before you can inspire others.
Aligned at Work
Laurie began her method by asking probing questions about how people feel about the time they spend at work. Does the time pass quickly, or do you look forward to clocking out? She reasons that we spend so much time at work, how we feel throughout that time flows over into the rest of our lives, so your vocation better be a good one. In fact, that is the premise behind each element of the model. Our work lives and personal lives are so interlinked that stress in one area flows into the other one. A dysfunctional home life disrupts your attention at work and colors how you feel about your relationships there. Money problems directly impact how you feel about your salary. So many people stay at jobs they don’t like because they can’t see any alternative. It takes courage and strategy to get unstuck from unaligned situations. Well-being is so personal, Laurie suggests that you define it for yourself. And while spirit may seem out of place in a workplace model, Laurie says that you must be able to bring your whole Self to work to be able to thrive there. She encourages everyone to find employment where you can be the real you, as much as is humanly possible.
The Value of Take The Lead’s 9 Power Tools
While Laurie admits that she is a theorist, she understands that for herself and for others, the practical, “9 Power Tools” she utilizes as a Certified Take The Lead Women Leadership Ambassador are critical for empowering women. Women need to embrace their own power to be courageous and move forward. While corporate change can often come from coaches and consultants like herself, it also comes from each individual and the little things we do each day. Laurie advises women to be conscious and make choices that create change in your work environment. If you do that on a daily basis you can make a huge impact in your work culture.
Listen to this conversation to hear Laurie’s personal story about how being a teenage unwed mother in the early 70’s motivated her to be a lifetime feminist and advocate for change. Check out her website for more about her model and her wisdom for success. She also invites everyone to connect with her on Linkedin where she posts articles regularly.