We are all leaders. If you speak words or take action that impacts another, you are leading. Part of the transition we are in socially and culturally is grappling with our own power to lead, and the response-ability that comes with that.

As more workplaces move towards democratic models of governance, self-organizing teams, and adaptive structures, the need for an expanded view of leadership only increases.

From our point of view, leading is not learned by reading about it. You need the experience — not as much the experience of leading others as much as the experience of being in your own power, only it’s not really your power. It’s the experience of being aware, of being in the flow, of tapping into an energy that is much more than you.

I met Marti Spiegelman in California in 2011 at a ReX (Relationship Economy eXpedition) event. Since then, we have partnered together on projects, become friends, and slept in each others’ guest rooms in Chicago and Sonoma.

After eight years of conversations that produced laughter, moments of clarity, and sparks of passion, we decided to bring our relationship into the world in two new ways: a leadership program and a podcast. Marti, with a background in science and entrepreneurship, as well as deep training in indigenous wisdom, is one of the most enlightening and enlivening people in my life.

We need new ways of working together, new ways of relating to each other and the planet. What if instead of “doing what needs to be done” the next creative epoch is about us collectively being in states that produce thriving actions? This is the possibility of leading from being.

Todd