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Course 2: Becoming a 7 Cups Leader - (Discussion #1) Welcome to Course 2!

Heather225 August 6th, 2020

Please note: In order to successfully complete Course 2, you must respond to this post. Your comment/response should answer the questions/shows that you completed the given activity (if any). Read the post carefully and follow the instructions given. Save your responses to a document that you can later refer to. You will need to copy/paste your response in the course evaluation form at the end of each course to show that you have done the work and to refresh your memory.
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Congrats! You made it the second course in the LDP! In this course, we focus on the specific interpersonal skills needed to be a strong leader on 7 Cups, including mastery of communication skills, time management, conflict resolution, stress management and empowering new leaders.

I know if you are here, you have read our values and culture guide. I would like to start off by further emphasizing one value that's required for a leader to be successful here, and that is balancing High Expectations & High Warmth.

Work environments with high expectations and minimal warmth tend to result in companies that are very driven, rule-oriented and risk-averse. The people do not tend to grow as much personally or professionally. On the other hand, workplaces that are high in warmth, but have minimal expectations, tend to struggle. Everyone is happy and feels loved, but not a lot of effective or focused work gets done.

7 Cups is high expectations AND high warmth. We expect a lot from you. You might feel like we think you are more capable than other people have suggested or maybe even more capable than how you see yourself. That is okay. Every person on the team has outperformed and done better than they expected. This is largely because warmth, patience, and trust help people make much more progress than they have in other environments. We have high expectations, but we will provide plenty of encouragement and guidance to help you get there.

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Question: What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of expectations and warmth? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

Activity: Please reply to 3 of your peers in this thread with encouraging or supportive words!

After fulfilling the requirements of this post, please check out the next post here! You must take part in the brainstorming/activities given in all of these posts to successfully complete the program.


This post is brought to you by the Leadership Development Program Team, find out more information about the program here.

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Yourstruly2000 August 12th, 2020

@Heather225

I personally believe that having too low expectations will affect the community in a sense that i will not realise my full potential and ultimately i wont be able to use my skills or tools effectively and which in turn will lead to low productivity for the community in regards of performance. Furthermore, theres also a fair chance that i will be getting my peers down or hinder the progress for my fellow leaders, which is not desirable.

Less warmth on the other hand will show my lack of dedication and will be unable to convey the true value and essence of 7cups that is being supportive. This both applies to the community as a whole and also my fellow course mates

1 reply
shiningDay80 August 13th, 2020

@Yourstruly2000

Being able to use our skills effectively will not only benefit on 7 Cups but outside of it as well. I think working on leadership and caring for others and helping others carry over into other areas of our lives. So, putting our best foot forward and putting our best effort into our roles here will benefit everyone in the long run.

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DayDreamWithYou August 12th, 2020

@Heather225

Question: What do you think happens if you a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

Imbalance of Warmth and Expectations

I do go in more detail in the next sections, but in general, as a leader, if we have an imbalance of these, we would either not get our work done the best way that we can or we would lack communication and, well, warmth.

Expectations

1. In our 7 cups community, if we were to have low expectations, our community would not be able to improve and support others the best way that we can. In most communities, each community hopes to become a better version of itself in order to adapt and also to, well, put it simply, become more than it already is. If our community already has low expectations for its members, by this I mean listeners, members, and everyone, we would go nowhere. Speaking of communities, I recently also read an article that was pretty inspiring. The basic idea is that if we aren't improving as time goes by, we are deteriorating, and though it may seem harsh, but it's essentially pretty much true. Therefore, setting high expectations in our community is just as important!

2. As a leader, if we have low expectations, our work would be incomplete, not the best that it can be, and the community or area we focus on would not be the best that it can be! Our low expectations of ourselves would mean that we would not be able to achieve a lot more had we have higher expectations. As a famous quote says, "it is better to aim high and miss than to aim low and hit." Afterall, setting higher expectations not only increases the amount of work done, but it also let's us learn and develop in the process. In my culture, there's also a saying that if our expectations are 100%, we might only be able to achieve 80%, but if our expectations are already at 80%, we might only be able to achiev 50% (I might have gotten the percentages wrong, but that is the general idea). I personally really like that idea, and I would definitely say that having high expectations is very important in every aspect as a leader as we are also representing our community as well!

Warmth

1. In our community, while setting high expectations is importanting, having high warmth is just as important and needed. We want our community to feel inclusive, welcoming, encouraging, and supportive. However, if we have low warmth, many leaders might give up midway, causing our community to slowly fall apart. Members and listeners might leave because they feel discrouraged and unimportant. In order to keep our community going, finding a balance between expectations and warmth is therefore very important. (I feel like I used too many "important" but)

2. Warmth also has a high connection to communication and how well our teams can work together. By having low warmth, members of our teams might feel not needed and leave the team. Most importantly, by having low warmth, some may not communicate with other members of the team because of the loss of, well, feelings and warmth, causing the quality of our work to go down as communication is a key part of every successful team. Having low warmth also leads to teams feeling discouraged, which in turn, does also affect our expectations as a team. Therefore, finding a balance between expectations and warmth is critical for our growth.

General

Maintaining and emphasizing the balance between expectations and warmth is important as one affects the others. Having low expectations can sometimes cause some people to feel unneeded, lowering our community's warmth level. At the same time, having low warmth can sometimes cause problems with communication, resulting in poor work and poor expectations!

1 reply
QuietMagic August 20th, 2020

@DayDreamWithYou That's a really interesting point that low warmth can reduce work quality by causing people to communicate less (because if every time I talk to someone I feel more stressed/awful than before I'm less likely to talk to them Slightly smiling).

And I like what you've said about how by aiming higher, you get more done than you otherwise would even if you don't accomplish everything you aimed for. I know I've had the experience where sometimes I'll set an easy goal and just sort of coast/drift along or not really max out my potential, whereas if I have a harder goal it draws out more of my effort/energy and I'm more effective.

softMusic9759 August 28th, 2020

@DayDreamWithYou Ooh I really liked how you connected the warmth of the leader to the warmth of the entire community.

Jili February 28th, 2021

@DayDreamWithYou

Thanks for the detailed post on this! I enjoyed reading this!

May 30th, 2021

Hi @DayDreamWithYou ​​​​! I love how well thought out and detailed your response is. I really enjoyed reading it and agree with the points you brought up. Well done!

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EvelyneRose August 13th, 2020

What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

If I have an imbalance of these, I think that work would suffer, as well as personal fulfillment. If I had too low expectations, I would not thrive as I would never set a higher bar. If I had too low warmth, I would not have the support system necessary for success.

Having too little warmth or too low expecations affects the community because it creates an imbalance in myself. If I am unbalanced, then the community does not get the best work that I can do. It also impacts work with fellow leaders because with too little warmth, I may end up burned out and not be able to hold up my end of the bargain. If I have too low expectations, we cannot build each other up as leaders to grow.

1 reply
PeaceLoveandPaws August 18th, 2020

@EvelyneRose

Working with you here in the leadership program and outside of this program, I can say that you have mastered the balance of high expectations and high warmth.

1 reply
EvelyneRose August 18th, 2020

@PeaceLoveandPaws

Aw thanks so much Paws!

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lyricalAngel70 December 11th, 2020

@EvelyneRose

Brilliant Answer <3

Wish you good luck!

She13 December 16th, 2020

@EvelyneRose Awesome answer

ouiCherie December 30th, 2020

@EvelyneRose

Love your answers ❤️ Very on-point and totally agreed.

See you around! 😊

IcicleSnown May 14th, 2021

@EvelyneRose

Very correct about how the two imbalances of each side would impact you Evelyne!

Very descriptive meaningful answers

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August 13th, 2020

@Heather225

Question: What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

I think having an imbalance of expectations and warmth as a 7 Cups leader will negatively impact the community and the teams that I work on. If a leader has too low expectations, then it would be difficult to achieve any growth in a community as the expectations would easily be met, leading to low effort and low participation. As well, having too low expectations will make it difficult to achieve goals when working as a team with fellow leaders, and also allow for unprofessional behavior. If a leader has too little warmth, then it would difficult to build a community at all. Communities are built on people and the interactions between them, and without warmth, it will be difficult to foster a sense of welcoming and create a positive atmosphere necessary for a community. Similarly, having too little warmth will negatively impact how you work with fellow leaders, taking away from the sense of togetherness, teamwork, and collaboration that helps projects succeed.

1 reply
AstronomySkies August 19th, 2020

@IvyL

Ohh I like this answer Ivy. Nice!

optimisticDay8079 March 21st, 2021

@VioletVenom awesome answer

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MistyMagic August 13th, 2020

Question: What do you think happens if you a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

Expectations need warmth, we cannot expect others to put their spare time to projects and roles if we do not welcome them warmly and be a pleasure to work with. People need high warmth, this builds confidence and helps others to grow. If I have high expectations and high warmth then I feel like I am achieving something and building something worthwhile.

If a leader has low expectations - which can sometimes come as a prelude to burn-out - then the role is diminished and suffers from that lack of care and attention that is often missing when expectations drop.

If a leader has low warmth, well then not many will enjoy working with them or being on their team! People will not give their best if there is no warmth. They will sit and shiver on the outskirts of the role or team until someone new comes along that is high expectation/high warmth and full of beans with enthusiasm for the role or project.

Listening - One Step At A Time!

3 replies
QuietMagic August 20th, 2020

@MistyMagic The first thing you said about spare time really resonated with me. If someone's volunteering and trying their best to do something helpful and giving of their own personal time/energy, and then they're treated coldly or it's just a tense/strained experience, then I can feel how that would be really discouraging, exhausting, or frustrating.

I'm really appreciative of the things you've given. You've been instrumental in creating some incredible resources that I and many other listeners are using daily... and that's just what you've done that I happen to be familiar with, which is probably just the tip of the iceberg. Thank you. Slightly smiling

1 reply
MistyMagic August 25th, 2020

@QuietMagic Thank-you for those kinds words.

Listening - One Step At A Time!

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LittleBirdie30 August 25th, 2020

@MistyMagic I totally agree with this! I feel as though my workplace doesn't have a good sense of warmth and therefore, I don't feel like I give my all because no one really cares.

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bookworm274 August 15th, 2020

@Heather225

A) Low expectations and high warmth:

1 - this will impact the community because not much will be done in terms of developing, helping and progressing the community.

2 - this will impact how I work with fellow leaders because a lack of expectations such as professionalism could create and unsafe environment. In addition to this, we wouldnt be able to work as a team very well due to the fact that we arent set expectations so may not know how to help each other in terms of workload.

B) High expectations and low warmth:

1 - this will impact the community because the leaders may burn out as we wouldnt feel cared for so the services that we provide to people would weaken in quality and enthusiasm.

2 - this would impact how I would work with fellow leaders because there wouldnt be a sense of a team or support system.

1 reply
AstronomySkies August 19th, 2020

@bookworm274

Awwe I love how you answered!

Jili February 28th, 2021

@bookworm274

Awesome reflection!

HereToHelp135 November 26th, 2021

I agree

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CaringBrit August 16th, 2020

@Heather225 im not sure if these posts from August posting should be in July cohort not sure if you noticed that

Question: What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

it ill deeply affect coommunity if too little warmth they will feel under valued not welcomed and low expectations will mean chaos i feel how it will impact working with fellow leaders is somewhat similar to wat i said above

1 reply
rebecca947 September 17th, 2020

@CaringBrit

Brit! I totally agree with all of what you said. We don't want our community to feel undervalued- they'll leave otherwise. If we began as a low warmth site, we would've never existed to where we are now.

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Mankka August 16th, 2020

@Heather225

the system becomes uncertain if there is unbalance, the confidence is upset then. since everybody would like to lean on stable main reason. important the tall expectation the magbízhatóság and because of the stability. important collaborating with the co-leaders, because this is a team and we must not pull each other down.

1 reply
smilingsnapples August 20th, 2020

@Mankka You're right--7 Cups is as much of a community as it is a team!

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positivePumpkin22 August 17th, 2020

@Heather225

What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these?

The quality and efficiency of the team depends on a leader. So an imbalance in high expectation and high warmth in a leader would result in a team that do not fulfil the actual potential it has or a team that do not grow much personally and professionally, none of which is desirable. As a leader, I see it as my duty and responsibity to do maximum focused and efficient work at the same time enhance the team's growth.

How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact : 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

1. In a community, too low expectation would cause a decrease in its growth. High expectations are needed in a comunity for its members to out perform themselves. While too low warmth creates an undesirable environment for the members of they community where they do not thrive.

2. Low expectation from my side would negatively impact my work with my fellow leaders as i do not keep up to a certain quality of work that is required. While low warmth from my side would create a bad relationship with my fellow leaders, where there is general misunderstanding between us and they do not feel comfortable with me that would negatively effect the efficiency and quality work to be done.

1 reply
blissart August 23rd, 2020

@positivePumpkin22

u explianed the situations and the effect very well pumpkin,

1 reply
positivePumpkin22 September 2nd, 2020

@blissart thank you bliss. <3

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PeaceLoveandPaws August 18th, 2020

@Heather225

What do you think happens if you, a 7 Cups leader, have an imbalance of these? How do you think having too low of expectations, or too little warmth, will impact 1.) the community, and 2.) impact how you work with your fellow leaders?

High expectancy with little warmth creates an atmosphere of negativity for both the community and the leaders I work with. I equate this type imbalance, from personal experience, with micromanagement, non-constructive criticisms, and a feeling of unease that my position may be in constant jeopardy and/or that I am just seat filler with no name. High turn over and unfulfilled employees/listeners/leaders is a direct effect of this kind of environment.

High warmth with low expectations creates chaos. In my personal experience, this kind of environment leads to resentments. Someone has to be in charge and it's usually an employee who takes on the responsibility of taking care of critical tasks with little support from the team but lost of criticism in the way things are being cared for. Though employee longevity is to be expected in this atmosphere, the ones who do take responsibility will leave when the next opportunity becomes available. It's unrealistic to expect a business or a relationship to survive when it is always play time.

Finding the right balance will encourage team members to continue lasting relationships with me, would make someone more likely to reach out to me for help, guidance, and support, and, in maintaining high expectations of myself, would make me a dependable and trustworthy person to work with.

1 reply
CheeryMango August 18th, 2020

@PeaceLoveandPaws

You're one of the few leaders here who creates that balance of high expectations and high warmth for your team and team members heart

2 replies
PeaceLoveandPaws August 20th, 2020

@CheeryMango

That means so much to me. Thank you!

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QuietMagic August 20th, 2020

@PeaceLoveandPaws That's a really good point that in a low-expectations environment, there might still be someone with a high-expectations mindset who's trying to heroically take on the bulk of the work and doing this with growing frustration that everyone else is sort of playing poker while the ship is sinking.

That makes sense what you're saying about low warmth leading to turnover. It doesn't inspire people to want to stay if the attitude is to wring people dry and then on the way out the door the reaction is sort of like:

Hmm... yes it's certainly regrettable that you had a mental breakdown. Sadly, that's to be expected. You see, when you've been in the business as long as I have, you come to understand these things. Employees only have a limited shelf life. They keep trying to design a better product, but... [sighs and shakes head sorrowfully] no such luck yet. [suddenly perks up] Well, I guess we'll just have to go find another fresh/untapped human resource to take your place. I suppose we can do the Parting Gift now. [clears throat and begins reading from a laminated sheet of paper] Thank you, Insert Name Here, for your service. You have been a valued asset and your Insert Duration of Employment of loyalty will not be forgotten. As a token of our appreciation, here is some company stationary and a complementary tote bag. Slightly smiling

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dancingMoment7201 September 27th, 2020

@PeaceLoveandPaws

completely agree with you here especially low expectation high warmth bring resentment. Everyone needs to work to their best ability and help out others instead of putting all responsibility on one.

Jili February 28th, 2021

@PeaceLoveandPaws

Hey paws! I agree with your observations!

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