Principles
Photo of IIDL Emerging Leaders at the Stockholm Network Meeting in 2018.
Background
Since 2017, there has been significant work on how best to support and integrate Emerging Leaders across our membership and our workstreams. Iterative progress was made using the Stockholm and Washington D.C. Exchanges as focal points. The development of Principles to Support the Genuine Inclusion of Emerging Leaders was a response to the growth of Emerging Leaders attending IIMHL and IIDL events, in particular the IIMHL and IIDL Network Meeting and Exchange in Washington DC in 2019. The Strategic Action Plan established the paid position of Emerging Leaders Coordinator in January 2021 for 10 days per year. Prior to this work had been completed on an honorary/voluntary basis since 2017 with a focus in the IIDL stream.
The growth in presence of younger and newer leaders resulted in some confusion about the intention of the Emerging Leaders work, and the Principles seek to clarify an create a shared understanding of good practice, grounded in the knowledge and experience of the many leaders with deep expertise connected to IIMHL and IIDL. To create these Principles, three workshops were held across the three major regions of activity (2021-2022) drawing together Emerging and Established leaders across the Mental Health, Disability, and Addiction sectors. Each workshop generated additions and changes to the Principles. The final report was sent to all workshop attendees for feedback and validation, and to both SCLGs for endorsement.
The Principles seek to guide the practices of Emerging Leaders, IIMHL/IIDL members, and IIMHL/IIDL as an international organisation. The Principles acknowledge that each of these key groups have a complimentary and overlapping responsibilities which will enable genuine inclusion.
Principles for the Genuine Inclusion of Emerging Leaders
Detailed discussion of Principles in action
Kindness is our overarching frame for our leadership practice. This includes kindness to others, to ourselves, and to society and the environment.
Principles for Emerging Leaders to action
Invest in developing self-confidence and self-awareness.
Seek out mentors intentionally and engage with integrity. Look to those leaders before you to learn and grow.
Consider new opportunities presented by others carefully and with integrity – follow through on commitments.
Be brave when taking on roles and opportunities, you are ready before you “feel” ready. Training does not teach you as much as trying.
When you are ready, be authentic & share your story.
Principles for Established Leaders to action
Create space for Emerging Leaders to feel safe and supported, to take risks and make mistakes - support the opportunity to learn from mistakes without judgement through supported reflection and role modelling a growth mindset.
Seek out opportunities to mentor new and diverse leaders and engage in mutual learning. In particular, help people to develop resilient support systems.
Seek out opportunities to sponsor new and diverse leaders to take on roles to build visibility including participating in events.
Organisational policies to support emergence of new and diverse leaders
Use innovative approaches to help people develop a strong reflective practice.
Involve natural support networks like peers, family and whānau to help build the capacity of new & diverse leaders.
Create guidelines and structures in co-design or consultation spaces to intentionally disrupt power dynamics and give voice to those without formal power.
Invest in ongoing development and leadership opportunities for people of all stages across a range of leadership principles. Extend these opportunities beyond people engaged as staff – include volunteers, service users, & carers/supporters/whānau.
Principles for IIMHL & IIDL to action
Valuing leadership in a wide range of areas/spaces. Any action that contributes to constructive change is an act of leadership. Showcase this broad vision of leadership through organisational events and communications.
Promote commitment that leadership is an ongoing journey through organisational events and communications.
Create opportunities for mutual learning between established and emerging leaders and facilitate mutual intergenerational knowledge transfer.
Actions for all – the foundations we build on
All means all. Create inclusive spaces by expanding events, meetings, and other opportunities to include new leaders and maintaining engagement with current leaders. Celebrate the uniqueness and difference that each person brings through sharing the space.
Keep actively engaging with key leadership competencies, including First Nations knowledge and cultural practices, mental health literacy, universal accessibility practices, and broad cross-cultural competence. Get advice from those with relevant living experience about what makes a space safe. Remember knowledge is always evolving and there is always more to learn.
Be very intentional in seeking out different people and different perspectives - bring these together for intentional constructive debate and disagreement.
Ground yourself in trauma-informed practice and don’t create or contribute to situations where people leave worse than when they walked in the door.
Know yourself - the good and the bad. Learn what you need to do to self-manage and self-regulate.
Deliberately support other people’s development - through sharing space in the limelight, training programs, and/or mentorship.
Ensure initiatives to develop leadership are self-determined, allow people to emerge at their own pace, and give people the opportunity to engage in leadership in ways which make sense for them. Don’t push – be persistent, patient, and present.
Support the development of communities of leaders who take action collectively, rather than just focusing on readying specific individuals for a single role. This is the only way to maintain momentum and to transmit knowledge over time.
Actively work to engage with people who have experienced deep social devaluation to support people to take on leadership roles informed by their personal context.
Work from the understanding that personal experience is not just ‘lived’ in the past tense but ongoing and living.
Poster of Principles in Easy English
Easy English Emerging Leaders Principles.pdf