In this episode, Shandel Sutherland and Melanie Montgomery discuss the dangers of "off ramping" from sustainable growth and entering an "unhealthy cycle of misery." They provide frameworks to identify unhealthy vs. healthy leadership cycles and steps to get back on track.

Off ramping occurs when leaders stop investing in growth and instead focus only on short-term wins and survival. This leads to an "unhealthy cycle of misery" characterized by negative mindsets, culture, and lack of positive change.

The cycle of misery centers around having a "victor" mindset of only caring about winning rather than values. Behaviors in the cycle of misery include blaming others, being distracted to avoid problems, and only focusing on short-term dollars and dividends. As the cycle continues, it leads to a culture of dictating orders rather than empowering growth, which disconnects the leader from the team over time.

To get out of this cycle, leaders must reconnect to their values and those of the organization through truth, trust, and humility. Admitting mistakes is key to regaining focus on sustainable growth. The goal is not to never off ramp, as all leaders will occasionally, but to recognize it quickly and take steps to reconnect and get back on track through values-based leadership.

The podcast provides a framework to identify unhealthy vs healthy leadership cycles and emphasizes that all leaders will occasionally off ramp, so the goal is recognizing it and getting back on track as quickly as possible.

Discussion Questions:

• Have you ever recognized being in the Cycle of Misery in your leadership?
• What phase do you think you may be in now?
• How can you reconnect to values and get back on track?

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