The Leading Yourself Podcast

In this conversation, Professor David Mba and Professor Kene Igweonu explore the concept of self-leadership, emphasizing the importance of personal values in decision-making and leadership practices. They discuss how self-reflection and criticality play a crucial role in effective leadership, particularly under pressure. David shares insights from his experience as Vice Chancellor, highlighting the significance of aligning personal and organizational values, the challenges of making tough decisions, and the importance of maintaining one's identity amidst leadership responsibilities. The discussion also touches on the need for leaders to engage with their communities and the impact of values-driven leadership on organizational culture and social mobility.

Takeaways

• Self-leadership is a reflective discipline.
• Values shape our decisions, especially under pressure.
• Self-critique is essential for effective leadership.
• Decisions should prioritize student welfare.
• You can't please everyone, but you can provide rationale.
• Engagement with the community is vital for leaders.
• Grounding practices help maintain perspective.
• Values alignment simplifies decision-making.
• Leadership is about impact, not just influence.
• Nurturing values in others creates a positive leadership culture.

Chapters

• 00:00 The Essence of Self-Leadership
• 01:37 Defining Self-Leadership
• 05:01 Decision-Making Guided by Values
• 07:40 Navigating Discomfort in Leadership Decisions
• 10:48 Balancing Identity and Leadership Role
• 14:06 Grounding Practices for Leaders
• 19:59 Nurturing Values in Leadership

Leading Yourself is a leadership podcast exploring values, identity, failure, and practice—approaching leadership as a learnable, reflective discipline rather than performance.

In this short solo introduction, host Kene Igweonu shares the motivation behind the series: to support leaders at all stages to grow in ways that are grounded in their true sense of self, values, and integrity—especially under pressure.

Inspired by principles from the book; How Will You Measure Your Life?, the podcast invites a deeper question: how do we measure our leadership when no one is watching?

Each episode features thoughtful conversations with senior executive leaders from higher education, business, and public life, offering practical insights into the inner work of leadership.

First full episode coming soon!