Anna Liebel is a trusted advisor who helps entrepreneurs, startup founders, and leadership teams break free from burnout and reach their goals without compromising their personal well-being.
In the first part of the ‘Leadership Happens’ series, we talked about the importance of nurturing connection with your team, to achieve the best and healthiest results.
If you find yourself overwhelmed with where to start building that true connection as a leader, here is my suggestion. The 3D Leadership Framework can help you move from overthinking to creating. I don’t just share stats and theoretical concepts (for instance, on my Genius Leadership podcast), I share real stories and provide practical tools that you can implement right away. In one of the audience’s favorite episodes, I introduced the 3D Leadership Framework, a tool I created to help you get out of overwhelm and start taking meaningful action. The three dimensions of leadership—one-to-many, one-to-one, and one-to-self—are the foundation of the framework. It can be easier to handle the nuances of leadership and get the most out of your time if you know how to direct your energy and which connection pieces are missing right now.
Now, on to Lesson 2 about what will make you the leader your team needs.
Lesson 2: Adaptability drives effective leadership
I spent years concentrating on performance: setting goals, getting results, keeping things moving. I was engaged with my team, ready to solve problems and provide guidance. But something was missing. People were getting the work done, but the energy, trust, and engagement weren’t where they needed to be.
That is when it struck me: I was speaking the same ‘language’ to everyone, hoping that it would all tie together the same way. But equal doesn’t mean the same. Each person has their own drivers, communication style, and emotional needs. To really lead, I had to shift. I started listening to each person—how they wanted to receive feedback, what upset them, what made them feel heard and validated. It wasn’t changing who I was; it was about altering how I expressed myself for my team members.
Leadership, I came to understand, isn’t so much about commanding performance—it is about translating your intention into the language that any person can most effectively hear. When you begin to change how you relate, you free an additional sense of belonging, faith, and pace for them individually as well as the team as a whole.
In the next, and final, part of the ‘Leadership Happens‘ series, I will share a lesson on preserving yourself while you adapt to others.
Anna Liebel is a Mindshifter who helps entrepreneurial leaders and their teams stay sane while building the next big thing, and perform optimally without personal sacrifice. She partners with founders and executive teams who feel trapped by the pressure to succeed, and guides them to build sustainable, high-performance habits without sacrificing their health or relationships. Through tailored support, Anna helps them find the best ways to collaborate and lead with clarity, confidence, and balance.
Anna currently teaches at the Reykjavik University, delivering leadership and personal development courses (Well-being, Leadership and Effective Teamwork, Critical Thinking) to undergraduate students who major in Business Administration and Economics.
