Fear or Opportunity: The Leadership Lens that shapes your Decisions

As I stood on stage at Los Angeles Opera, preparing to perform alongside Placido Domingo, I faced a choice: view this moment through fear or opportunity. I could worry about messing up my Russian beside him or missing some notes, or I could focus on the incredible opportunity of sharing the stage with a living legend. This same choice faces every leader I've coached over the past three decades.

Here's what I've learned from working with over 1,000 C-level executives: The lens through which you view decisions – fear or opportunity – shapes not just the outcome, but your entire leadership journey.

Fear narrows our vision, making us focus on what could go wrong. Opportunity, on the other hand, expands our perspective, allowing us to see possibilities we might have missed. The interesting thing? The situation doesn't change – only our perspective does.

In my latest video, I share how to:

• Recognize when fear is driving your decisions
• Shift your perspective from threat to opportunity
• Use emotional intelligence to make better choices
• Lead from a place of possibility rather than protection

The most successful leaders I've worked with aren't fearless – they're simply better at recognizing fear and choosing opportunity instead.

What lens are you looking through today?