Last week in Living Intentionally, we started the new year by encouraging you to take some time to reflect on your priorities and how those priorities can guide your choices about work, important relationships, and your health. Before we do a deep dive into these three areas, we want to spend this week talking about the power of seeing people and of being seen.

Just over two years ago we created the Mattering Matrix to help leaders understand how to work with the teams and individuals in their organizations to demonstrate that they are important to the team and the organization. We’ve found that leaders understand theoretically that mattering matters, but they don’t really understand how to behave in ways that communicate this consistently over time.

As we’ve talked with leaders across multiple businesses in recent weeks, they’ve told us that they’re concerned that their own level of exhaustion and depletion will make it hard to provide inspiring leadership to their teams. In that vein, the Mattering Matrix can provide guidance to leaders and to individuals who are wondering how to care for their teams and for themselves. 

To be clear, we believe in the importance and the centrality of Black Lives Matter. There is no question that the important work to interrupt systemic racism is key to our success as a nation and our successes in our organizations and communities. Our Mattering Matrix is one tool for leaders and managers in organizations that value creating respect, psychological safety, and equity. It can support efforts to change systemic and institutional bias because it is a way to understand and work with the power of genuinely seeing people and being seen by others.

Here are the basics of the Mattering Matrix:

People feel seen and believe they matter when two things are true:

  • when they are seen and cared about as an individual
  • when they feel valued and respected for their unique skills and talents
This small but powerful truth can support you in your leadership at work, at home, and in your community. It will also enhance your ability to see your own needs through these challenging times.
 

The power of being seen and believing that you matter is that you will show up more fully. When everyone can show up more fully, it creates an environment of psychological safety which in turn enhances people’s ability to show up at their best.

Next week we will share some ways to use this framework throughout your work and life so that you will see others and see yourself more clearly.

If you would like support in bringing
these skills to your life, contact us today.