What Shaped the Leader You are Today? - People, Choices, and Challenges that Brought You Here

When was the last time you stopped to think about how you got to where you are today? Which people, experiences, and challenges shaped the way you lead? And what could looking back tell you about what to do next?

In this episode of Racquet Fuel, Kim Bastable and Simon Gale turn the questions on themselves. Inspired by GRIT: Building a Business, Leading with Purpose, a book by past guest and UK tennis entrepreneur Emma Wells, they work through a series of reflection questions and share how their own answers have changed over time. Simon talks about why he makes time for one-on-one check-ins, what he learned when he went from teaching alongside his peers to managing them, and how joining a nonprofit board challenged him to find new ways to contribute. Kim shares why she’s learned to ask how someone is doing before asking about a task, what it takes to build a program someone else can lead, and why protecting time for yourself matters when you spend your days supporting others.

Reflection Questions:

1. What early influences shaped the way you lead, work, and connect with people today?
2. Which places and relationships in your life have made you feel most supported, valued and connected?
3. When did you last step outside your comfort zone and discover that you were capable of more than you expected?
4. Are you simply giving people opportunities to participate or are you helping them feel that they truly belong?
5. Are you spending most of your time delivering the work or are you building the systems, relationships and culture that will allow others to succeed well after you're no longer there?
6. If you could stop wearing one hat in your work or business, which would it be, and what would that allow you to focus on instead?
7. What vision have you been quietly holding onto that deserves greater belief, preparation or action?
8. How do you want people to feel after interacting with you?
9. Have you ever gone through a period when your intentions were misunderstood or criticized, despite  trying to the do the right thing?
10. Am I relying on what I already know rather than remaining curious enough to keep learning and evolving?
11. Who or what outside my industry could teach me something that would make me a better leader, coach or professional?
12. If I stepped away for two weeks, what would continue without me and what would that reveal about my leadership?
13. What boundaries do I need to protect so I can lead with energy rather than exhaustion?
14. How has your definition of success changed as you have grown?

Resources & Mentions:

• GRIT: Building a Business, Leading with Purpose 
• Emma Wells Racquet Fuel - Women in Leadership

Hosts:

• Kim Bastable — Professor of Practice and UF Director of Racquet Sports Management
• Simon Gale — USTA Senior Director of Racquet Sports Development

Learn More & Get Certified:

Racquet Fuel is powered by the University of Florida’s Director of Racquet Sports Certificate Program, the industry’s leading education for current and aspiring racquets leaders. Explore our self-paced online courses and join the next generation of directors shaping the future of the game.

Learn more here:

Personal Brand Management for the Racquets Industry — UF PBM
Course 1: Facilities, Operations, Marketing & More — UF DORS 1
Course 2: Leadership, Management & Finance —  UF DORS
       - Course 1 completion is required for Course 2.