"Lead yourself" is one of those concepts that is quite well known, but seriously, how the hell do you know if you're actually leading yourself in a way you hope?!?
My wife introduced me to the 8 C's of Self Leadership from Julia Sullivan a few years ago, and it's a really good practical way to know whether or not you're showing up like the adult you hope to. And since I like practical ways to dig into complex concepts, I'm sharing it with you.
Basically, Julia introduces 8 feelings words that start with C that are meant to help you figure out when you're adulting. By starting with these words, she reminds us to check in with ourselves to see if we're feeling any of these words before we act.
Here's how these words have been helpful for me. When I'm pressed to make a decision, or wanting to take an action, I first ask myself, "Do I feel… Calm, Clear, Curious, Compassionate, Confident, Courageous, Creative, or Connected right now?"
If the answer is yes, I make a decision or take that action.
If the answer is no, I do everything possible to delay that decision or action until I'm feeling one of the 8 C's. And for me, learning how to say, "No" to other people is giving me every chance to be in my adult self. It's giving me every opportunity to be curious, creative, courageous, and clear.
If you're wanting a practical way to think about leading yourself, Julia even created the 8 C's of Self-Leadership Wheel. I highly recommend checking it out.