Just don't call me sir!

I've learned that working at consultant practitioner level requires a leadership style that can quickly adapt to whatever the situation is. In one day, I could move from meeting elected representatives challenging performance, to an emotional debrief, and on to a demanding incident scene. It's true that no day is the same, but it can feel like no hour is the same either.

I appreciate not everyone subscribes to the idea of leadership models, but the need for me to adapt my style is a real one, so preparation for meetings isn't just about reading papers—as I move to the next meeting or engagement, I think about who will be there and consider what they need from me the most. I then plan how I credibly achieve it. If that's not possible, I acknowledge that at the start; as a leader and a clinician, managing expectations is essential.

Leader, manager, commander—three words that I guarantee will provoke opinionated discussion in most social media groups: ‘We need commanders. No, we need leaders. We need managers, but they are diffident to leaders.’ If anyone isn't confused, I don't know how because without context, those statements are meaningless and could leave me with a genuine crisis of identity.