The characteristics of a successful credit union leader: is it you?

I recently read an article in The Daily Stoic that reinforced a point I make in every strategic planning session: “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you are right.”

I begin every strategic planning session this way to set the tone for the day’s discussions. Saying, “Well, we can’t because…” is a sure way to remain stuck in mediocrity. On the other hand, saying, “This would be a challenge, but if we…” opens the door to different actions that lead to different results.

In The Daily Stoic, Ryan Holiday shared these thoughts:

“Consider this: if you convince yourself that inadequate teachers are the reason you’re not as smart as others, you’ll struggle with learning throughout your life. While your teachers may indeed have been subpar, the limiting story you’ve chosen to believe is the real obstacle. Someone who reframes the same experience differently—’I rose above my underperforming schools through my hunger for learning’ or ‘My street smarts compensate for gaps in my formal education’—will achieve far more in life.”

Holiday’s words echo a more modern version of what Epictetus once shared:

“Sickness is an impediment to the body but not to the will unless the will wants to be impeded. Lameness is an impediment to the leg, but not to the will. If you tell yourself this every time, you will find the impediment is to something else but not to yourself.”

It’s important to remember that Epictetus spoke these exact words while enduring a crippled leg, an injury he sustained during his time as a slave.

Now, I challenge you to look at the obstacles facing you as a credit union leader today:

• Squeezed margins
• Regulatory burdens and chaos
• Competitive attacks from fintechs, big banks, and even other credit unions encroaching on your turf

Recently, we spent an afternoon with a credit union CEO facing a new and complex challenge. Previously reliable members were falling behind on loan payments, and overdrafts were piling up due to online gambling, pornography, and shopping addictions. “These were members who had challenges, but we could always help. Now, their poor choices are snowballing, and I’m not sure how we can support them through this.”

It would have been easy to write them off and shift the credit union’s lending strategy. Instead, we brainstormed ways to reach these members, educate them, and even introduced bold ideas to help them think twice before clicking on those sites or “buy now, pay later” links.

What challenge is holding your credit union back right now? Will you let that challenge define your strategy, or will you get creative and shape your own success?

If you’re feeling stuck, we can help. For almost 20 years, we’ve helped credit unions gain perspective on the challenges that keep them stuck and find creative marketing strategies to break through and grow. We can help you too.