Psychologist and mental health researcher Professor Frances Kay-Lambkin was once told she was ‘too flamingo’ to be taken seriously as a leader, and what she did in response at the time still shocks her.
“I really surprised myself at how quickly I discarded my “flamingo-ness”– the things I liked and valued about myself as a human and leader (and even my pink hair) and tried to fit in with the other leaders around me,” says Professor Kay-Lambkin, Director of the Hunter Medical Research Institute.
Trying to fit in with other leaders, rather than being herself, ended up taking “far too much energy”, she says, before “a real circuit breaker in that environment” forced her to stop and do some necessary self-reflection.
“How did I so willingly not back myself and the qualities and attributes that had landed me in that leadership role?” she asked herself. “Where did that assertiveness and confidence go? Big questions.”
This experience taught Professor Kay-Lambkin crucial lessons about the importance of leading with authenticity despite the pressure to conform.
In an upcoming event with Franklin Women, Professor Kay-Lambkin will sit down with a panel of other female leaders to reflect on authentic leadership and the strategies they employ to bring this to life in the workplace.
No matter if you’re starting off on your career or in a leadership role, join Franklin Women’s event in-person or via livestream on Wednesday 8 May. The conversation will be facilitated by Women’s Agenda’s very own, Angela Priestley, and tickets can be found here.
In the lead-up to the event, Professor Kay-Lambkin shares more with Women’s Agenda on her career journey and advice on how to push past leadership stereotypes.
Can you briefly describe the Hunter Medical Research Institute and what your personal work there involves?
Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) is Australia’s largest regional medical research institute. It’s unique in the sense that it’s partnered with the Hunter New England local health district, the University of Newcastle, and our 1 million community members across metropolitan, regional, rural and remote locations. Our 1 million people represent a snapshot of most communities in Australia, which means that our research and translation – if we get it right here – can be rapidly applied virtually anywhere else in Australia. And HMRI is on a mission to make our 1 million people the healthiest on the planet… because if we do, then it’s only a short step to the healthiest nation on the planet, and onwards from there.
My work at HMRI runs in a few different spheres. I am the CEO and Director, so I have the privilege of working with our partners to set our research agenda for the region and get to empower our 1600 affiliates and 100 staff to follow their dreams and passions in health and medicine. Personally, for me, as a mental health researcher, I get to contribute to our ‘healthiest million people’ aspiration by developing and testing digital and other innovations in mental health treatments and working out how to make them available when people need them most.
What’s one key project you’re working on now that you want more people to know about?
In mental health, we have a supply chain issue. We do not have enough clinicians to assist the 4 million Australians who need treatment in any one year. That’s not always because we don’t know which treatments work best… although we can always do more discovery research in mental health. Importantly, we already know a lot about what helps people recover from mental ill-health – we just don’t implement this in practice. One way that my research is trying to address this now is by using digital intervention to bridge this knowledge-practice gap. Our team launched a free digital platform called “eclipse” that makes high quality, evidence-based, effective mental health treatments available to people 24/7 – digital treatments that have been tested against traditional face-to-face treatments and work just as well. And now our team is embarking on a state-wide implementation trial of eclipse in NSW (across mental health and drug and alcohol services in the public and private system) to work out the best model of integrating eclipse into the lives and experiences of people living with mental illness – whether they are in treatment services or not.
Was there a key turning point – a moment, chance intro or something else – that put you on the path to being the leader you are today?
I have been lucky enough to be surrounded by leaders my whole life, and taught from a very young age to be curious about the world… and not just ask “why?”, but “why not?” Like many of us, I can point to negative interactions I’ve had with people who’ve not had those same experiences, who’ve questioned my ability to combine motherhood with a successful career, and who don’t think that a compassionate, co-operative style of leadership can be as competitive or successful as other forms. But I’ve had just as many experiences to the contrary. Living examples of people – males and females – who’ve worked out how to forge new paths, new ways of working, new and improved leadership styles… and I’ve learned so much from both sets of experiences.
I do remember one example in particular, though… where my mentor (and fabulous flamingo herself) Professor Maree Teesson AC had pulled together all of the leaders in mental health and substance use for a first-ever heads-together on how to integrate treatment for mental health and alcohol/other drug use problems… pretty important and landmark stuff. She stood up to welcome everyone there – and it was a who’s who of leadership and influencers and funders in the room – and announced that she’d just had a call from her daughter’s school and needed to go and pick her up. But that she had confidence in all of the leaders present, and of we in her team there on that day, to continue to work together and arrive at the solution we all needed. She had trust (and had done the work to ensure) that we were all there for the same reasons, and she had prepared us all well enough to do the work even without her there. That was a turning point for me in my own leadership journey.
And I took away 2 things (well more, actually… but 2 main ones)… 1. That if you are generous with your training, mentoring, sharing of ideas, and preparing people for success (rather than holding onto or safeguarding knowledge and expertise and opportunity for yourself), you can 2. Be where you need to be.
When you were told you were ‘too flamingo’ to be taken seriously as a leader, what was your response? How did you adjust yourself to be a more stereotypical leader?
What I did still shocks me, frankly. I’m probably being dramatic, but I really surprised myself at how quickly I discarded my “flamingo-ness” – the things I liked about and valued about myself as a human and leader (and even my pink hair) and tried to fit in with the other leaders around me. I became very competitive and cut through and somewhat undermined others and when I wasn’t getting the results needed, I just worked harder and harder and harder on those things. And it took so much energy to do all of that. Far too much energy. It took a real circuit breaker in that environment to make me stop (and some therapy and expert coaching)… and to reflect on how I got there and why. How did I so willingly not back myself and the qualities and attributes that had landed me in that leadership role? Where did that assertiveness and confidence go? Big questions.
Do you think leadership norms are changing and adapting to the up-and-coming cohort of female scientists? Is there more flexibility for people to bring their whole selves to leadership positions?
Absolutely yes! And I don’t think it is just due to female scientists! Although I’ll gladly take that! With every generation of leaders that lead with honesty, generosity, vulnerability, heart, and humour, it gets easier for the next person to do that. People like Tanya Plibersek, Penny Wong, Jacinta Ardern, Annabel Crabb, Julia Gillard, and Leigh Sales do this so very powerfully – each in very different ways (which is the secret) – and I think have helped us to usher in a new, strong, and compassionate style of leadership than perhaps we’ve been privy to in the past.
Creating a culture of inclusiveness is key here – and that’s about many things… such as making sure people feel psychologically safe to be themselves, but at the same time being accountable to themselves and each other – so that we can have the conversations that need to be had in respectful, curious, and compassionate ways. I think this does create flexibility – not only for leaders – but for everyone, really.
How does authenticity make you a better, more effective leader?
I think it fosters trust, and trust fosters a sense of safety and partnership. When people feel safe, they are able to think in a completely different way. The way humans are hardwired to respond to stress means that we freeze, flee, fawn or fight when we feel are unsafe or under attack. By removing the ‘threat’, role modelling ‘realness’ and encouraging open collaboration, creativity and genuine connection, I think we all end up being happy, productive humans.
I’ve learnt that my own mental health will struggle if I try to be anything other than my authentic self. What kind of psychologist would I be if I allowed that to happen again? I hope that I provide a role model for the people around me, but beyond that, I need to feel comfortable in my own skin. I’ve learned not to waste time or energy on pretending – which means I have more resources to direct to what really matters – the work of supporting incredible scientist and clinicians. That doesn’t mean that I always win – or that people always just want to work with me. Because I can also be a bit much to take sometimes… just ask my team!! It also doesn’t meant that there are shades of myself that I take into different situations – depending on the context – but there are very basic values and behaviours that I do.
And what are some of the best ways you believe you practice authenticity in your daily interactions at work?
I use humour a lot… I may occasionally swear (or maybe more than occasionally), I wear outfits that make me feel happy. I don’t make people guess what I am thinking and feeling – I try to let them know in a respectful way. And – because I know my feelings pretty well by now… I check in with myself regularly… often my feelings tell me when I’m not being authentic, or when something doesn’t quite feel right. And – within a little bit of reason and lot of respect – I show my feelings in the workplace… I hope I demonstrate genuine compassion and empathy when things get tough, and I know I show a whole lot of joy when I feel it – like when colleagues’ share with me things they are proud of.
I hope this makes people feel like that can be honest with me I return, and I hope it’s an effective way to lead an organisation.
What advice would you give other women looking to push past stereotypes and become leaders in the public health sector?
Hmmm … I wish I had something inspirational here to say! I think the secret sauce is working out what gives you energy and what takes energy from you… and to try to make sure that any balance you strike in a day, a week, or a month is about balancing energy in and energy out. And I get those things both inside and outside of my work. I also think it’s important to take some time to work out what makes you special and unique as a leader (and get some help with that)… and then lean into that. Don’t hide it. Don’t shrink away from it. If you are funny, be funny. If you are introverted, be introverted. The key thing, I think, is to be curious about yourself and others, to be self-reflective, do excellent work and be willing to work as hard on yourself as you are on your job.