Space is a bigger word than time. Space is about having the time but also slowing down the mind.
Have you ever met someone who seemed to always have more on their plate than they can get done? A person who carries around tension, maybe impatience. And they get stressed out, frustrated, sometimes angry, a little more than they’d like. Query: How effective will they be leading from that place? Are they likely to see their way to becoming a world-class leader from within that place?
On the other hand, what if your way of being is more slowed down? You’re in peace rather than stress. You’re seeing what’s possible (leading) more than what’s gone wrong (managing). What if the noise has gone quiet? Might you have more clarity? Might you exude something that others will want more of?
My daughter and I were on the phone last weekend and she said to me: “I’ve been thinking about how to tell you this.” Now, that could get a father’s heartbeat up. Then she told me the thing. Then, a little later, she said: “I know this is stressful.” I said back to her. Very simply, and I very much meant it. “I don’t do stress.”
For myself, I love that I don’t have to feel bad. What a way to live. Even more; think about the impact that has on the person I love. The person I’m leading in that moment. She chuckled because she knows. I know the power of being that example for her.
First and foremost, your quality of leadership depends on who you are being. Where you are inside of yourself. People think they can be all upset on the inside, or focusing on the 37 things they have to do that day, and at the same time lead. They may manage their emotions in the moment, and they may come up with something constructive to say. But the words never matter as much as the energy. And the best words never come when you’re in a hurry, frustrated, etc.
Do this: Run the experiment. Look back at some leadership opportunity you had this morning or yesterday. A time when you were in hurry or just not at your best inside yourself. How did that go?
Consider what if you could have first stepped back and caught your breath. Either re-imagine that situation or think of another actual one. How’d that one go?
We know the answer. I’m encouraging you to start looking at the two versions of you. For most people, there’s a material gap between how they are being and leading, and their full potential. Try and find that gap. Don’t judge it. That’s the opportunity!
If you missed any earlier emails in this series, you can find them
here. And if you’d like more guidance on any of this, feel free to email me.
