Achieved Strategies

How do you know when your passion for your current position has waned? For some it’s very easy to know when it’s time to move on.  Yet there are those of us who second-guess what our instinct, gut, even performance tells us.

My instinct signals to me that my passion has diminished when I become restless and distracted.  The longer I ignore this cue, the worse the current situation becomes.  And the consequence for any of us when this occurs is not isolated to just ourselves.

• People’s performance is impacted because we’re not focused, not paying attention to others’ needs or what they’re doing.
• Dominant thoughts are “what’s missing?” “What’s wrong with me?” “I’m off a lot these days.” Our thoughts become me-focused, diminishing our leadership and presence.
• And if you manage people, overall team performance falls impacting established goals

A restless leader is a sign that something internal is not satisfied with something in the external world.  The restlessness surfaces when dissatisfaction goes unresolved.

Resolving the restless feelings and resulting behaviors may be easy to address, assuming you can pinpoint the cause. If not, some level of self-check is necessary.  Here are some ways to check-in with yourself,  or others,  and some actions to take:

Write Down Yellow/Red Flags – Are you “betraying” thoughts that dominate your interactions with others and not addressing/discussing them?

Cause Creative Tension – Complacency with others on your team/in your business may have put you in/the business in a rut. Could be time to revisit goals, rewarded behaviors, reporting structures, even projects.

360-degree Assessment – Perhaps you’ve grown too complacent with your own development. Get feedback in the form of a 360-degree tool. Only start this process if you intend to act on the feedback.

Volunteer (Get outside yourself) – Sometimes restlessness settles in when we believe we need to contribute on a bigger level. Find a cause you support and volunteer. Remind yourself that leadership and community is never about you – it’s about others.

Complete Values Review – What values drive you and the work you do? Are your values congruent with your work? If not, the restless feeling you have will not go away. Review your values against the work you do. How you resolve incongruousness depends on the degree of differences.

Start Reflection Practice – I recently realized that I’ve not declared what my values are. To help identify them I journal and meditate. You, too, will need to have some reflection practice to identify your values, confirm your values, or assess if your values are present in your work. I have friends who walk, run, swim and think deeply about pressing needs. Find what works for you and stick with it.

Leadership in this New Era demands engaged leaders. If you’re restless, a self-inquiry about the cause is vital to be and remain engaged. Do it for yourself so that others can benefit from your leadership. Your beliefs and actions stop being about you and becomes about others.

Note: Each Sunday a new Leadership Brief will be posted.  The purpose is to present a common leadership occurrence and provide alternative viewpoints for consideration and application in the coming work week.

Photo Courtesy of raynn13