It was February 21, 1900. I was in my last semester of grad school and working full time.
I had just walked into my office after a meeting in Connecticut. Hadn’t even taken off my coat when the phone rang. It was my husband.
“Are you sitting down?” he asked.
“Seriously? Who says that?” I protested.
“No, I mean it. Sit down.” To humor him, I complied. “Our house is burning down,” he told me.
You’ve finally managed to secure an appointment with someone you look up to as a leader. You’ve watched her TED Talks and read her articles. Getting an actual appointment was a long shot; you’re excited to be able to meet her in person. In fact, you’ve been working on some ideas for a new project that you can’t wait to get her perspective on.
You show up at her place of business, only to find a line of people outside her office, snaking down the hall. This is disconcerting and doesn’t fit with your image of how such a leader would manage her commitments, but, after all, she is a busy person and so important. You take your place in the line. After an hour, you are first in line.
Does your current approach to decision-making cause stress and lead to procrastination, wasted time and energy? Have you tried various techniques but still haven’t got a great “formula” that works for you?
If so, you’re not alone. Some of my clients struggle with this, too, and I can totally relate. There are times when I can make life altering decisions without hesitating. Other times, I’m paralyzed with indecision for weeks about something that seems minor.
Wouldn’t it be great to know exactly what goes into making an effective decision and how to decide with ease? Read on for some factors that go into a good decision and what gets in the way.
As I’m writing this, it’s my husband’s last day of work before his retirement. It’s also the day before his 70th birthday. The past few weeks have included signing up for Medicare, applying for Social Security benefits, and fitting in medical appointments that may not be covered after his health insurance ends. And that doesn’t even include being on the verge of starting construction on our house.
Is there someone in your life who you think is on the verge of burnout? Maybe it’s a person you supervise or a friend or partner.
How would you know? The World Health Organization defines occupational burnout as a syndrome … resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.
According to the WHO, burnout has three dimensions: 1) feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; 2) increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one's job; and 3) a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment.
At a time when the world grapples with political polarization, global health issues, climate change, and debates over military aid, leaders in human services face a related challenge. What do these global issues have in common with the difficulties faced by those in human services? They share an underlying dynamic that has to do with balancing individual self-interest with the common good.
I’m working with several organizations that have invested heavily in initiatives designed to enhance the wellbeing and psychological safety of their employees. In spite of that, they still continue to report high degrees of burnout among their workforce.
Why is it burnout still so prevalent?
One clue might be a little recognized change in how people must do their work.
Here’s a thought experiment. Bring to mind a relationship that causes you to feel resentful at times. It could be with a family member, a colleague, a boss or a friend. In spite of attempts to deal with these feelings—possibly on both sides—you just can’t seem to clear the air once and for all. And the relationship is not one that you’re likely to walk away from.
Many of the leaders I work with struggle with holding their people accountable, regardless of what level they are in the organization. According to a CEO Benchmarking Report, holding people accountable is difficult—even for leaders who head up companies. 18% of the CEOs surveyed cited “holding people accountable” as their biggest weakness. Additionally, 15% struggle with “letting go of underperformers.”
Is this challenging for you, too?
It’s that time of year again. Yes, it’s time to gather with family, overindulge a bit and grab some sorely needed down time.
But it’s also the time of year to look back, reflect, and use the fruits of your reflections to lay a foundation for the new year.
I’d like to be your virtual reflection partner. After all, isn’t the hard work of reflection more enjoyable when it’s shared?
I must confess something. I have a tendency to eavesdrop on people when I’m in a restaurant. Being in the people business, I see it as a way to learn more about how people interact with one another when they’re being unselfconscious. Plus, it’s just plain fun!
A few nights ago, my husband and I decided to have dinner at a local pub. We found ourselves seated next to two women. We recognized one of them, and, after exchanging some pleasantries and engaging in a bit of small talk, we retreated back into our own conversation. Their discussion became a background noise that I tuned out for the most part. From the snippets I did catch, it appeared they were discussing a challenging period one of them was experiencing.
All of a sudden, one of the women said clearly, “While you’re away, I’ll make a week’s worth of dinner and bring it over to him every night. I can feed the dog and check to make sure everything’s okay.”
Procrastination. Even the word sounds unpleasant, like an itchy skin disease. Many of us are guilty of putting off a challenging task or project. In fact, I had “draft blog post on procrastination” on my to-do list for several days before I started working on it. Quite ironic, isn’t it?
While procrastinating once in a while is not something to be concerned about, habitual procrastination can have serious consequences. Research shows that this habit can result in anxiety, low self-esteem, and even physical illness. Plus, procrastination can create a vicious cycle leading to even more procrastination.
In this blog post, we’ll explore what procrastination is, what the root causes are, and what you can do to conquer procrastination once and for all.
“All hell is breaking loose around here again,” Daniel stated flatly.
“What is?” I asked.
“ Covid is back and my team is telling me they just can’t go through this again. What do I say to them? I can’t reassure them that everything is going to be all right. Yet I can’t just join in and add my own concerns to the mix. Everyone is burned out and anxious about what could happen. How do I help them prepare for what they may have to deal with?
I truly didn’t know what to say. It was my second coaching session in a row where someone opened up about a situation that was generating difficult emotions. I didn’t have an easy answer. Well, I could have come up with something but I’m afraid it would’ve come off as superficial and canned.
But what to do instead?
It was mid-March 2020, in the early days of the Pandemic. Most of my scheduled work was being put on hold or cancelled. I wrote in my journal, “I have a feeling I will have a lot of free time and very little revenue for the foreseeable future.” I was using my time learning the ins and outs of launching a virtual business, something I’d planned to do at some point. But I anticipated making a gradual transition, not overnight. Meanwhile, like most people, I was anxious about how to make ends meet and the unprecedented uncertainty of everything.
I ‘m in the thick of a personal challenge that’s likely to continue for some time. This offers a chance to reflect on what I know about resilience, having had many life experiences that tested my capacity to bounce back.
Here’s my current challenge. My husband and I recently went away for the weekend. While we were away, the toilet in our master bathroom failed. Water overflowed into the bathroom and caused the wide pine flooring to buckle throughout the bathroom and adjoining room. It also seeped into the walls of the floor below, destroying a section of ceiling, bead board and warped a door frame.
“Okay, that’s what we’re going to do then. Thank you everyone for your input. I’ve gotta run to another meeting. Keep me posted on how things go.”
Tony shut down his video call and logged on to his next meeting. He was proud that he and his team had been able to come up with a quick solution to avert the impending crisis. But two weeks later, they were meeting again. They needed to find a solution to the unintended consequence of their quick fix.
Can you relate to this? We live in a fast-paced world where the pressure for quick solutions is intense. At the same time, we often run into unintended consequences that take us by surprise. Three common leadership activities have great potential to falter: delegation, managing conflict, and dealing with crisis situations.
Imagine this…
You’re at the train station, heading on a last minute business trip. You’re distracted, mulling over the meeting agenda. Another part of your brain is angsting over what you’ve forgotten in your haste.
Waiting in line, you notice an acquaintance standing nearby. It’s someone you’ve had a couple of intriguing conversations with, and you’re curious about getting to know him better.
I'm finding it hard to keep an open heart these days. On so many important issues, people are more polarized than I could ever have imagined. The chasm appears to be growing ever wider and deeper. The world feels scarier and even more unpredictable than ever. “Conventional wisdom” is no longer a trustworthy indicator of how events will play out.
