I love my job. Every week I have the opportunity to talk to a woman leader who has mastered effective leadership skills. I greedily drink up their experiences and advice. This week, I’m going to share some thoughts on personal sustainability, and how that is an effective leadership skill.
Personal sustainability is nurturing all areas of your life that matter to you. For instance, your body needs sleep, nutrients, activity, etc. Your mind needs challenge, clearing, and may need systems to be most efficient. Most of us need some sort of spiritual fulfillment, and for everyone the combination is weighted differently.
When I interview women leaders about personal sustainability it’s clear that they know exactly what they need to do in order to refresh. They know that if they do not hold up one leg of the stool it will collapse. And yet, I coach a lot of leaders, many of whom have a difficult time finding ways to create a sustainable life. Working 60 hours per week or more, eating fast food, and not getting enough rest can wreak havoc on your mind and your body over time. It can create burn-out and bad decision-making.
In fact, according to Sherrie Bourg Carter Psy.D., other than the negative physiological responses, burn-out creates cynicism, pessimism and feelings of isolation and detachment. I know, I’ve been there. Crazy as it seems, I have pushed myself way beyond my limits to perform when I had an empty tank. The result was devastating for me and my team. It was not one of my finer moments.
I certainly learned from my low point. So did one of my Talk it up with Cindy guests, Emma Weber. Emma suggests having a team of professionals that help her sustain her busy life. Emma is the CEO of a fast-growing international company, Lever—Transfer of Learning. Like all great CEO’s Emma knows and honors her limitations. So she taps into the wisdom of professionals to help shore herself up. “Team Em” is a team that includes healthcare providers, mentors and advisors.
I like this approach because it does two things. First, as the leader, you are allowed to be vulnerable and human and second, you can ask for help when you need it. So many work environments do not honor vulnerability and asking for help. John Wooden said, “The weak usually do not ask for help, so they stay weak.” If we cannot or will not ask for help, we become weak and ineffective.
It’s up to you to model effective leadership skills for your people.
Do you have a team to call on if you need them? What is your strategy when you start to feel overwhelmed and detached? If you do not, find your team, so they are in place when you need them. This should be part of your leadership strategy.
Stay tuned for more advice from women leaders.