Slow down to move fast. This important leadership secret underscores much of the work I do with leaders. At this hectic time of year, I thought it would be helpful to emphasize that how we start the day often determines how effective we are in our activities. It can be challenging to resist the urge to jump out of bed, turn on the cellphone, and begin reacting to every ping and beep. Yet this is exactly the opposite of effective.
The Leadership Secret: Don’t Get Out Of Bed
Instead, spend the first 30 seconds upon waking simply lying in bed. Feel your body awakening from slumber. Articulate 3 things you are grateful for upon arising. After the necessary bodily activities, spend a few minutes in a centering practice. Close your eyes. Breathe deeply and slowly, inhaling through the nose, and using the belly to breathe in and out. When you lower the breathing from the top of the lungs to the belly, the body begins to enter relaxation. In this zone, you can become creative and attuned to your higher intelligences. Now you are ready. Visualize what it is that you want to create with this day. Who do you want to be? What will you need to do or not do? What are the top three urgent and important activities that must be done? Affirm that which is most important for you to focus on and say it three times. This whole practice can be done in 10 minutes, without rushing. These 10 minutes have the potential to super-charge your leadership.
But Does It Work?
Take Colin
[notification type=”alert-info” close=”false”] Colin is a client who used this leadership secret this year to literally transform in 6 months. Through connecting to this sort of practice, he activated a part of himself that had become dormant. He told me recently “how I start my day is a game changer. I have trained myself to listen better, I am flexible when hearing new ideas that previously I would have shut down; I’ve learned to respond instead of react. As a result, my business unit is performing at the highest level ever, I’ve lost twenty pounds, and was able to discontinue blood pressure medication.” [/notification]
Consider Tony’s Experience
[notification type=”alert-success” close=”false”] Tony used to start his day by jumping out of bed, heading to the kitchen to make coffee, turn on ESPN, while turning on his cellphone and downloading emails. All this before he dressed and headed to work. By the time he got to the office, he was charged—he was bouncing and highly-activated. He began the type of practice I described above, and had a true transformation. His wife commented about how different he was. His colleagues remarked about how much easier it was for them to engage more effectively with him.[/notification]
The power of how to start your day lies within. This simple leadership secret can be your game-changer too.
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