By DonnaLyn Giegerich
You may be smart, but are you effective?
I was recently invited to present for the New Jersey State Bar Association about leadership resilience for attorneys in transition. We agreed that we lived in an incredibly interesting but consistently exhausting world today. Every job is temporary, life shifts are common and demands on our time are endless.
So how are you showing up these days? Tired or tenacious? Harried or hopeful?
Here’s what we agreed to be true: Discomfort, transitions and shifts are a window to welcome transformation. First, remember that growth often results in challenging times. If you’re complacent, you’re often bored or underperforming as your inner wisdom nudges you to reexamine your options. If your gut is prompting you to “share more, do more or develop more” then it’s time to address your “inner call to action.”
I consult with so many high and hopeful performers that simply get stuck on the redirect or tread water dipping their toes into something new without committing to a full plunge.
Here are a few ways to keep the needle moving forward to support momentum around your new normal or desired destiny.
1. Think it, ink it. Study after study confirm the efficacy of writing your goals/plans/dreams down on paper. Find an accountability app, get a notebook or team up with a buddy that will check in on your progress regularly. Wager a bet, start a contest or create an interesting reward to keep your focus on goals that are attainable, measurable and time sensitive. Get an evolved visual around what your accomplishment will look and feel like as you step into your goal state. Make the exercise as visceral as possible so you can actually taste success when you’ve created it. Invite your trusted accountability partner to witness your success and share in your achievement. Success shared is the ultimate prize!
2. Read to succeed. Get yourself plugged into technology to learn where your community of like-minded thinkers hang out. Thought leaders are plentiful on Twitter, celebrants of life converge at Meetup groups, and old-fashioned networking will always be in style. Ask your upper-level colleagues what and who they’re reading to get a sense of how they’re informing their lives. Query the technologically proficient for their favorite websites and nook/book recommendations this summer. You may be surprised to learn where they are hanging out. I was reminded of the advantages of being a voracious reader at a corporate keynote I shared for the Campbell’s brand when the CEO stated she had been reading two books a week since kindergarten. She was certain the weekly two book minimum her whole life was a direct predictor of her long-term leadership life success.
3. Skill up. Building a new life, better habits or a new business requires refined relationship building skills. Terrified of walking confidently into a room full of strangers socially or professionally? Take a workshop on presenting well, a seminar on networking or coach with a professional to enhance your quiet confidence and influencing impact. It’s largely learned skilling and with the advances in technology, this behavioral edge is often the defining difference for those that excel at being smart ***ITALand***END effective. Successful leaders are masterful at cultivating mutually rewarding relationships that improve the lives of others while elevating their own.
In short, take some time this summer to think about how you might amp up your effectiveness to magnify your brand of leadership wellness in the world. Commit to creating momentum from the inside out by crafting a written plan supported by the learned wisdom of others. So, if you’re on a mission to transition or simply want to tweak a weakness, try these tools to improve your leadership groove.
Feel free to let me know what’s working for you at my website, on Facebook or Twitter @DonnaLynSpeaks. Namaste!
DonnaLyn Giegerich MBA CIC RYT keynotes, consults and coaches in the corporate, consumer and convention space on integrated leadership topics. She is rewarded daily by the progress and passion her clients share around bringing leadership change forward in their lives. Learn more about workshops, seminars and events at www.donnalyn.org.
