Happy New Year! If you had a break I hope it was a relaxing one for you.
After the speed and chaos of last year, I think we’d all agree that another year of the same just wouldn’t be sustainable. So how will we slow things down when the pace of 2015 is more than likely going to be the same? When business conditions are uncertain and when the dynamics of people continue to challenge us as leaders?
We can’t control our environment or what is happening in the economy but we can control how we behave and react as leaders. And that is where we need to start. To be an effective and strong leader we need to have absolute clarity around 3 things:
- You and how you are as a leader
- Your Business (Vision, goals, plans and the execution of)
- Your Team
The challenge for you as a leader this year will be to slow down the runaway train and take stock – often! Things can spiral out of control so very easily and quickly. To ensure 2015 is a positive and proactive one for you, rather than a reactive one, you need to control your time and ensure you are doing what you need to be doing to achieve the desired results rather than being pulled in every direction. You need to have clarity and focus which is easier said than done. But an absolute necessity.
Here is a checklist to get started:
- Do you know who you want to be as a leader?
- Do you know who you don’t want to be as a leader?
- Do you have clarity in your vision and goals to ensure your decision making is effective and your actions are efficient?
- Do you have time planned in your diary each week for reflection?
- Do you need to disrupt your thinking patterns to achieve better outcomes this year?
- Do you have clarity around what needs to stop, start, change and continue from 2014 to ensure 2015 is a better year for you?
- Are you looking after your health?
- Are you confident you have the right team behind you and if not do you have plans in place to rectify this?
- Are you networking and building relationships with like-minded people who will support and challenge you?
- Are you getting the help and support you need?
These are a starting point and some great questions to ask yourself and of course answer honestly. They are also good questions to ask yourself throughout the year too. The important thing is to ensure you have clarity in exactly what you want to be doing this year and how you intend to do this. If you don’t, you can look forward to a year of time and money wasting and being completely reactive. And who wants anymore of that!
Here’s to clarity!