The Positive Energy Workplace

How the conversation has changed this year...

Are you focusing on the right things today to build resilient leaders and a sustainable culture tomorrow?

"Your intentions, energy, and presence guide your impact. Your focus today builds your leadership and culture today and tomorrow. Are you clear?" This is a question I used to ask clients. I still do. It’s still true, and the stakes feel higher today, don’t they? 

A year ago, the IEP work was predominately about optimization of leadership and culture (some triage, and not as much). Today, my conversations are all about "burnout, leadership depression, leadership nourishment, change management, creating sustainability, cultural dis-ease, resiliency, leadership gaps, team/relational stress, ambiguity and anxiety, grief, loss, cultural disconnection, sheltering in place, RIFs, relentless demands on time and attention, and, of course, 'How do I manage working from home while my kids and dog drag each other around the floor behind me on my Zoom calls and I literally feel like I cannot give one thing more?'” Many leaders and organizations are not in optimization mode anymore, and those who are, are now navigating how to meet the demands of this time remotely, how to keep their culture healthy, and how to support those they love and lead who are more directly or negatively impacted by these things. We're figuring this pandemic thing out together, we're learning who we are and deciding who we will become, and we're taking one step at a time (and some leaps) as we learn how to build and expand our leadership, organizations, and culture in a remote world. 

How about you? How are you? (If you're coming from the speaking page, start here!)

Your world today is likely very different than a year ago. (And continuing to change almost every day, have you noticed?) You may find yourself constantly navigating new levels of stress, ambiguity, isolation, competing demands, accelerated responsibilities, and new ways of working. You may surf the complexities of having your kids (or your workforces' kids) at home, sheltering in place, complex work schedules, and "all" that goes with remote teaming and culture building (what is "all" anyway?). And you may be processing the heartbreak of loss, RIFs, unemployment, illness, death, mental illness, tension, ambiguity, culture dis-ease and divisiveness, and so much more. And, again, if you're somehow not directly impacted by some of these things, the people you love and lead most likely are. What's more, the energy and emotion today's challenges create are especially poignant AND contagious which adds to the relentless demand on your energy and well-being as well as a bigger ask and response-ability of your leadership, your ability to create safety and inspiration for productive work (in an often seemingly impossible environment), and to deliver on your bottom line results.

 

It's a lot.

 

I'm walking this with you, and this is what I know so far... How we show up for ourselves and each other has never been more important. And today's environment asks us to do it more, and to do it differently. It asks that we work, connect, collaborate, build safety and trust, take care of ourselves, recover, and even measure success differently. "Differently" requires a deeper level of intention and service, clarity of desired impact and focus, extreme self-care, more resiliency, mental and physical health, and true presence. This is all possible. We can do this (I'm seeing it). It will take intention, energy, presence, and love. And I'm here for it.

 

On my speaking page I've put up new core LIVE (virtual) offerings in the areas I'll be focusing on in 2021. In addition to doing private executive work again, and the open enrollment cohorts I'll be running next year (more soon), and the online suite of tools you can now engage with 100% on your own time and pace, I am happy to meet with your team or organization via virtual "fireside" chats, experiential talks, or short training sessions. Our "accelerator" cohorts (listed on that page as well) offer deeper dive integration over time in the areas of leadership, culture, and resiliency. And if you're interested in my partnership model that offers organizations ongoing support and access to this work in multiple ways (pandemic friendly), reach out (it's a brand new and special way of offering support to companies and their employees today).

 

Here to serve...

Be well, lead well,

Anese