The Positive Energy Workplace

My boy just got his permit. I’ve aged about 5 years in the last week. It’s a magical time. It’s brought out the best and the worst in me. This a.m. after he set my nervous system on fire driving to school, and I’d had time to drop back into my body and reflect… I realized how much I’m impacting his performance and experience with, YEP, my very own presence and being. For your viewing (and perhaps giggling and/or empathic) pleasure, here’s a bit of a window into that experience. OF COURSE, I’ve looped this right back into how this is a leadership lesson. 

You come home from work, walk through your door, and feel... exhausted. You get into your car, notice the to-go coffee cup (from 3 days ago) and your kid's Cheese-Its crumbed in the back seat... agitation spikes. You walk into your office, it's dark, stuffy, messy... energy dips, resistance comes in. You go to write on the white board, and have to move through 4 pens until you find one that works... broken flow and contraction. (Bonus points, if you put those 4 pens back into the bin to create this experience again and again. Oh, come on, you know you've done this.) You go on a date or meet a colleague for coffee and the noise, the lighting, the whatever, is not great...distraction, lack of presence, the "ick".

I had someone call me last week looking for the gold "nugget" of advice that would help them accelerate their leadership impact and influence in the quickest way possible. They have their MBA, they're super smart, they're in a highly visible position, and they care very much about what they're up to. And of course, like any high achiever who wants to have more impact, they're looking to optimize.