The Positive Energy Workplace

A few weeks ago I received a text on a Saturday. It said, "My colleague really wants to meet you. I told him you have ZERO time, you're super busy, BUT that I'd see if I could help him get on your schedule."

I wrote back. "Actually, I have all the time in the world to meet with him if there's a clear intention and purpose for the meeting. What's the intention?"

Last week, I had a client tell me they assumed I'd be too "busy" to come lead another session for them. They were super "busy" themselves, and they knew I was wrapping the book, so they assumed I was too busy and didn't ask. BUMMER. I would have loved to. (AND, I had plenty of space and bandwidth to do it.)

It was 10 a.m. yesterday when I felt "done" with my day. Out. Of. Gas. The previous week had been physically, mentally, and emotionally intense with special attention being needed in the land of "being a mom," "leading a team," "completing" a vendor relationship early, working with clients, and finishing the book! (Which is the picture on this post today. I've named it "Organized Meaningful Chaos." That is the book, and its many stages, cut chapters/sections, timelines, etc. ALL in one place on my table before going into "the book box.")

I'd been doing my IEP practices, taking care of myself, nourishing my mindset. I'd even just come off a weekend, and yet -- I was done. Ready for a beach.

As the old saying goes, "We all have the same 24 hours in a day and 7 days a week..." and then, "it's what we do with them that makes us different," or "that we spend them on what truly matters," or whatever your preferred version of this is. Whatever your preference, it boils down to this; how we spend our time and energy creates our outcomes and results.

And, good news, how we set the tone for our day, hour, meeting, or conversation creates more time. And even better news, it's not really about time; it's about energy, setting ourselves up to be the best use of us, and the way we relate to and think about time.

So what do you spend your time and energy on, how do you set the tone for your day, and how do you support yourself to create what you want?

You start a new exercise program. You're super motivated. You get rolling. Start to feel and see the shifts. Get comfortable. And then... you miss a workout, here. Have an extra treat meal, there. Get down on yourself for not "doing it right," there. And before you know it, you've tossed your program.

You decide to change your life, create more space, do the work you need to do to become who you want to become, be a better leader. You're ready to roll. You're a big "YES!" And then... Now that you've envisioned it and maybe even "achieved it in your head," your current circumstances don't seem so bad. OR, now that you've agreed to do the work for yourself, the work feels terrifying -- it's easier to just survive the status quo. After all, up-leveling your life and leadership often means creating changes in relationships, creating new boundaries, saying "no" to things that don't line up, saying "yes" to things that do, getting out of your comfort zones, and yep, doing the work.

How far you go with your leadership is directly related to how comfortable you can be with your discomfort. It's going to be harder to lead at your greatest edge, grow people optimally, have hard conversations, hold boundaries, and stretch out of your own comfort zones if you're not comfortable with being uncomfortable.

How well you can hold space for another human being is directly related to how comfortable you can be with your discomfort. It's going to be harder to hold space for someone to be in their own pain, to be angry, to be struggling, to be in their own discomfort, (or even to be fully shining and rocking it!), if you're not comfortable with your own pain, anger, struggle, discomfort, and shining.