If you are a Type A overachiever like many of my clients you are likely one who forgets to take a pause, reflect, and consider what you have accomplished. You are so focused on what you want to accomplish that you overlook what you have already achieved. As a leader, it is so important to pause and reflect. Days are so busy one just bleeds into the next and you do not even realize how much time has passed.
As I work with my clients, I continuously encourage them to take a quiet pause. It is in the moments of silence that new insights rise to the surface. It is only when you allow your brain to turn off that you can hear the internal guidance. It is also the moment you begin to realize what you have accomplished.
As a leader, I am certain you are driven to achieve, accomplish goals and contribute to something bigger than yourself. You are a doer! The part about leadership that is too often overlooked is the benefit of taking a pause, reflecting, and sitting in silence. It is only when you quiet the noise that you can hear the wisdom of your own intuition. Your intuition is your smartest guide.
In a recent coaching conversation, I was listening to my client talk about her career goals. The conversation was intertwined with moments of self-doubt and questions about the effectiveness of her efforts. She was talking about the goals she wanted to achieve but she had not taken the time to realize what she had already accomplished. She had been working so hard to get to a new level in her career that she did not even realize she had accomplished her goal. She had arrived.
Leadership requires lots of action and doing, but it also requires sitting quietly to reflect on where you are heading. Like hiking the mountains of Montana if you do not know where you are going how will you know when you have gotten there? Make the time to pause, reflect, and appreciate what you have accomplished- you might surprise yourself.
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