In a pandemic, germs aren’t the only contagion

This post is part of LIFT's 7 part #ConnectionKindness series 
For Tip #1, click here | For Tip #2, click here | For Tip #3, click here
For Tip #4, click here | For Tip #5, click here | For Tip #6, click here

Tip 7: Part 1

In this week’s email out to my amazing courage creators (🔌: get on the list if you’re not already — you get a copy of my eBook too…while it’s still FREE!), I asked about how they (as leaders) were feeling and specifically what kind of in-crisis/post-crisis change phase they were at.

The reason I wanted them to think about their pace — and why I’m asking you to think about yours now — is because my final #ConnectionKindness Tip (number 7!) is a two-for-one bargain and it’s this: for me “being mindful” is about:

Slowing down

and

Keeping light

You might already have a mindfulness practice in place (and if you do, that is beyond fantastic 👏). If you don’t, or if you think mindfulness is a bit hippie, or the benefits are unproven, there’s some great resources on my blog, The Connection Diaries, which I encourage you to look into ASAP.

On being mindful, I’m asking you to consider — specifically — connection kindness with yourself and then creating connection kindness as a leader.

I talk fast. I move fast. I create ideas fast.

Maybe you do too. (Even reading that, did you speed thru?!)

^{[Image: Thanks Marc Sendra Martorell via Unsplash]}

I can also be harsh on myself, with high expectations, and find it challenging to be compassionate with myself when I stuff up or fail.

High speed + low compassion is not good for everyone (anyone) in a normal work day so when we’re already working at an abnormally adrenaline-filled level of crisis and anxiety, where we already feel the urgency to think and do rather than feel, this “high speed” approach does more harm than good.

Your pushing on the “doing” front is also going to create internal and external anxiety, and in case you didn’t already know, anxiety is also contagious.

So if you’re a fast mover, slow it down.

If you’re a fast talker, slow it down.

If you’re a fast thinker, slow it down.

(If you have the whole trifecta, even more reason to slow YOURSELF down). 

^{[Image: thanks Max van den Oetelaar via Unsplash]}

And like me, if you know you can be harsh on yourself, set unrealistic expectations at times, and get caught up believing there’s no time to stop (hard work = success etc), then I can share something very important with you, from the experience of previously burnt fingers… THIS DOESN’T WORK. For you as a leader. Or the people you lead.

Also this:

You’re not leading if
your team can’t catch up!

What I know DOES work: when I s-l-o-w down, my breathing slows down and my ability to connect to others, increases. I’m clearer, calmer and more willing to try things another way (more courageous, less coercive in crisis).

This single act, as a leader, LIFTs 🚀 your success. 

You connect better. And connection — as I’ve been sharing in these seven #ConnectionKindness tips during C-19 and physical distancing — increases your ability to engage and influence. After that, great results happen.

Great change leaders are able to listen and slow things down. Before, during and after crisis. They are consistently creating calm and clarity (in themselves) and in their team.

Think about how you can create an approachable space by showing your co-workers that you’re not in a rush; you’re not distracted in 15 different ways. You aren’t grumpy or frazzled, you have time (and mindful headspace) for them.

After slowing down, the next part of being mindful is keeping it light (AKA being playful).

I know that “playful” might sound wrong. But trust me: spend ten minutes (it’s truly worth it 😊) checking out my next blog post because it’s true that you can (and must) do both.

PS: Remember to join our FREE Courage Creators Community on Facebook where we'll be starting our new uplifting weekly review of two bestselling “old” classics that are super-relevant to you and our courage to lead at work and at home in our “new” world right now! These two books are, by far, the most influential that I’ve recommend to senior leaders in coaching sessions:  Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffers written in 1987 and spookily relevant for today, and Brenē Brown’s Rising Strong (this is the less famous of her books but… I’d say holds the key to crisis resilience, mindset, story rewriting and more)

PPS: If you’re a leader feeling tired, overwhelmed, and a little confused on your purpose in this new world, reach out for a super-fast battery recharge of clarity, calm and courage, in a 30 minute online session (read: very little downtime, massive ROI 💪), sign up for Connection Wellness Coaching. Don’t lead alone; find out more here.