In leadership roles, we’re used to starting Q1 with the heat turned up. Always busy, always behind, and always battling a long to-do list 😬
When under pressure, we naturally feel the need to work harder and faster. Especially as leaders with a whole team counting on us!
But if that’s your mindset, you’re in danger of falling into the same trap I did:
➡️ You’re productive but you’re not actually making progress.
➡️ You’re focused on short-term actions instead of long-term growth.
➡️ You’re busy putting out fires but that doesn’t keep them from starting.
Speaking from experience, this is an exhausting place to be!
It’s Time for a Reset
Our work culture today prioritizes action and immediate results. Emphasis on “immediate.”
Things like cultivating self-awareness and reflecting on personal growth are often sidelined, while action and results are rewarded. It’s no wonder many leaders never reach their full potential.
For example, I used to be so blindly focused on getting things done that I hyper-fixated on getting them done my way. It wasn’t until I worked with a coach for the first time that I understood I had become every employees’ worst nightmare: a controlling manager!
By always focusing on short-term actions and results, I was losing sight of the big picture and holding my team back from their full potential..
But it’s exactly because I faced that problem—along with just about every leadership problem in the book—that I’m writing this email.
Today’s email is just the first in a short Leadership Reset series, designed to help you prepare for the challenges of Q1 and grow as a leader in 2025 through mindset shifts and applicable advice. If you put these emails into practice, you will be better equipped to excel in any type of leadership role by the end of the series!
Getting Started: The Action>Reflection Cycle
The first gamechanger I want to share with you is the Action>Reflection Cycle, which is the one concept I teach EVERY client.
It’s a continuous cycle of action & reflection to create a positive feedback loop of personal and professional growth.
The cycle goes something like this…
Take action toward a goal. Do whatever you think will drive the project or initiative forward.
Reflect on your action and the results. I suggest setting a daily reflection time to focus on a few simple questions so you can tweak your approach and celebrate your progress..
Let your reflection feed your next action. The Action>Reflection Cycle helps you improve incrementally with every next action.
The more cycles of action and reflection you create, the faster you’ll make progress. You’ll be shocked by the difference it makes to pause and evaluate before forging ahead. Do this with your team—and you might just be amazed at the results you achieve when you slow down to speed up!
Putting It Into Practice
This week, try putting the Action>Reflection Cycle into practice! At the end of your day, or in between meetings, take 5-10 minutes to reflect and ask yourself a few questions.
Although I encourage you to create your own list of questions, here are a few examples to get you started:
What went well?
What would we want to do differently next time?
What was our biggest challenge?
What did we learn?
The Action>Reflection Cycle is as useful as you make it. If you stay perpetually busy but never reflect on your actions, or if you reflect on your actions but never implement changes, then you break the cycle and lose the benefit.
On the other hand, if you reflect regularly and implement right after, you will see growth very quickly—often in just a few days or weeks.
For example, I once had a client who told me the Action>Reflection Cycle was the #1 gamechanger for him as a leader, out of all the coaching sessions and mindset shifts we covered! It worked because he made a habit out of reflecting every single day, and often implemented what he learned the very next day.
Give it a try, and you will start to see your actions in a whole new light!