Bite-sized Leadership Insights | ??Article "The best way for leaders to excel in their role and maintain wellbeing"

?Achieve balance, growth and success with the ACES approach.

Imagine this: you're recently promoted to a position of leadership. You're excited about the new challenges and opportunities this role brings. However, as the days pass, you find yourself overwhelmed with the demands of your new position. Your to-do list seems never-ending, and you're constantly juggling between work and personal life, trying to maintain some semblance of balance.

Believe me, I get it. I worked hard to reach a leadership position, and thought I had it all figured out. But the reality was far from it. I found myself stressed, exhausted, and struggling to keep up with the demands of my new role. It took me a while until I discovered the importance of setting small daily goals, staying connected with others, finding enjoyment in my work, and prioritising self-care. These ACES activities helped me find the balance I needed to excel in my new role while maintaining my overall wellbeing.

So, how can you support yourself and others to achieve sustainable growth and wellbeing in your workplace and in life itself? Keep reading.

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A little about the Comfort Zone

Let’s begin by discussing the ‘comfort zone’. The comfort zone is where we feel familiar and at ease, often saying to ourselves, “I know what I know.” This zone is great to recharge our battery; however, staying in this zone for too long can lead to boredom and even a feeling of depression.

When we step outside our comfort zone, we enter the learning zone. Here, we acknowledge that “I know there are things that I don’t know.”, embracing uncertainty and growth. The more curious and excited we are about this zone, the more we learn and develop.

However, if we push ourselves too far beyond our learning zone, we enter the panic zone. Here, we experience excessive uncertainty and stress, because we expect too much in too little time from ourselves and others. This can lead to burnout and anxiety.

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PS: If you want to know more about the Comfort Zone, read this article.

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A little about the panic zone

What if we stay in the Panic Zone for too long and too often? Unfortunately, this is where ‘burnouts’ and depression can occur! This is an essential conversation to have, because mental and emotional wellbeing becomes increasingly a challenge in today’s busy and ever-changing environment where expectations are very high. When somebody experiences a burnout, their body is saying: “Don’t do that to me anymore! I don’t want to (neither can I) be that overperforming person any longer. Because the pressure that I have been (or put myself) under for too long, is too high and unsustainable!” And the chance that that person begins to experience a feeling of depression is very high, because we need to see the word ‘depressed’ as ‘deep rest’, due to an exhausted body having used way too much energy from being in the panic zone for too long. Therefore, a person who feels ‘depressed’ needs a ‘deep rest’ (in the Comfort Zone) from the identity their body is tired to play and uphold.

This is not sustainable and not where you want to see anyone, including yourself!

However, if you deal with individuals who feel depressed or need a ‘deep rest’, you can draw from the fact that rock bottom can become a solid foundation to rebuild. Often, after a breakdown comes a breakthrough where the body can consider new, more sustainable identities; recovering and re-charging the battery within the comfort zone and finding new inspiration to again step outside the comfort zone, but this time within reason (in other words, sustainably)!

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Maintaining the right balance with ACES

It's important to find a balance between pushing yourself to grow and allowing yourself to recharge.

• Stepping outside the Comfort Zone to work and study hard
• Recharging the battery (in other words, the energy) in the Comfort Zone, where you allow yourself to just be.

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Sustainable growth, success, and fulfilment come from balancing these two zones. The comfort zone isn’t just about procrastination; it's a place to relax and recharge so you can step out of your comfort zone again and again.

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes… including you.” ~ Steve Jobs

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It can be said that most people:

• Completely overestimate what they can achieve in a week or a month.
• Completely underestimate what they can achieve in a year or even a decade.

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A powerful question to ask yourself every day is: “What is the one thing that I can do today that will get me one step closer to my Magic Place?” And then stick to the action(s) required. Being consistent and patient is key to long-term success. Remember, “If you are not patient, sooner or later you will become a patient.” And that should never be an option. Because if it costs your wellbeing, it is too expensive!

A great acronym for finding and sustainably maintaining this balance is ‘ACES’.

Achievements

Connection to others

Enjoyment

Self-care

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Achievements

• Set out to achieve something small every day
• Work towards a clear goal, vision and purpose in career and life
• Ask yourself every single day: “What can I do today that gets me one step closer to my ‘Magic Circle’ (in other words, my goals, my vision and purpose)?”

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Connection to others

• Stay connected with other people, work colleagues, family and friends
• Connect face-to-face if possible, or at least via video chat
• Check in with team members, family members, and in fact any other individuals within your environment

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Enjoyment

• Participate in fun activities
• Do things that gives you pleasure
• Focus on your hobbies
• Have an opportunity to do what you enjoy

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Self-care

• Block out time to connect with yourself
• Chill out and do restful things
• Have positive, supporting thoughts
• Appreciate what you have and achieved
• Practise self-care activities

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By incorporating these ACES activities into your daily routine, you stimulate your brain's natural antidepressants, leading to improved balance and wellbeing.

Ultimately, the choice is yours whether to let negativity bring you down or to navigate rough seas with courage and positivity. Remember, taking care of yourself is not selfish; it’s essential for your own wellbeing and for those around you.

Thank you for choosing self-care over self-sacrifice. Remember, you are worth it, you are lovable, and you are enough! - We all are!

This article was first published on the Global Leadership Hub.

Leadership. Success. Unpacked.

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