Pace Yourself

We can’t lead people without being able to lead ourselves.

That is, the same guidance, structure, empathy, tolerance, challenge that we give to others, we give to us.

Most of all, we don’t drive ourselves into the ground out of some misplaced notion of being the hardest worker or the smartest person or the biggest accumulator.

We need to pace ourselves.

As a teenaged field hockey player, I played some games alongside a national representative, who would lope around the field. He was an inside forward, and he wouldn’t chase down the long ball, just to see it run over the backline. Opponents and the uninformed spectator would see him as languid, maybe not even putting in.

But then they would learn that appearances, as always, can be deceptive. 

At the first glimmer of an opportunity, mostly in a congested circle, he was like lightning. Strong bodied, with laser-like focus, fine stick and ball control.

Most of all, there was no fade-out after half-time. He was “on” till the final whistle.

He had a highly developed sense of what was needed and when.  

He was a master at pacing himself.

So, how to become the business equivalent?

1.     Challenge. Not satisfied that we know enough or have done enough, we are looking to the next challenge. Everything we do is open to a new challenge, and we are open to being challenged by those around us. We are future-oriented and prepared.

2.     Curiosity. We are lifelong learners. We are curious about the things that we know well—looking to separate fact and assumption—and the things that we know nothing about. Holding a leadership position means we can look into anything but we never know everything.

3.     Empathy.  We seek to understand the person in front of us, regardless of role, gender, race, religion, or sexual preference. We acknowledge and respect people, we have deep conversations with all.  We treat them as considerately as we would have them treat us.

4.     Family. We don’t burn ourselves out and explain our sudden departure with “It’s time to concentrate on family.” Every day is time to concentrate on family and friends. We balance time, energy and focus on our work lives and our personal lives. It’s called enjoyment.

5.     Guidance. We need to know what is important and what of the things clamouring for our attention are mere distractions. This means not being addicted to crises; or keeping too low a profile. A set of 5-6 values with 10 indicative behaviours is the anchor.

6.     Peace. Being in the Now means that you let go of regret and resentment about things that have happened and put away worrying endlessly about what may or may not happen. One leads to depression, the other leads to anxiety. Be calm, be peaceful.

7.     Physicality. We are constantly in training—with a demanding fitness program—so that our body and mind are fully engaged, tested and functioning. We achieve weight control through regulating our eating and drinking habits; eschewing mind-altering and performance-enhancing substances. We get a good night’s sleep.

8.     Structure. We organise the business to provide the best outcomes for customers. We organise the executive team to deliver high performance. We organise our own work lives to ensure high effectiveness and efficiency. We structure the finances. Structure dictates behaviour—including our own.

9.     Time. Not for us an endless job list. We know what we have to do and we set the duration and timing for each—we make it doable and it keeps us focused. If things take longer, we can move them, resetting our priorities.

10.  Tolerance. We set high standards for others and ourselves, but we also appreciate that things—life, generally—can get in the way. We seek to get things right, but we accept that getting things wrong can be a great educator and a lesson in humility.

Each of these requires a conscious effort and impulse control.  Pacing ourselves requires supreme self-direction. 

Viktor Frankl put it this way:

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

And our capacity to lead others.

About the Author

Jeff Bell is Principal of executive consultancy ResultsWise in Perth, Western Australia. To boost your leadership, ask Jeff about consulting, coaching, strategy facilitation, Band of Leaders Australia (BoLA) [email protected] or Advanced Leadership Course [email protected]. Mobile 0439 988 662.Pace Yourself