While pressure is a part of any job, leadership positions come with high demands and expectations, especially during times of extended crisis and change. A question that I am continually hearing from leaders is, "How can I bring my best leadership self during this extended time of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA)?
When leaders don't prioritize self-care to maintain mental, emotional, and physical well-being, they are disadvantaged in their abilities to accurately perceive situations, build relationships, make decisions, and manage stress. The good news is that even during extended periods of challenge, there are things leaders can do to develop and grow their well-being and guard against burnout. Investing in self-care gives leaders the energy and mindset to care for those they lead.
4 Leadership Practices for Self-Care
1. Invest in Strong Relationships
Hybrid working arrangements and relying on virtual communication have made it difficult for leaders to maintain strong workplace relationships. Combine this with the fact that most employees regularly experience challenging project deadlines, continuous change, and unexpected setbacks. The natural tendency during challenging times is to put one's head down and push through while placing meaningful social relationships on the back burner. This becomes problematic, as close relationships protect people from life's discontents, help to delay mental and physical decline, and are better predictors of long and happy lives than social class, IQ, or even genes. The longest-running study on the topic was Harvard's Grant and Glueck study tracked the physical and emotional health of two groups for more than 75 years:
- 456 poor people in Boston from 1939 to 2014 (the Grant Study)
- 268 graduates from Harvard's classes of 1939 to 1944 (the Glueck Study)
After following these groups and testing them (e.g., blood samples, brain scans) for several decades, Robert Waldinger, the Harvard Study of Adult Development, provided the following conclusion from these studies: "The clearest message that we get from this 75-year study is this: Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. Period."
2. Take Time to Recharge
The Energy Project's founder and CEO, Tony Schwartz, provides valuable insights about how we are designed to move rhythmically between spending and renewing energy. His research shows when we recharge and renew, we can get more done in less time at a higher level of quality and in a more sustainable way.
Woman relaxing and drinking hot tea
Since our energy is limited, leaders need to find ways to recharge their batteries. They should consider their work a series of sprints requiring ongoing renewal and recovery. Below are four dimensions of energy and different activities to recharge each dimension:
Physical - Affects how we feel, how well we think, and even how motivated we are to do our jobs.
- Eat healthy, exercise, and adequate sleep (7 to 8 hours)
- Recharge intermittently during the day
Emotional – Positive emotions are critical to high performance.
- Awareness of your emotions and triggers that produce negative emotions
- Participate in activities you enjoy
Mental – Ability to focus on one thing for sustained periods of time increases our quality of work.
- Clarify priorities
- Avoid multitasking and devote uninterrupted time to your work
Purpose – Connecting to our values and purpose.
- Define core purpose
- Focus on meaningful goals
3. Develop a Healthy Stress Mindset
In her wildly popular TED talk, Stanford researcher and bestselling author Kelly McGonigal shares research that shows one of the most critical factors for healthy stress management is “how well” people cope with stress rather than “how much” stress they face.
Studies show that people who view stress as bad are more negatively affected in terms of happiness and health. Those who view it as motivating report fewer symptoms such as headaches, backaches, and fatigue—even though they experienced the same amount of stress.
This research highlights the importance of focusing on the positive aspects of stress. Too much stress is detrimental to well–being and resilience, but the right amount can be used as a motivational tool to get more done. Stress can improve cognitive ability and increase productivity and memory. Good stress tends to trigger the "challenge" response, which prompts us to step up, focus, and execute.
A healthy stress mindset includes the following:
- Understanding when you are experiencing negative emotions and the ability to name what you are feeling accurately.
- Looking at a stressful situation as a challenge rather than a threat.
- Awareness that your body's response to stress is helping you prepare for peak performance.
4) Establish an Internal Locus of Control
If you believe that you have control over what happens in a specific situation, you have what psychologists call an internal locus of control. If you think that you have no control over what happens and that external variables are to blame, then you have what is known as an external locus of control.
This belief about your ability to influence your situation not only impacts how you respond to the challenges that happen in your life but also your motivation to take action. The most successful among us – know that it's not the adversity itself but what we do with it that determines our fate.
Research shows that individuals who have an internal locus of control are more likely to:
- Take responsibility for their actions
- Have a strong sense of self-belief about being able to succeed
- Work hard to achieve the things they want
- Feel confident in the face of challenges
- Be happier
- Achieve greater success in the workplace
Stephen Covey's Circle of Influence
Stephen Covey's Circle of Influence provides a practical framework for when one needs to challenge feelings of helplessness by identifying attitudes and activities that are within your control or influence to improve the situation. The point is to create awareness by defining the things that we have to let go of because they're out of our hands while at the same time identifying the areas where our efforts will have a real impact. Identify what you can control and then take action.
Conclusion
Putting these 4 leadership practices for self-care help increase well-being and resilience while also defending against burnout. Putting these habits into practice will help leaders and their teams bring their best selves to their most important moments.
