To be outstanding in your field at times you have to stand alone.
Time alone allows us to adjust our focus on the ever changing big picture. After this time alone we take pieces of the big picture back to our team to help them set their own goals which won’t be easy, or fast, and will require constant re-evaluation. We remind them that a strategic plan is more like how to run a marathon than a sprint.
The internet doesn’t help. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok make everything seem instant, exciting, fun, excessively beautiful, overly easy. When in reality life is full of difficulty, pressure, challenges, frustration, heartbreak, heartache, setbacks, ugliness, obstacles, both small and large.
Leaders are called to survive and not only to survive, but to thrive. Learning how to stay positive, grow strong in faith, and retain joy while life ebbs and flows around us is an ongoing process.
If you have more than one team member you have learned that “one size fits all” does not apply. Each individual has their own mode of learning, communication and motivation. With multiple variations across the board. It is our role as leaders to determine how to meld all these variations into an efficient functioning team.
One of my biggest challenges is that the workforce of today is more fragile than my generation. This requires a change in approach in how to hold a team accountable while helping them stay focused on their individual role as they attain their team goal.
Self-awareness is my starting point. Standing alone for a time today to reflect, pray, repent, prioritize, strategize, and plan as I adjust and focus on the big-picture.
Ann Fussell
10/02/2021
E. A. Fussell 