Three Steps for Creating the Time to Step Up as a Leader
Are you ready to position yourself for effective and aligned leadership in your business or organization? Ready to take your leadership confidence to the next level? How about trust your decisions and feel ease in making them? If you’re feeling a strong YES, then it’s your time. Trust that YES you’re feeling, know you’re moving forward in the right direction, and start taking inspired action to make it happen for you. Here’s where to start…
After all, the world needs intelligent and brilliant women, like you, to share their leadership voice and create positive change.
And, yes, I get it. I do know how easy and realistic it is to catch a glimpse of your success — the true success where you are fulling accessing your potential, but at times it seems impossible to get there. You have children to care for, you are barely keeping up with your current responsibilities, and you don’t want to sacrifice more of your time only to be more overwhelmed and stressed out. I get it, believe me!
So this post is for those of you who are 100 percent ready and committed to not letting go of the glimpse, and ready to to play bigger and feel more aligned in your career and life.
If this is you, you are in the prime position to start defining what success looks like to you, and then creating the time to make it all happen, your way.
And here are three steps you can take to help you create the time for your leadership (and life) success:
1.) Eliminate the Non-Essentials
Become unapologetic about letting go of the things that are not aligned with your strengths, interests, and vision. There is no time for people pleasing and making assumptions about your leadership journey. Evaluate what you have going on in your day and ask yourself whether it’s needed.
What processes, beliefs, and things in your career and your life are no longer serving you? Or would be better served by others who have the interest, time, and qualifications?
2.) Delegate or leverage what’s doesn’t light you up.
For those chores and projects that are no of interest to you and cannot be eliminated, delegate. Successful leaders do less better. They “make work work for them”, a saying I love from Martha Higgins, a mentor and former boss of mine. You do not have to sacrifice time with your family, time to yourself, or time in general to be a leader. Step into your executive mindset and delegate so you can spend your time in alignment with your strengths, interests, and desires.
Here are a few ideas to get you moving:
Do you have members of your team and staff who would thrive working on a project that you dread? Think about what projects would turn out better if you were able to pass the torch. When you transfer responsibilities from a place of value and win-wins, you will get positive results and more time.
Is it time to add a staff member who can take on a piece of the workload?
How about a personal assistant who can help you at home?
How much time do you spend cleaning your house each day? One, two, maybe even three hours by the time you head to bed? Hire a cleaner to clean and organize your home. If this seems overwhelming then start with one or two cleanings a month, and use your time to be present with your children, to take care of yourself, and to focus on advancing your career.
Are you trying to make dinner, pack lunches, and “be” with your children, (while trying not to think about work) in the evening? Order a prepared meal service a few nights a week to free up your time. Or look into hiring a personal chef a couple nights a week. Sounds luxurious, but personal chefs can actually be more affordable than you may think.
Is it time to have a conversation with your partner or spouse to set your boundaries for your workload at home?
How can you delegate more to make work and life work for you?
3.) Automate the Possibilities
Now, take a look at what you have remaining and consider what you can automate. Consistency is key to success. Automating comes down to time batching and time blocking.
What tasks can you group together to get them done more efficiently and with more ease?
How can you block your time this week so that you can make your schedule as consistent as possible?
When you are scattered and sporadic in your working habits you are more likely to use all your energy on the little things. When you automate you will have the energy and the creativity to step up and in when it matters.
What tasks can you automate so you can keep your energy high and focused?
More effective leadership is available for you, right now. Your first step is saying YES to it, and then eliminating, delegating and automating the busyness and unsatisfactory parts of your day. This is your opportunity to not only master your time but to create the space for your new normal as a leader.
Christy Venza is the Founder of Career Loved, a career coaching firm specializing in leading-edge strategies for high-achievers. To read more articles by Christy, visit www.careerloved/blog.