Over the years I have become an avid planner. I was taught to plan every Sunday evening with a focus on three groups: employees, customers and everything else.
 
My schedule usually included several critical staff meetings, which would most likely require further work than my schedule might allow. There were key prospect and customer meetings too — meetings that always seem to have a profound impact on an entrepreneurial company because of the unknown needs that arise. Each week also included one-on-one coaching meetings with employees, phone calls to make and processing all the little things that it takes to run a business. On any given week there may be a big speech for an association or industry event. In other words, every Sunday I would neatly fit in “everything” I needed to do into my week plan and felt the same way everytime — that leadership is a race.
 
The week plan rarely left room for precious “down time” to work on anything that might crop up, or even just to take a deep breath. I challenge you to find me a leader who never has anything “pop up” during the day, whether it be good or bad. We all know the familiar knock on the door, followed up with “do you just have a minute?”. With neatly planned weeks paired with impromptu, yet important knocks on the door, leadership becomes a series of races, both big and small.
 
Sometimes the week is a blistering 50 yard dash, like the week I described. Other times the race is a bit longer and leadership becomes a test of short term speed and long range endurance. This happens to me when times are pretty good and also when things don’t seem to go our way. I frequently wonder about the implications of a schedule like this, beyond exhaustion that is.
 
What I have learned is that leaders set the pace. When I am on hyper-drive, so is my company and the staff around me. While it may be counter-intuitive to slow things down to “win” the race, there is something to be said for thinking time. Slowing down to work on critical issues and challenges in the business, to lead in the moment is beneficial. People notice. Staff, customers, friends and family notice.
 
Are you running a 50 yard dash this week? An extended leadership race? Have you taken the time to train? I plan to pace my leadership “training” and hope to enjoy the race a little this time.
 
Looking for The Story of the Big, Gigantic Job? Check back next Wednesday.