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Change your mindset

May 11, 2020 by Brenda 2 Comments

This article includes stories about princes and kings, caterpillars, toy engines and logotherapy. These may seem a very strange combination. But please continue reading as these elements add depth to the meaning of our first tip mentioned in the previous article. There I outlined twelve tips for leading through lockdown. In this current article more detail is added to the first tip, ‘change your mindset’

The question we ask is: why is it that some of us in similar situations are coping better than others during various degrees of lockdown? There are a host of possible factors to be considered. For example, some of us may feel that our personal freedom has been violated and dwell on that aspect. Others may have an innate ability to manage the present while leading to the future. And which people do you recognise as being able to persist until they have struggled to get over the next hill? Or maybe having ‘future mindedness’ as one of our top five character strengths enables us to use that strength in managing the present while leading to the future? Our propensity for coping with change is also a huge factor.

These are some of the possibilities and questions we may wish to ponder as we travel through this tough and uncertain period in our lives. Many factors may underpin our ability to deal with the current situation and accept that life will never be the same as before the current pandemic. We have to re-create our future. During this time of transition, we can improve our ability to cope through consciously working on our mindsets. In other words, we have to turn our stumbling blocks into stepping stones. This reminds me of one of my favourite poems.

Isn't it Strange?

Isn't it strange, that princes and kings,
and clowns that caper in sawdust rings,
and common-folk like you and me,
are builders for eternity?

To each is given a bag of tools,
a shapeless mass and a Book of Rules;
and each must make 'ere time has flown,
a stumbling block or a stepping stone.

R.L. Sharpe, "A bag of tools," circa 1809

In the previous article I mentioned that a metaphor for our ‘way of being’ prior to the current disaster state could be the metaphor of us as caterpillars crawling around on branches. The caterpillar has freedom. It can bask in the sunlight or hide in the shade. He or she feasts on luscious green leaves. There is motion. However, when the time is right, that caterpillar finds itself trapped in a cocoon. Isn’t that just how some of us have felt at times during various stages of lockdown? We cannot move around, we have little freedom and we feel trapped.

In looking at the cocoon from the outside it seems as though nothing is happening. Only the cocoon is visible. Yet, inside that cocoon a great metamorphosis is taking place. These unseen activities enable the butterfly suddenly to emerge.

My question to you is: ‘What are you doing during lockdown to make sure that you’ll emerge as that butterfly’? How are you feeding your mind, nourishing your soul and developing your physical abilities? This is not a time of stagnation. You can make it a time of great growth. Your attitude is important in coping with the current situation and at the same time creating your future reality.

When I think of caterpillars I think of climbing trees during childhood. When I was young one of my favourite stories was ‘the Little Engine that could’. The most well-known version was written by Watty Piper and first published in 1930. This followed a variety of versions since 1902 all with the same theme, namely to believe in ourselves even when we are faced with huge challenges.

The story is simple: a train was taking carriages of toys and good things to the children over the hill. The engine broke down. Trains passed without offering to help. And then it wasn’t the most beautiful, nor the most powerful, nor the one adhering to the correct protocol that offered to help. It was a little engine that stopped and helped. She tried so hard to take the carriages over the hill to its destination saying ‘I think I can, I think I can….. I think I can’. She knew she could and achieved her goal. Thus there was a happy ending.

Another story involving mindset is the true example set by Viktor E Frankl. He was able to physically and mentally not only survive the horrors of the Holocaust, but inspire millions through his example. As a neurologist and psychiatrist he founded the Logotherapy School of psychology and a philosophy based on the idea that we are strongly motivated to live purposefully and meaningfully. He was the author of many books, including ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’ which was published in 24 languages.

‘When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves. Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own 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.’

Viktor E Frankl

In conclusion, the princes and kings are confined (successfully) within the accepted framework of that poem and like all of us, have choices. The caterpillar, unseen and cocooned, appears to be stagnating but it is going through a natural metamorphosis. The broken-down train, stuck on the hill achieved its destination through the persistence of the most unlikely little engine. Viktor E Frankl was trapped within the horrors of 4 concentration camps yet managed to escape and constructively make the world a better place for himself and for others.

Are you stuck in your present mindset? We may feel trapped right now and know we have to leave behind much of what we took for granted prior to the current pandemic. But we need to think of this as a transition to a brave new world. Change your mindset, change your world. The right attitude counts a great deal. And you can seek help. There are so many of us offering complimentary assistance at present.

If you’d like to participate in a complimentary one-hour Zoom workshop based on the twelve random tips to help with our coping mechanisms, please send a request via e-mail to brenda@strategy-lealdership.com And I’ll then send you an invitation.

The next two one-hour complimentary workshops will be held on:
* Monday May 25: 5pm SAST
* Tuesday May 26: 8am SAST
The content of both these workshops will be the same.

For further information on Executive Coaching and Leadership Development please contact Brenda Eckstein on +27 82 4993311 or e-mail brenda@strategy-leadership.com. The website is www.strategy-leadership.com

Twelve lessons during lockdown

May 7, 2020 by Brenda 1 Comment

There are certain conditions that we consider ideal in order for us to function effectively as leaders, whether we are talking of leading groups or self-leadership.

Leaders like:
• Stability …. and now we are in a state of extreme …. Volatility
• certainty .... what we are experiencing now is …. Uncertainty
• simplicity .... as opposed to our current state of …. Complexity
• clarity …. instead at present we face constant …. Ambiguity

Three worlds

  1. The above describes the external VUCA world we are living in and it is highly unlikely that we can control that. But there are 2 other worlds we should consider while trying to manage the present and at the same time, lead to the future:
  2. The world of work. Here we can have some control although we are still coping with VUCA conditions. For example, in South Africa, after 5 weeks of level 5 lockdown, in some cases 1/3 of the staff were allowed to return to work this week. We are having to make our work environments safe, catch up on the ‘lost’ weeks, reallocate functions and a myriad of other tasks to get going again. We are uncertain about so many aspects of the present and future.
  3. The third world can be described as man’s ‘inner man’. Here we have a great deal of control and through working on that during our tough times, we can enhance our ‘way of being’ and prepare ourselves better for the future.

    Let me give you some background: During this tough period, globally we have experienced various levels of lockdown. I’m fortunate that I have been able to continue coaching virtually and my clients have shared many coping and future planning strategies with me. From these and my own reflections each day I have drawn up a list of ‘Twelve Lessons in coping while restructuring our new reality’. These are just of few of the many possible tips. Below is an overview and each will be expanded upon in sequential articles.

1. Change your mindset. Think of this period as a transition. It may seem as though nothing is happening. We are physically in lockdown. But picture us, prior to the current tough times, being caterpillars free to crawl around on the branches, eat the green leaves and enjoy the fresh air. Then the caterpillar becomes trapped within the cocoon. (That sounds like ‘lockdown’ doesn’t it!) The larvae are not visible and we can see no activity. Yet a great deal is happening within. After a while the beautiful butterfly emerges. Let’s try to think of this, not as a time of being trapped or stagnation, but rather as a time of metamorphosis and personal growth.

2. Reflect. Reflect. Reflect so that you can convert the sea of implicit knowledge, thoughts, and experiences into something explicit. That way you can crystallise your thoughts, understand the meaning and implement and sustain your actions where it is prudent to do so. A stop/start approach is not most effective at this time although we need to do this to re-adjust to the volatility in the changing world around us.

3. Be in touch with your inner selves. Reflection will help us to do that. We need to consciously embrace mind, body and soul. Are we remembering to exercise and nourish all three domains? Mindfulness and meditation come in here. We can enhance our mental toughness, build our resilience.

4. Manage your physical energy through building, storing and spending wisely. Understand your own energy levels. Research shows that most of us have natural highs, lows and prime times. Plan to do what is most productive for each level during that time of your daily cycle.

5. Structure so that you have a daily routine optimising your energy. Too many pyjama days will most probably not help you to become more productive. Try to develop and test new frameworks. What worked for you yesterday may not be the best for today. Build time-frames – for example, supper at 6pm, computer off at 10pm, asleep by 10:30pm. Have boundaries.

6. Become the ‘go to’ person, a leader in your field and show that expertise. There is so much you can do in order to be the ‘person of choice’, ‘business of choice’, ‘professional of choice’, ‘organisation of choice’, ‘source of choice’ etc. Two people who have done this exceptionally well during these tough times are Gary Eckstein and Mario Redlinghuys and I commend them on establishing themselves further as leaders in their fields during these tough times. They have kept up to date with emerging trends and their clients have benefitted through regular ongoing communication including Zoom sessions.

7. Communicate often. Don’t let perfection get in your way. Don’t wait until your message is perfect. Let people know what is happening timeously. Keep in touch with your business and private connections. Sustain your visibility. Find innovative ways of reminding people of your existence. Practice new ways of ‘showing up’. Check that you are combining head, heart and action in your approaches.

8. Relationships are paramount. How often are you checking how individuals in your network are doing? Use the head-heart-action approach. How can you support others whether from a business or personal perspective? Reach out. There is some-one somewhere who could benefit through your support or your sharing. What are you good at? What might others need? Strengthen existing relationships, build new. Alliances are so important right now. What can you do together?

9. Maintain the best of the past while exploring and testing new approaches. Use the past-present-future approach and practice an attitude of positive discontent. In other words, be on your toes, don’t become complacent. Constantly evaluate saying ‘is this aspect the best it can be’? If the answer is ‘yes’, that applies to this point in time. Things are changing so fast that we need to constantly check to avoid complacency. Test continuous improvement in product, service and the way we operate.

10. Manage the present while leading to the future. A great metaphor is the captain of a submarine. He has to keep the engines running while plotting and changing course. A periscope enables him to explore the external environment, the big picture. What is happening ‘out there’? Have your antennae out.

11. Use your resources to maximum advantage. We have hidden assets. Recognise and optimise opportunities in using resources. For example, one of my clients mentioned how she was starting to plant vegetables in every suitable corner of her garden. I have done the same. Another example is that we can no longer go to gyms, but we can find creative ways of using resources at home.

12. Make use of the wonderful available offers to learn, grow and connect. My free offers are open to all readers but will be allocated on availability.

• This article is an outline to maximise opportunities for your present and future. Further articles will expand on each point.
• A complimentary one-hour Zoom workshop ‘Restructuring your own reality’ based on this article. These sessions are identical but there is a choice of two dates:
o Monday May 18 5pm (South African Standard Time)
o Tuesday May 19 8am (South African Standard Time)
To book, please send me an e-mail on brenda@strategy-leadership.com (NB – please use this form of communication)
• A free one-hour individual executive coaching sessions for each of the first five people to e-mail me at brenda@strategy-leadership.com (NB please e-mail – no other form of communication – and this offer is open to existing and past clients and others who have never been coached by me before)

In summary, I have provided a random selection of only twelve tips. This is not intended as a comprehensive list but as an outline. Further tips will be woven in to the articles that follow.

For more information on Executive Coaching, please contact Brenda Eckstein on +27 82 4993311 or e-mail brenda@strategy-leadership.com. The website is www.strategy-leadership.com

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