Leadership Thought – Being versus Doing

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Hope your week is going great, so far! Question, what is the best predictor of having a great week? I have communicated time and time again, our most precious resource is our time. The metaphor I like to use is that time can be compared to a bag of sand. When we come to the planet earth, we are granted a “bag of sand.” Free Will allows us the freedom of choice to distribute the sand anyway we see fit.

What most of us fail to consider, or reflect on is how much sand do we have? A day’s worth? A year’s worth? A decade, or more? We don’t know! So one strategy might be is to be as strategically intentional about expending our time as humanly possible. After all we have a finite supply! Our innate hubris always overestimates the amount of time we actually have!

With that thought in mind, we might consider having a deliberate practice of reviewing how our time is being distributed. I tend to like spending at least an hour weekly reviewing the what, how, why, where time is being used. We tend to do a better job of doing that when it comes to our financial resources. But, is reviewing or auditing how we spend our days, weeks, months and years enough? I don’t think so. We are only capturing what we are doing.

Although I would encourage the continual deliberate practice on the use of our time, just as we might do with our money, auditing how are we “being” can render even more consistent and extraordinary results.

Determining how are we “being” tends to be a bit more tricky, and requires a higher level of self-awareness, and consciousness. I would not suggest you taking a self-reporting assessment! LOL! Instead, consider this practice:

The Week’s Practice:

1. Identify three people, who love you, and who you love.
2. Ask them these questions:
1. Could you tell me three adjectives which describes my behavior over the last week? (Ask clarifying questions if necessary.)
2. What examples can you share of a specific example or situation which might lead you to choosing the adjectives picked?
3. Write down their responses.
1. You should have 9 adjectives.
2. Spend 20 minutes on reflecting how those adjectives demonstrates you at your best, or worst, and what facilitated it.
4. Think about what it will take for you to “BE” more or who you are.

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