Lessons for Leaders

This episode brings you the top 3 tips I share with all my clients so that they can manage and reduce stress and anxiety levels quickly and easily.

Listen in for:

The number 1 thing you need to calm your internal system.

A quick and easy way to change the worry habit.

Why you need to create a routine and the reasons it's helpful in managing stress

I explain why I talk about stress tips so much and how stress affects our brain and our performance.

If you're not sure what the difference is between stress and anxiety then have a listen and I explain that for you. Lots of people get confused and don't know the difference.

"one off occasions of feeling stressed or anxious are perfectly normal"

"there are a lot of ways you can incorporate this tool into your everyday life"

"this can help us manage the uncertainty that life can throw up and help us cope with unpredictable periods of time"

"trying to remember things can be really stressful and can be overwhelming ... so having this tool means we don't have to think about these any more"

"you don't need to do the same as everyone else, you need to find the thing that works for you"

Everyone is different - so what stresses one person will be exciting for another. It's important that you know what affects you so that you can do something about it and feel in control

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

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If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

This week I'm talking about what really happens when we're stressed. We all think we know about stress, but there are some key identifiers that can help us to catch stress before it becomes a problem, so this will be a useful reminder.

Since it's Stress Awareness Week on 2-6th November, this episode is the first in a mini-series about stress. I'm sharing information about:

• What really happens when we're stressed
• Symptoms of stress and how to spot stress in yourself and others.
• Common causes of stress in both work and personal life

It's definitely a stressful time and I won't deny that there have been times when I just wanted to hide under duvet with a book and come out when it's all over, but really, that's just not possible.

I share some key statistics about work related stress that are up to date and my be of interest to you.

I also share some of the key things that I'm doing in organisations right now to help them handle stress and support employees to improve their situation and be happier and therefore more productive.

I've prepared a Stress Awareness Pack to promote stress awareness within organisations so that you can support teams to reduce stress, improve productivity and create happier, healthier more engaged teams and workplaces.

If you'd like more information on the Stress Awareness Packs, just send me an email and I'd be happy to help.

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

It's National Work Life Week and it's a great opportunity for both employers and employees to focus on wellbeing at work and work life balance.

This shouldn't just happen for one week though! When there is good work life balance then wellbeing is improved and there is less stress, better attendance and more productivity. Contrary to popular belief we are not always more productive by working longer hours!

I talk through the 5 key areas I believe are needed to ensure that you can incorporate plans and actions so that you or your people, particularly if working from home, can manage the day to day operations and also be supported in a way that enables to function at home in a positive way with minimal impact on productivity and mental health.

This podcast episode gives you an insight into the areas covered in all my Work Life Balance workshops and training sessions.

The key areas in all my training are:

Routine

Values

Boundaries

Communication

Self Care

There's more detail in other podcast episodes about Boundaries and Communication if you want a deeper understanding.

My Work Life Balance session has been designed to incorporate the specific values and needs of your company so that implementation happens smoothly, staff are happier and so that you have a more productive (and profitable!) workforce during this time.

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

The months of lockdown and loss have had a huge impact on us all, and prioritising mental health has never been more important than it is now.

Focusing on mental health and wellbeing is needing to be an ongoing part of everyone's plan.

In honour of World Mental Health Day on 10th October 2020, I produced this podcast episode to share my Top 10 ideas for quick and easy activities that you can do to improve you mental health.

When you're feeling overwhelmed, overloaded or just simply worn out and fed up, there's nothing worse than someone adding MORE things on your to-do list!

So try picking something that you feel you CAN achieve and give it a go.

I've sectioned the tips into areas so that you can choose depending what you need:

Creating connections

Get Moving

Learn New Things

Self Care

Remember we are all different, so different activities suit different people at different times. Do what you need.

I also refer back to my previous episodes of Resilience and Raising Mental Health Awareness

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

This week I'm talking you about Raising Mental Health Awareness.

It's World Mental Health Day On October 10th 2020 and then closely followed by Stress Awareness Week for the first week of November.

I'm sharing ideas of things you can do yourself or in the workplace / with colleagues to take the first steps to improving mental health.

There's some ideas if your HR or a manager

I'm also talking a little about how you can support leader performance too.

I share information on what I'm doing but also give you insights to what other companies are providing so that you don't have to dig around for ideas.

Mind are focussing this year on the theme of 'do one thing' so I share ideas about what these simple things can be to get you started in improving mental health.

Some quotes from this episode are:

"Don't talk about the war, worries and women's problems is a stigma from long ago that we're still having deal with"

"If you're struggling to ask to for help, think about how YOU respond when someone asks you for help"

"Don't just listen to what they say, listen to HOW they say it"

I share some information about using some elements of 'restorative practice' to do wellbeing check-ins with your team.

If you're planning on getting someone to share their mental health journey then you can email me so that 'doom and gloom' chats can be avoided.

I also share why it's good for managers and leaders to share their journey or situation and how you can boost the mood of your employees by sending thank you cards, gifts or other things.

Of course, if you want a speaker or wellbeing trainer to deliver a something then book a call with me.

Here's an idea of what other companies have booked me for and you can hear more about why connection and loneliness is important in my previous podcast episode.

• Stress Awareness and Stress Management
• Preventing Blurring of Work & Home Boundaries
• The 6 Key Pillars to Ramp Up Resilience
• Creating Quality Connections & Reducing Loneliness
• Handing Emotional Offloads without the Baggage
• Managing your Mental Wellbeing

I share how you can support leadership performance too, since I've had many phone calls and emails and bookings from HR and Wellbeing leads because they have staff who are finding things difficult at this time and it's affecting performance.

Listen in for ideas on what I provide here and what other companies are doing too and why it's good for your overall wellbeing plan.

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website at http://www.emmalangton.com and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

People tell me they are struggling with the amount of time that they're spending on their own - being at home all the time and not going out to work.

Whether we're on our own, or whether we've got busy households but we're working all the time and juggling kids and just not getting social connection.

it's affecting a lot of people, because we are meant to have interaction. You know we're wired as human beings for interaction.

The need for interpersonal relationships is a basic need of all human beings. That is why the need to spend time with others and to be accepted by them is a basic need for our psychological well-being

Researchers in child psychology have concluded that human infants are born with the innate motivation and ability to seek contact with others. Throughout life this ability and motivation is maintained and might even be enhanced with age.

There's officially a a loneliness epidemic in the UK, with 2.4 million adults reporting being lonely, according to a recent study by the Office for National Statistics.

As we communicate less in actual face to face social interactions we start to lose some of our most valuable communication skills and even younger people are coming to me feeling a lack of confidence or feeling uncomfortable in social situations or just missing the connections of people with lockdown and working from home.

Listen in to WHY we need connections so much

HOW you can create connections that that have impact and leave you feeling good.

What happens when we get quality connections so that you can ensure you maximise the impact of the connections you have.

Why you need to stop multitasking on calls and what to do instead.

If you're a HR or a leader what you can do to gauge people's mood and enable quality interaction with your teams.

When you know what happens mentally and physiologically you can ensure you re-create those situations with ease.

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website at http://www.emmalangton.com and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

I'm hearing from more and more people who are feeling anxious, stressed or struggling in some way during the Coronavirus situation. It's completely understandable.

People who are socially isolated or juggling all things or getting anxious about how long this pandemic is going on for or even getting anxious to go back out into places now that lockdown is easing.

If you're managing people – it's well worth a listen too because it will give you the understanding about what's going on and make it easier to manage.

The world is a complex and sometimes a confusing place and never more so than during a pandemic when the situations are ever changing, and even guidelines can be confusing.

It's pretty tricky right now with the Coronavirus in our lives and seemingly everywhere we turn.

Even I've had rough days, and had to use all my tips, tricks and knowledge to ensure I'm able to stay calm, sane and get me-time in a house that's permanently occupied. Having two teenagers with additional needs and no break from them has been interesting.

I've not been anxious myself during this time, but I've definitely got stressed. However, I'm talking about anxiety today because I'm hearing so much about it right now. Anxiety is a form of stress that a person can go through physically, mentally and emotionally and situations can genuinely feel are out of control so that they generate feelings of panic and anxiety.

Yet, I also recognise that there are many people out there who are struggling because they're on their own.

In my coaching this is all too apparent as I see more clients who are socially isolated or lacking confidence in being able to communicate or even getting anxious to go back out into places now that lockdown is easing.

So often we focus on the difficult and bad experiences in life, we're wired to notice the negatives.

The brain is hard-wired to scan the horizon for anything that might be a threat to us – it was always the key to our survival in days gone by. Nowadays the threats aren't of a big bear coming to eat us, but our brain is still hard at work analysing, making us aware of the negative, and looking to see how it can keep us safe. Unfortunately, as we get older, we become more fear-based.

Being exposed to prolonged stress can both cause and worsen mental health problems, leading to other issues such as tiredness, irritability, poor concentration, poor punctuality, sleep problems and so forth. Identifying and tackling the sources of anxiety can prevent such issues spiralling.

If anxiety becomes commonplace and regular response to daily events, and this is where it turns into a problem. As a leader or manager you need to be empathic (rather than ignoring or being dismissive). So, tell them you understand they must feel worried or anxious and that it's OK to have those feelings.

Things are so much easier in life generally when we have a plan, or can see an end in sight. Right now, we don't really have a plan or an end to this.

We are moving in strange and unfamiliar phases and now more than ever we need to learn to go with the flow.

Often when I work with people who have long-standing anxiety, it shows up in a variety of ways …… planning everything to the nth degree is a common one – so is insomnia.

Just to explain … often people are trying to control their external environment, so they plan, plan, plan everything around them.

The other way anxiety can affect is us that it completely stops us in our tracks – and mean we struggle to get anything done – often talked about as procrastination and mental blocks.

With insominia – whether people realise it or not, it's their brain knocking on the inside saying ooh remember this, or that. We need to look at this. There are ways to reduce the brain needing to do this so that you can focus in the daytime and not night-time.

Three key ways you can help yourself with the corona anxiety are explained in more detail on the podcast but in essence:

1. Breathe

Breathing is go-to advice from many coaches and wellness experts, I know. I'm not unique in saying this! But it's ALWAYS my number one tip … because it's SO helpful. Breathing deeply, taking long breaths that feel like they go down to your belly rather than just in your chest. This releases calming chemicals and send a message to your brain to slow down. It helps release physical tension and gets oxygen flowing round your system so you can think more clearly. Plant both feet firmly on the ground, put one hand on your stomach and breathe.

2. Rehearse

When we visualise an event or situation happening whilst in the therapy room, the benefit is that when we do it for real our brains believe we have already done it. So it is easier and more comfortable. When you increase these new social outings and activities it becomes easier and easier.

3. Build confidence

So with this process, I will be helping you to feel assured and at ease. You can gradually build your self-confidence on the solid foundations we have already laid down.

Doing small but easy to manage activities and getting back out there is the only way to build confidence. However it's so much easier to do when we calm down our internal system first, reduce those feelings of anxiety, and mentally visualise or rehearse these ways.

It is a bit different – going out with masks on, but you do get used to it.

If you're telling yourself you hate it and can't do, then your brain will believe this. So do be careful of what you tell yourself too.

It will be tiring. When you brain is on constant alert and scanning for perceived danger, as I mentioned, your brain is going to be working overtime.

So if you're at the stage of going out, going back into work, bringing staff back into your workplace - be mindful of this and be empathic and understanding. This is really the only way to create permanent change in levels and increase confidence whilst keeping anxiety down.

As a manager, leader or HR it can sometimes be confusing when people you work with are not performing as they used to or are struggling with something that seems unusual for them. However, when I explain about the way our brains work and what happens with anxiety I can see people getting that understanding and often in 1:1 sessions my clients will be "oh, so I have this member of staff and they've been doing this, so might they be anxious" Yep

Or they say " oh my goodness, I was struggling to understand why Bob wouldn't do 'this' when I knew he was more than capable … this really helps me to understand"

It might be then that there's a degree of flexibility can that be incorporated to bring down the anxiety whilst still bringing people back into work.

Or as an individual, it's about trying things out but not putting pressure on, set targets, yes, but not so much that the anxiety spikes up again. Everything is going to be some much easier when you do things from a place of calm.

Please do make sure you hit 'subscribe' so that don't miss an episode.

If you haven't yet left a review, please do go and find the little button to leave a review and let me know your thoughts, key take-aways and what you value from the podcast.

Join my corporate leadership and wellbeing newsletter HERE

If you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website at http://www.emmalangton.com and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

This week I'm joined by Nick Bradley.

Nick is a successful businessman having worked in investment banking and management consultancy for 30 years. He has a passion for inspiring individuals and businesses to achieve their purpose.

He has a new book out, "Zero To Authentic Hero - the 7 key steps to become a true leader". This is a compilation of what Nick considers to be the top seven mistakes made by Nick and ex colleagues and clients when taking their first leadership role.

His objective is to help leaders avoid these mistakes by raising the awareness of them as well as providing strategies that you can put in place to overcome them.

I must admit, these are also things I see too with the leaders I work with.

There's seven key areas in the book, which Nick runs through briefly and then we focus on two that Nick would pick out as being essential.

1. Understanding Beliefs
2. Clear Purpose
3. Living Core Values
4. Skill Set
5. Communicate with Clarity
6. Live your legacy
7. Building Your Resilience

Some of the highlights of this episode are:

• The secret to driving behaviours in the right way!
• How you can get light bulb moment that enable you to see what's going on, be open to change and improve the way you lead and behave. This also means you get more out of your team as a result too!
• What leaders need to do to communicate with clarity and why it's important to do. Learn reasons why you should and should not get the communication right.
• Why you need to get clear on your purpose
• Reasons why resilience is so important

"The first one I talk about? Every single time is about having a clear purpose, because I believe having a clear purpose then drives so many other things. activities. So if you get that right up front, everything else becomes so much easier."

Nick gives a great example of how the Swedish Road Traffic Agency added purpose to their messaging and really made a difference in their communication, engagement and reasons for their road traffic restrictions.

"Once you've got that purpose, you can then build your strategy of what we're actually going to do, and your vision of what it will look like when we get there."

The seventh step in the book is about building and resilience to what you do. Part of that is actually planning and scenario testing what might happen in your business and what might happen to your people. So you're better prepared before it happens instead of just having to be resilient when it does happen to you.

"Being resilient during that firefighting phase, as you say, is so difficult, frustrating. And I kind of like to ask people why are you now be able to successfully rise from the ashes without actually asking why you were on fire in the first place?"

Nick has four areas in his gateway for resilience.

"the four gateways for resilience for me at least our sole, physical, mental, and social, yeah, and it's all about balance between the four of them. Don't just go and exercise all the time. Don't just go and read a book all the time as it were, get the right balance, whatever that balance is, you might not be 25% across all four, but whatever that right balance is for you."

Nick is giving away a free copy of his book to all listeners of the podcast. You can get your copy from his website (link below) and find him on these other social platforms.

Website: https://www.mandalaleaders.com/store

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NickBradley7

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickbradley7/

Excitingly, this month I'm delivering several virtual Business Boundary workshops to help companies support the issue of blurred boundaries. With so much time at home, the end of the work day is blurring into home life with many people struggling to switch off - physically and mentally. This also means many are struggle to be engaged and ready to start the week, because weekends have blurred into weekdays. Setting clear boundaries enables everyone to switch off so that they get the rest they need so that when they are at work, they are more productive, happier and healthier. Clear boundaries for customers or clients also reduces stress and sets our clear expectation: this creates respect and improves relationships.

So if you want to be increasing your performance so that you're more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website at www.emmalangton.com and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people's diary.

As the Covid-19 situation continues and businesses plan and adapt working patterns HR and Business Leaders must ensure that mental wellbeing remains a high priority in their plans.

Leaders, HR and all levels of the business will need extra help, support and guidance on looking after themselves and being able to spot issues and support the workforce.

Some companies have plans in place for the return to office space, yet many companies are telling their workforce there is no intention of a return to office until September or later, if at all. Whilst these are intended to be clear messages, it can still contribute to employee stress - and reinforces their fears about the future.

The impact of continued remote working, alongside additional pressure of a difficult work life balance, isolation and schooling is adding to the worry, anxiety and associated mental health issues that were already contributing to difficulties within workforces.

Let's not forget, that BEFORE lockdown there were already 1 in 4 people likely to have some mental health issue in their lifetime. Research from Benenden Health in May 2020 said

"over a third of respondents feel the pandemic has been damaging to their mental wellbeing"

Mental Health issues are often hidden - but have a huge cost to companies if left undiscovered or not dealt with. Particularly in areas such as:

• Poor employee morale
• Low retention / high attrition
• The cost of high sickness absence

Focusing on mental health and wellbeing needs to be a continuing part of your business plan and HR or Wellbeing Leads need to be ensuring that the plan is well delivered. As Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the CIPD, said "Employers have a fundamental duty of care for physical and mental wellbeing under the Health And Safety At Work Act,"

It's no longer acceptable to just have the focus on one week of the year, or believe that a few posters about drinking more water and having a cake sale for a mental health charity is going to cut it. (Yes, I really was told that a cake sale was 'everything' one company was doing!)

What can you do to improve Mental Wellbeing? Survey Your Employees Regularly

Have an adequate survey that enables you to gather good feedback so that your employees know you are taking their mental wellbeing seriously. It also means you're not guessing about their strengths and difficulties so that you don't waste money on plans and training that is not needed, as well as ensuring you are meeting their needs. Remember, it's not enough to just do the survey, you need to ensure you're responding to the outcomes too in order to increase morale and gain the savings that you would like to see.

Provide Training and Expertise

Getting external support for training, coaching and learning will equip everyone from the Board down to be able to spot signs of stress and struggle in themselves and learn what they can do about it.

For some companies who already have a wellbeing plan in place, they benefit most from workshops designed for specific topics. Companies that I work with, often have great overall wellbeing plans in place, but have needed additional support in areas like boundaries, resilience and work life balance, especially during Covid-19 and those workshops have helped them complete their wellbeing implementation.

Educate and Upskill Your Managers

Bringing in specific training will enable you to educate your managers to spot issues, raise any concerns and know how to be supportive and empathic so that they can catch issues early and turn around the negative impact of any situation before presenteeism or absences hit.

It might be that your Board level executives need coaching or a high level training session so that they understand the impact of trying to work in a stressful environment and learn the best ways to support the workforce, demonstrate buy in and improve morale.

Knowing how to talk to employees and making time for one to one conversation is crucial in building trusting relationships that result in managers being able to support employees with early interventions.

Improve Work life Balance

Think about what good work life balance looks like for your company. Are flexible working patterns possible - are they really possible logistically or is there a block on the idea just because of a fixed mindset or because it's what you've always done?

The Beneden research said

"more than half of parents whose mental wellbeing has been impacted say balancing working from home and childcare was having a negative impact on their mental wellbeing"

The companies I'm working with are investing in work life balance support because they are seeing that working hours are merging into the evenings and weekends, leaving their employees struggling to switch off or feeling under pressure to get through an incredible workload as well as juggling childcare. However, they also tell me that even those without children are struggling too because there is no differentiation between the workplace and home.

Be Flexible

There's no one size fits all. Depending on sector and role, the impact and need will be different.

Key workers and front line employees will have had different experiences to those working at home and juggling childcare to those living alone. We also need to take into account the different perceptions of people, some are more adaptable and resilient than others.

Support the Supporters

HR and support workers in your organisation may have had additional pressure because they have been supporting others. It's important not to forget that. So ensure that HR and managers also get the training or support they need so that they can continue to be there for others.

Overall, companies are working hard to implement wellbeing plans - but with the arrival of Covid-19, it's important to be responsive. The Benenden report also said that over a third of respondents said they would like more employer support, so by revisiting and revising your wellbeing plan you can make sure that it has the best potential for success and ROI.

If you'd like to discuss how you can

1. enhance your company wellbeing plan during Covid-19,
2. discuss virtual training options
3. ensure your leaders are on board to support the Workplace Mental Wellbeing

Message me directly or click here to arrange a call.

Leaders often thrive with a challenge, however when the challenge is a prolonged one, such as this period of the Covid-19 crisis, leaders need to ensure that they are able to sustain the test of time.

Prioritising mental wellbeing is just as essential for leaders in a time of crisis as it is for your employees.

Failure to look after one's self can result in fatigue and burnout.

Burnout characterised by "emotional exhaustion" and usually attributed to the professional role you have, therefore, maintaining work life balance is vital to prevent burnout.

The difficulty though is that often fatigue and burn out happen because leader DO love their jobs, or feel a sense of responsibility or struggle to delegate – in fact there can be a host of differing factors. Because everyone is different.

The important thing is to ensure that you know what affects you and, more helpfully that you're able to spot the signs in your leadership team too.

There are things you can do to ensure that you implement a balance that supports your performance (so it isn't about working less necessarily) but working and living in way that supports your overall professional and personal wellbeing.

Spot the Signs

There can be a number of signs – IBS and gastrointestinal disorders, headaches, sleep issues, problems with immune system and even just getting ill really frequently – more frequently than the next person.

Admitting that there is a problem can be a tough one for the leaders I work with. Often they come to me because they know they are struggling, they can't quite pinpoint a specific area where the struggle starts or the look for one key area. They also come to me because they don't want to admit to their CEO or Board that they are struggling.

The thing is that often it's not just one thing. It also doesn't mean that you have to stop work or do less – as we'll discuss – it's often about doing things differently.

The key is to acknowledge that there is an issue and once you've spotted the signs then you're half way to solving the problem (as long as you do something about it).

Do Away with Decision Fatigue

Decision fatigue happens when there is a prolonged situation that is stressful and demanding. The thinking part of your brain, the prefrontal cortex can become overloaded and worn out – essentially. What that means is that basic functions and decisions, judgements and strategic thinking are clouded and it's really difficult to make a decision. A leader who is under pressure to make difficult or severe decisions each and every day can find they have increased difficulty doing so. Even simple decisions such a what to wear, what to eat can become a problem.

Barack Obama apparently only wore blue and black suits so that he reduced the decisions he had to make there and keep his brain free for the bigger decisions. Have you ever found you get the best ideas or decisions in the shower or when you're out for a walk? That's because you've taken that mental step back and given your brain chance to rest, recover and then it's able to decide.

This is why I teach all my client's ways to take those brain breaks, with breathing techniques or relaxation or even just adding in healthy restorative time as I'll talk about in a moment. By creating a brain break, you're better able to make decisions.

Address the Stress

Making a plan to address the stress and looking at any underlying cause for the stress is key. Leaders usually like this idea because they are goal and action focussed. However the tough stuff starts when they have to look at themselves!!

Looking at personal and professional activities and areas where there is struggle, things that are missing, what needs more, what needs less enables you to make a plan.

This is where we look at adding in healthy restorative aspects and for this we are talking about looking at different areas of your life. Physical, emotional, mental, sometimes spiritual. This includes, social aspects – where is there fun in your life? What support do you have – is there one friend or a group of friends where you can be totally honest and say today was a nightmare?

Are you eating well or grabbing stuff on the go and skipping meals?

What's your sleep pattern like – or are you awake at 4 in the morning?

Do you take time off – properly?

One chap I worked with got told by his family that they knew he wasn't listening to their conversations to they used to add in random crazy sentences, like there's a pink elephant coming now and see if he noticed. They got lots of fun and hilarity from it – he missed it all.

When you've assessed all this, you need to establish some goals and address the gaps and blocks. I really would advise here, that you have some accountability strategies to help make the plan really effective and get the results you want much more quickly.

Master Your Mindset

I always say, you can't control what happens on the outside, but you can control what happens on the inside. By that, I mean that you are in control of what you think, how you think and that impacts how you respond. So working on your mindset means you can make the changes that help you work on any fatigue and prevent burnout.

Do you need to rethink delegation? Sometimes in coaching we look at what's stopping someone from delegating – it can be personal for everyone, but it might things like lack of trust, not wanting to be let down, thinking it's easier to do it myself. You don't need to a superhero. I often ask ' what's the best thing you can do to develop your team" and the answer is often "give them responsibility" So then I ask when are you going to do that.

It might be that you need to look at boundaries. My favourite subject and need to say no to things instead of yes… or yes instead of no (particularly if someone says, shall I look at this).

What will happen if you're not there? If you're doing everything yourself then things will fail anyway. If you allow others in to support and work with you then you're setting yourself up for wins.

There's a million ways we can change our mindset – and exploring what's going on with yours is the first step. One client is never the same as the next, that's why I LOVE working with leaders.

The combination of the above has wide reaching effects on their team and often the entire company, because it changes their approaches and they are more likely to promote a good work life balance across the organisation too. Because they see the value in how work life balance enhances productivity and performance, rather than being something that is about working less.

I've been working with a number of organisations to successfully deliver virtual trainings on stress management, work life balance, boundaries and resilience - so contact me to discuss the needs of your organisation now or book direct into my diary for a complementary discussion with this link

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