Jennifer, an attorney responsible for a team of five, was overwhelmed by the back-to-back meetings, hundreds of daily emails and constant attention required by her employees. Her days were filled with non-stop interactions, whether by phone, email or in person. She was completely drained by the end of the day – at 7 pm. Sound familiar? Always the one to take on extra projects, her boss loved her. Always available to provide detailed instruction, her team loved her. But Jennifer had no work/life balance, she’d become about all work and no play. Even so, she had no time at work to strategize her vision for her team. It was time to hire a leadership coach.
After just one session, Jennifer was able to recognize her contribution to her stress. Her fear of letting others down was driving her to over commit. That self-awareness ‘aha moment’ paved the way for her to make some leadership style adjustments. She learned that saying no to others meant saying yes to her commitment to become a better, more balanced leader. That’s a difficult shift to make for most of us because we feel compelled to satisfy others to provide good service. It feels a little selfish. Can you relate?
Over the course of a few weeks, Jennifer
- explained to her boss why she would no longer be volunteering for extra projects,
- developed a database for her team so they had access to her knowledge without needing to access her,
- re-evaluated the meetings she was attending and delegated several to her employees,
- set aside time to take lunch….alone. Turns out Jennifer was an introvert in an extrovert’s job, and she needed some alone time to recharge during the day.
As a result of Jennifer’s increased self-awareness and self-management techniques, both EQ competencies, she now has time during the workday to create and cast a vision for her team and she has time after work to connect with her friends and family. Last I heard she’d even started dating again.