Imagine if the secret to thriving in our high-pressure world isn’t working harder, but learning to worker softly- where a sense of ease, curiosity and flexibility become your greatest assets.

Exhaustion in this world of disruption is real. For everyone. Managing your own energy, let alone your teams can feel like a full time job. In fact, it can feel like mission impossible. Brene Brown calls this ‘living beyond human scale’ as our minds struggle to handle the complexity.

Managing your mindset is part of managing your energy and motivation.

It’s difficult to manage your mindset as you always ‘feel on’ and it feels like you are working hard.

Your mind doesn’t often turn off.

Feeling busy but not productive and even though you feel like you are doing your very best as a leader, you have this niggling feeling you have missed something. Or you haven’t been doing a good enough job.

I’ve seen firsthand with my former husband Paddy the impact that working hard had on his health. After we separated, his formally prosperous business went bankrupt and then within 2 years he developed stage 4 cancer. He passed away on December the 7th at age 58 and 2 months.

I know the pressure he felt having to ‘work hard’ all the time and how it affected his quality of life. We know that high stress is a risk factor for cancer and I don’t want that to happen to anyone else.

What about you?

• Are you working ‘hard’ or when asked how you are, do you answer ‘busy’?
• What is the impact on your mindset, productivity, relationships and health?

Working lightly

I’d to introduce the idea of working softly or working lightly. I am exploring both concepts and for now am using these words interchangeably.

Experimenting with curiosity

A part of working lightly is to have an experimental approach which means you are psychologically flexible. Psychological flexibility is an essential skill for these times as it enables you to act on long term goals and values rather than short term urges. It helps you see the big picture of effectiveness and not get stuck in the weeds trying to be efficient and reflexive. It helps you adapt. It helps you respond.

You hold an idea lightly, with curiosity as you see the impact of that action, idea, principle, etc in your life. You test it out. Experimenting is a key skill in this new world of disruption and change.

When you are working hard there is a sense of pressure for outcomes and a focus on the problems in front of you. It’s just what a stressed mind does automatically, reflexively.

With a working lightly approach the focus is on the process as you are easier on the situation and yourself and can take a more flexible, relaxed experimental approach. Just try and see and not be so hard on the yourself or others when it doesn’t go to plan.

Working softly means you shift your priorities from busy work to important work.

Working lightly would mean you are more creative, open to new ideas and more innovative.

Working softly means that you work from principles that encourage appropriate rest and reflection as part of your working day.

Imagine changing from working hard to working softly.

Did you notice your hand unclenching?

Does your body loose it’s rigidity just imagining it?

Could working softly (or lightly) be the next evolution in leading yourself and in your work?

Love to hear what you think of this idea of working softly/lightly.

Be in touch.

Warmly,

Michelle

P.S. I have made the Leadership Team Framework into a diagnostic and you are the first ones to try it!

Click here to take the diagnostic: https://michelle-emzi45bd.scoreapp.com/

You will get a readout like this

and you will be clear straight away what your strengths and gaps in your team. Those that attended on Thursday loved it and are clear on next steps. 

I’d love to hear how it helps you.