How often do you as a leader take time off? Not as in “watch Netflix for one night” or even “go to gym and train”, but as in daring to get off the grid for several days, leaving the Matrix world.
To lift your eyes from the next goal or the coming milestone.
To see the birds-eye view of your life and you as a whole person.
To reconnect on a deeper level – with yourself, nature, and people around you.
To remind yourself why you got on your leadership path and do an honest check-in of whether you are still on that path.
To face your fears and inner stories that block you from moving faster, or smoother, or with more joy.
We do that way too seldom, even though we know such breaks create massive value for our personal and professional life. It’s often scary to wholeheartedly commit to exploring oneself since it’s unclear what will pop up and whether one can handle that. So we talk ourselves out of taking a proper break, reasoning the decision with “no need for that, I’m well off now”, “I’m too busy for this fluff stuff”, or “my time is precious, I can’t waste it for doing nothing when my business needs me most”.
Let’s face the truth: daring to slow down, taking a real break, and doing intentional introspection is what usually sparks transformation that gets us out of the firefighter mode, brings sustainable performance, and helps us enjoy our journey more.
Being a leader is often a lonely journey. You are the one who everyone is looking at when an answer or general direction is needed. And oftentimes, you don’t have an opportunity to say “I don’t know” or show your insecurities. It might be scary to be vulnerable and honest when you are not sure, yet every leader who has tried to open up about their doubts says they have never felt stronger before. Being vulnerable is what makes good leaders truly great.
If you are still not sold on the idea of taking some quality time off, here are some results that other leaders report on from that practice:
Lower stress levels
Better sleep
More energy throughout days
Clearer prioritization at work
Improved personal and company productivity
Increased team spirit
Higher company profitability
More balanced life
Knowing all these benefits, my Swedish colleague Jonas Fröjd and I have created the Mindkicker Iceland Edition – a leadership camp with a goal to provide a safe, encouraging, beautiful space for you to take the time off and to practice being vulnerable and honest with yourself. This is an experience with three guides, each with our own experiences, perspectives, and ways to contribute to your reconnection journey. A small group of brave hearts who are ready to level up along with you. Three days of activities for building your mental and physical strength, space for facilitated self-reflection work. All in the stunning surroundings of Icelandic nature. It’s hard to imagine a better start to your year 2022.
If you are one of the brave hearts who dare to slow down in order to speed up – sustainably, contact me to learn more about Mindkicker.
