The Joy of LeadershipApparently, half of Annapolis had the same idea in this first week of the new year – go to the gym and get busy on those New Year’s Resolutions. I am right in there with the rest of the crowd, sweating my way through my first yoga class in…how many months has it been? And along with a few sore muscles, I came away with the gift of new insight. As the class began, our teacher advised us: “Practice with joy, not expectations.” As I took in her gentle words, I was struck with how broadly they apply to so many of the things we do in our work and our lives. We come to our jobs, and to our many roles in life, burdened with expectations – the demands we place on ourselves, the expressed desires of others, the imagined hopes of the people we support. Some of these are real, many are not, and frequently we cannot tell the difference.
The collective weight of all these expectations can drain the energy from our efforts, and shift the mood from light to dark faster than you can chant a single “aum.” Laboring under a set of exacting standards for our performance, we exist in a near-constant state of anxiety about whether or not we can measure up, whether or not we have “the right stuff.” We’re constantly glancing sideways to compare ourselves with peers and
colleagues, and silently berating ourselves if we think we’ve fallen behind in some ill-defined competition. Just as the most torturous yoga posture is not always the best one for any given yoga practitioner, the most elegantly constructed solution to a tough problem is not always the right one for the situation at hand. The most carefully nuanced communication to
the workforce is not always the most inspiring. The most perfectly written report is not always the most useful to its intended audience. In fact, the ability to distinguish between “simply perfect” and “perfectly simple” is arguably one key to effective leadership in most circumstances. What would happen if we let go of all those expectations, and instead practiced with
joy? What if we worked as though we loved the work for its own sake? What if we cared more about how we serve those who depend on us – our employees, customers, stakeholders -- than about how others rate our performance? Would that performance suffer in any way? What would it be like to complete a major project feeling pleasantly tired, instead of completely wrung out from the effort?
Leaders are subject to greater expectations than the rest of us, and that should not be surprising, because we entrust them with great responsibility for the success of the whole enterprise and the well-being of all those engaged in it. That trust we place in them is certainly not to be taken lightly. And yet, leaders are subject to the same drag on their spirit that outsized or unrealistic expectations can have on any of us.
The work of leadership these days is seldom thought of as joyous work, and indeed many of my leader clients have confided that they’d just as soon not have the burden. Can you even imagine what it would be like to truly take joy in that special work, and not just enjoy the status and privileges it accords you? What a different kind of organization, what a force for change and transformation, would be possible if leadership
was practiced with joy on a more regular basis, and in more places! Coaching can help you rekindle your passion and find the joy you want to have in your work as a leader. Let’s talk. Call (410)626-6008, or email info@bloomfieldassociates.com.
Reflect on the question of what gives you joy: - Think back over the past few weeks and months and remember times when you felt especially happy or joyous. What elements were present in the situation?
- Were any of those joyous times at work? If so, what made them joyous to you? If not, what’s missing or what gets in the way of feeling joyful at work?
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How can you bring some of the things that give you joy in your life to your role as a leader in your organization? What would it take for you to practice with joy at work?
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One of the biggest trends of the past year is the rapid adoption of technology by the
developing world. One research firm estimates that we have now passed the point where half the planet's population has a cell phone. Poor supervision by managers is the leading contributor to workers’ poor productivity, according to an annual study conducted by a London consulting firm. According to the research, U.S. workers waste the equivalent of 70 days a year, resulting in a combined economic loss of about $658 billion. The 25 percent of the population of China with the highest IQs is greater than the total population of North America. 
Coworking
If you’re self-employed and need an office alternative besides home or the local Starbuck’s, take heart – there’s a growing phenomenon of “coworking spaces” where you can set up shop for a day or a month, complete with the necessary amenities, with no boss looking over your shoulder checking to see if you are sending personal emails, and with the thing you miss the most about a real job – coworkers. 
 Questions of Character: Illuminating the Heart of Leadership
Through Literature, by Joseph L. Badaracco, Jr. What I like about it: The author of an old favorite, Leading Quietly, has written a thought-provoking book weaving together the themes of great literature with the age-old question of how to be a wise and
good leader. I often use movies and the dilemmas their characters face to spark self-reflection in my coaching clients; now I have a guide to using some favorite works of fiction with them as well.
Beth Bloomfield
Executive Coach, Strategy Consultant
Principal, Bloomfield Associates Share what you’re into — books, articles, movies, music, websites — with others on the list! Send us the title and author or other pertinent information, along with a sentence or two on what you
like about it, and if we use it in A Different Optic we’ll not only quote you, we’ll provide a link to you or your website. |
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“When what we are is what we want to be, that's happiness.”
-- Malcolm S. Forbes | 
