{"id":683,"date":"2015-03-16T12:06:19","date_gmt":"2015-03-16T19:06:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/solesadmissions.wordpress.com\/?p=683"},"modified":"2015-03-16T12:06:19","modified_gmt":"2015-03-16T19:06:19","slug":"just-stop-the-incredible-gift-you-give-yourself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.sandiego.edu\/solesadmissions\/2015\/03\/16\/just-stop-the-incredible-gift-you-give-yourself\/","title":{"rendered":"Just Stop. The Incredible Gift You Give Yourself."},"content":{"rendered":"

A blog post from SOLES Ambassador and\u00a0PhD in Leadership Studies, Kathryn Bingham:<\/em>
\nFirst published at LEADistics.com.
\n\"Kathryn<\/a>
\nPhoto: (c) 2013 Kathryn Bingham “Vista View” All rights reserved
\nTo truly lead, you need to stop.
\nAnd yes, I hear the collective refrains of \u201care you\u00a0kidding<\/em>? We\u2019re already a few days into December\u2014I have\u00a0deadlines<\/em>\u00a0to beat!\u201d Was that you? Then, please, take a moment. Look at the image of the seaside sunset, and let me share a quick story or two.
\nI know what \u201cbusy\u201d looks like. Let\u2019s begin with a few confessions of overachievement. I\u2019m the one who, while serving the community as Executive Director of a nonprofit, returned to university as an adult, tutored classmates in economics and financial accounting and still had time to make a custom apron for my then-fifth-grader\u2019s class trip to Starbucks. I\u2019m also the one who, having transitioned to a demanding corporate job, simultaneously (with spouse) spent almost every other waking hour gutting and remodeling a house and (without spouse) planned and executed my son and daughter-in-law\u2019s dream wedding. Additionally, I completed my first graduate degree (this time tutoring classmates on finance and statistics) while working 70 hours a week\u2014which required weekly travel\u2014and still committed to be in town Thursday nights for my by-then high schooler\u2019s wrestling matches. I could go on, but you get the idea. Any glimpses mirroring your own life and career?
\nThe truth is, we live in a complex world. Our careers often intrude into what used to be exclusively home, family or that now elusive leisure time. We parcel out energy, as well, to causes and community. We invest in growing others through mentoring and coaching. If we allow it, demands of the perpetually pressing would control us and, in turn, influence our state of being, our health, our productivity and our relationships. There is an alternative.
\nEffective leaders prioritize and harness the power of the pause (read more about this concept\u00a0here<\/a>). A pause takes various forms. A \u201cmomentary\u201d pause might mark the instant before decisions and actions, when a leader allows all his or her experience and knowledge of the issue, circumstances and people to coalesce into insight regarding potential paths and next steps. At the other end of the spectrum, pausing might involve dedicated time for a systemic evaluation of purpose, mission and values (see posts on\u00a0mission development<\/a>,\u00a0strengths assessment<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0values exercise<\/a>\u00a0for examples and resources). Somewhere in between these options lies a third possibility\u2014the pause \u201copportunity\u201d\u2014making a decision to leverage the serendipity of place and time.
\nMy photo of the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean captures a pause of opportunity. I had embarked on a 90-day personal \u201cintention experiment\u201d (see blog post for\u00a0overview<\/a>). I straddled life complicated by homes in two cities and the demands of a corporate role, a coaching practice and my doctoral coursework. I\u2019d passed this location off the highway between Los Angeles and San Diego a hundred times, always with another deadline or meeting overshadowing the lure of the vista awaiting me. And then I stopped.
\nIn the moments before, the impact of my daily \u201cmental rehearsal\u201d surfaced. Instead of driving by, I took the off-ramp leading to the viewpoint. As it had many times before in life, the pause made all the difference. The sounds of nearby traffic fell away, replaced by the ebb-flow lull of crashing ocean waves and the intermittent call of seabirds. Although joined by a handful of other travelers who paused their own journeys, voices were hushed and no one intruded into another\u2019s contemplative space. In tandem with the view of the waves and sunset, I saw with acute clarity the vision of my own mission and purpose. Symbolically, I snapped the photo to capture the experience.
\nTo those of you for whom this story is just \u201cwoo-woo\u201d enough to move beyond the boundary of your comfort zone, let me assure you: I am also a pragmatic realist. But having an appreciation for facts and data does not preclude acceptance of understanding drawn from what we cannot see. Flashes of perception and intuitive knowing can be just as tangible as our own hard research. We need to leverage the wisdom that comes from the practice of presencing.
\nThe approach of year-end invites even the most driven amongst us to pause and reflect. This isn\u2019t the trite noting of a few \u201cnew year\u2019s resolutions\u201d that will be long forgotten by March. Instead, take time to intentionally consider who you are and where you hope your own life and work will take you. If you lack the certainty of a personal mission and a purposeful path, perhaps it\u2019s time for you to stop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A blog post from SOLES Ambassador and\u00a0PhD in Leadership Studies, Kathryn Bingham: First published at LEADistics.com. Photo: (c) 2013 Kathryn Bingham “Vista View” All rights reserved To truly lead, you need to stop. And yes, I hear the collective refrains Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":718,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nJust Stop. 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