Are You Going To The Mental Gym?
As we move into February the momentum behind the ‘new year, new me’ mantra can start to wane. Those packed gym classes are starting to get less busy, and our good intentions are starting to slip. Our brain focus moves onto deadlines and time restraints. It’s back into survival mode.
So, the question is, what can we do as an individual or organisation if we want to make this year a more effective and more productive year for us?
As a leadership effectiveness expert, I know it’s essential to balance our mental fitness alongside our physical fitness. But what are the benefits?
Don’t Stop Moving…
Now you have a vibrant catchy song in your head read on for the science.
Science is telling us that our sedentary ways are reducing our mental capacity. This pull to remain chained to our desks, to get all our work done, is creating a disconnect between our body and brain. We’ve become so used to bad working habits that they have become normal and we’re forgetting the importance of moving our muscles and having a brain that is aligned with our body and not just our laptop.
Whilst this shift towards home-working during the pandemic has meant many now have greater choice on where to work It’s also meant that we are moving our bodies even less than usual and now only commuting to the kitchen or upstairs bedroom.
We are unconsciously strengthening our “pandemic brain” where the autopilot way of working is our go-to. We’re reducing our ability to be dynamic and agile. A recent article by Arianna Huffington
“We need to rethink how to use technology and how to structure the workplace in ways that augment — rather than consume — our mind’s amazing capacities for focus and deep connection, especially during a time when creativity, empathy and collaboration are more important than ever. “
Is Your Environment Supporting Your Brain?
Wellbeing in the workplace is going to be pushed up the agenda for most companies in 2022. The pandemic has become a catalyst for many companies and those at the forefront will now be looking at what measures they can incorporate to ensure they are supporting their leaders physical and emotional fitness.
Have all companies made the connection with employee environment and employee effectiveness?
Innovative companies like Google and Facebook have long recognised the need to create working environments that support their employee’s mental fitness. These companies have thought about their staff and their need for exercise, fun, rest, and recuperation. It may have been seen as a great talent attraction tool but behind the colourful chill out zones is a stack of science saying that these attraction strategies maximise performance.
These whole office ecosystems are designed to support lifestyle whilst also maximising effectiveness.
What Are Your Physical KPI’s?
Those companies driving an innovative way of working post pandemic have a huge opportunity to influence change. What if you were to introduce performance measures around physical health as well as the production of results. A KPI for movement, short calls, fresh air. What might those KPI’s look like?
Science is also telling us that our nutritional needs aren’t being met. We go from meeting to meeting, we look at a screen, we grab food to keep going. How energised are our brains? – think decision making, building engagement and feeling motivated.
These are all interesting questions to consider.
It’s often the leaders at the senior level in the organisation with the most responsibility that have the smallest amount of time to devote to anything that supports and protects their lifestyle. Stop and think about the irony of this given what science is telling us.
The Year to Be You!
The new year, new me mantra puts a lot of self-critical pressure on us to change. I always say, ‘you take yourself with you wherever we go’, which means, embrace who you are. There’s nothing wrong with wanting a better outcome but maybe re-framing this idea as an upgrade in your effectiveness habits as an evolved and enhanced version of you, rather than a ‘new year new you’ will serve you more positively and boost your mental fitness.
During leadership transitions, you may need to show up as different iterations of yourself, but you are still you. What do you need to dial up? What do you need to dial down? What is the ‘you’ that is required for what’s going on? How agile is your leadership toolkit?
For more help and support with creating strategies and tools to support your leadership effectiveness and boost your Mental Fitness see my 3-Step Reset programme.
Maximising talent and leadership effectiveness to supercharge results.
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Leadership Effectiveness is the rock of every business. NewlandRock increases leadership effectiveness for talent-savvy companies and individuals going through a transition.
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