Last week for the first time in a year and a half I got to see my daughter, her husband, my two fabulous granddaughters (and my new grand-puppy.) Wow! We spent a whole week together celebrating my birthday. There was lots of snuggling, cooking, and laughing.
We made our favorite Italian dishes, took a trip to the farm where they pick up their fresh veggies and flowers, spent some time wandering around and taking long walks around their hilly neighborhood. Simple pleasures.
My littlest one kept running up to me and saying, “I can touch you! I can really touch you!” The week was a long-awaited dream come true and at the end of the week she asked, “Nana, is your love tank full yet?”
Oh yes it is!
And it got me thinking on the plane coming home how important it is for every human being to keep their love tank full.
You as a leader need a full tank so you have what it takes to keep giving to your staff. Your team members need a full tank so they can keep customers happy and coming back (and work well together on collaborative efforts).
So here is a short list of things you can do to fill up your love tank.
- Clean up your language when you talk to yourself. Are you kind to yourself or are you a bully, relentlessly pushing yourself, even when you need a rest? Everyone has been under stress, so start by caring well for you and soften your approach with kindness
- Take a little extra time for a “breather.” The breath is key in reducing tension in your body. Shorten meetings by 5 minutes and take that time to breathe deeply and replenish and stretch.
- Go to your heart – often. While taking a few of those deep breaths, put your hand on your heart, close your eyes and recall a time when you felt deep love or gratitude for someone or something. Breathe life into the image and enjoy it again. The brain can’t tell the difference between something that is real and something that is vividly imagined.
- Send some “Thank You” notes. Every day think of someone you want to thank – for their contribution, their humor, their dedication – and put your heartfelt feelings on paper! It’s never too late to say “Thank you.”
- Make a plan to do something you’d really love to do. It might be a trip you want to take, a friend you want to spend time with, a hobby you want to pursue – get it on the calendar and then feel good as you anticipate the joy you will have when you do it.
- Smile more. Just do it. Several times a day curl the corners of your mouth up and think of something that makes you laugh. It doesn’t matter how simple or stupid the thought is – if it makes you grin, fit it in! When you can hold on to good feelings for 17 seconds or more, the chemistry in your body changes for the positive!
- Spread the love. While it’s usually a little inappropriate to run around the shop or office telling people how much you love them, it’s entirely appropriate and useful to tell people how much you appreciate them and their efforts. Be specific in your appreciation, “I really appreciate how skillfully you handled that difficult customer yesterday Maya, that’s what we mean here when we talk about “the extra mile.” When you appreciate that way, you help people make a connection between their behavior and the company’s mission.
Tend to your own emotional well-being and that of others. I don’t need to tell you how competitive the job market is these days! You already know you need to be the kind of leader who energizes, elevates and empowers others to bring their best selves to work. Let me help.
As a special for you for my birthday ( I love to give gifts) I’m offering $77 off my online course ‘The Practice of Positive Leadership’ AND a 55 minute complimentary coaching session to get you started. Go to www.PositiveEnergizer.com and use the word love to activate your $77 gift and your coaching session.
Spread the love,
JoAnna
