Do you find that you are overwhelmed with a whole lot of ideas and items on your to do list, and you don’t know where to start?
I have found the Priority 2×2 Matrix my best friend when it comes to productivity, performance and effective output.
There are two great Priority 2×2 Matrix that will help you find clarity, speed up the decision making process and manage your time more effectively:
IMPORTANCE vs URGENCY
IMPACT vs EFFORT
IMPORTANCE vs URGENCY
When there is a sense of urgency and overwhelm, I first start with IMPORTANCE vs URGENCY. Start by creating a 2×2 grid (adapted from President Dwight Eisenhower) with IMPORTANCE on the y-axis (vertical) and URGENCY x-axis (horizontal). Then place your ideas or to-do item’s in the grid according to their IMPORTANCE and URGENCY.
High importance, high urgency (Top right box)
High importance, low urgency (Top left box)
Low importance, high urgency (Bottom right box)
Low importance, low urgency (Bottom left box)
Choose the top 3 priorities that are positioned in the in the far right and highest point of the top right box (high importance / high urgency), and use these as your three tasks to complete today or first (if they will take longer than one day). After you have completed tasks in box #1, then you will need to determine which tasks in box 2 or 3 are more important. The IMPACT vs EFFORT Priority 2×2 Matrix will assist you in making this decision.
Sometimes it is really challenging to differentiate between the tasks, when they all feel important and urgent. That’s when the IMPACT vs EFFORT Priority 2×2 Matrix, becomes your go to tool to find clarity.
IMPACT vs EFFORT
Create a 2×2 grid (adapted from President Dwight Eisenhower) with IMPACT on the y-axis (vertical) and EFFORT x-axis (horizontal). Then place your ideas or to-do item’s in the grid according to their IMPACT and EFFORT.
High impact, high effort (Top right box)
High impact, low effort (Top left box)
Low impact, high effort (Bottom right box)
Low impact, low effort (Bottom left box)
Choose the top 3 priorities that are positioned in the far left and at the highest point of the top left box (high impact / low urgency), and use these as your three tasks to complete today or first (if they will take longer than one day). After you have completed tasks in box #2, then you will need to focus on tasks in box 1.
It is really important that you only choose a maximum of 3 tasks to complete each day, no matter whether you use the IMPORTANCE vs URGENCY or IMPACT vs EFFORT Priority 2×2 Matrix.
It’s time for you to find clarity, make a decision and own your time!
Target Market Behaviours During Loss, Uncertainty And Change Link Are Leaders Born? Read Article Fuel Your Body For Leadership Performance Read Article How Exercise Enhances A Leaders Performance Read Article Four Basic Fundamentals Of Being A High Performing Leader Read Article How To Be A High Performing Leader In 2020 Read Article active CEO Lessons In 2019 Read Article Four Ways To Overcome CEO Loneliness In 2020 Read Article
What are the stages of target market behaviours that people are currently going through as they come to terms with loss, uncertainty and change living in a remote world of COVID-19?
As a leader, CEO, entrepreneur or influencer you are trying to figure out how to firstly retain, but also recruit in the future, your valuable clients, members and suppliers. You first need to understand your target market behaviours and then you can understand the importance of your digital presence right now.
People will go through these 7 stages at varying speeds, so it’s important to be digitally present right now to capture their attention. Here is a brief outline:
Stage 1 – DENIAL
When COVID-19 first came to light, most people brushed it off, as a concern in their world, and continued on with normal daily behaviour
Stage 2 – SHOCK
When governments started to enforce restrictions, peoples jobs were uncertain, they were unsure if they would be able to put food on the table and stock markets started to take a dive, people took notice and the shock of it caused them to start seeking as much information on COVID-19 as possible. They became totally infatuated and engrossed in it.
Stage 3 – OVERWHELM
They become overwhelmed with the information and any word starting with “C” creates a stress reaction, so they start to withdraw from the intense exposure of COVID-19. Less time watching news, less time on social media and taking a break from digital technology. They start to withdraw inside themselves.
Stage 4 – REFLECTION
The sudden change, chaos, loss and uncertainty, causes them to go inside their thoughts as they reflect on what is really important to them, what are their values, what is their purpose in life, why am I doing what I am doing and is there a better way. They begin to think about how they can upskill and upgrade themselves as a person. What am I learning about myself, that I want to change? They start to think about what personal and professional development they require to be a better person, better parent, better leader and create a positive impact in their world and hopefully as a custodian on planet earth.
Stage 5 – RESET
They start to create a new way they want to live, a new way of thinking and a simpler way of life. New behaviours start to form, they want to become a better person or a better leader, and they start to dream about new health and fitness goals, but they realise they don’t have all the answers and they need help.
Stage 6 – BROWSING
Internet has now become their new best friend. They start browsing or window shopping so to speak. What are the solutions in the marketplace to solve my problem of creating a better way of living. How can I be healthier, how can I improve my personal performance and how can I achieve my goals. It won’t just be solutions they are looking for, it will be how do they get RESULTS to the problems they are seeking an answer for. They will only be able to find solutions from the people who have a digital presence and are visible in the digital community of the internet and social media.
Stage 7 – PURCHASING
Once they have browsed they will choose the option that can show how they get RESULTS and that they trust. They will make a decision based on the information they can easily get access to and is SIMPLE to understand. Some will be ready right now, so they are looking for solutions that can be done easily via the virtual world of internet, video conference and phone call, that they can do in their comfort of their own home.
My question to you is:
How are you creating your digital presence and most importantly message, to not only solve, but show how you can help current and future clients, members or suppliers get RESULTS, starting today?
Understanding your target market behaviours to thrive, not just survive in COVID-19.
Are Leaders Born? Read Article Fuel Your Body For Leadership Performance Read Article How Exercise Enhances A Leaders Performance Read Article Four Basic Fundamentals Of Being A High Performing Leader Read Article How To Be A High Performing Leader In 2020 Read Article active CEO Lessons In 2019 Read Article Four Ways To Overcome CEO Loneliness In 2020 Read Article
Do you fuel your body as though it is a Formula 1 car or a diesel truck? If you were an athlete, would the food you eat help or hinder your performance? If you were to deliver the most important speech of your life would you be energizing or lethargic? What we put in is what we get out; when it comes to the food we eat and fluids we ingest. Eating a healthy diet full of non-processed food such as fresh grains, seafood, legumes, fruits and vegetables, with a small amount of red meat and dairy products, allows you to sustain your energy levels, enhance your mood, improve your memory, sleep easier and prevent unwanted health problems.
How will you Fuel Your Body For Leadership Performance?
Become the boss of your body. It
is made up of more than 100 trillion living cells, approximately 206 bones in
the adult body and 78 organ systems of which 5 are considered vital for
survival. Every CEO has a good strategy and usually the best strategies are the
simple ones. For a CEO to perform at their best, they simply need to move and
eat real, simple food. Take up the CEO Challenge to change your lifestyle by
adopting a new mentality. Own the food and drink choices you make. Lifestyle
change and weight loss is like a waterfall. Start with your mind, and only then
can the change flow down the rest of your body.
In the last article we introduced
Exercise Your Future, the first of the four basic fundamentals of being a high
performing leader. Breaking The CEO Code shows you that the synergy of all four
basic fundamentals – exercise, nutrition, mind and recovery – is the key to
being a high performing leader, and not just doing one or two successfully on
their own.
This article takes a look into
how fueling your body with the right food has a positive impact on how you
perform as a leader. There is a lot of noise in the marketplace, when it comes
to what we should or shouldn’t eat. When it comes down eating for energy,
health, vitality and leadership performance, there are a couple of key
fundamentals that will set you in the right direction.
Having extra energy when you fuel your body with the right food, will improve productivity and raise the opportunity to increase revenue every day. Being able to calculate the billions of dollars of lost revenue each year due to the effects on business because of low energy CEO’s and employees may be challenging. However, take a moment to consider what happens to productivity and performance when a CEO or employee is too tired to start the day off with a bang, runs out of energy by 3pm or suffers the inevitable energy drain after a heavy lunch time meal or sugar crash after a sugar and salt loaded snack. For many people the thought of creating something new, delivering an important sale or completing a project before they clock off work, becomes both a mental and physical impossibility. If you aren’t replenishing the car with the right fuel it will struggle or seize up. If you don’t put enough full in, it will eventually hit empty and so will your body if you don’t consume the right type and amount of food.
Your body is the next frontier of
leadership performance and so it must speak your language. Dieting is a problem
of knowledge and efficiency rather than a problem of vanity. We are now
optimizing our performance and energy instead of watching our figure as people
are more focused on longevity and cognitive performance rather than on dieting.
When it comes to food, it is important to note that a diet is temporary, so it
must be about making a lifestyle change.
If you really want to become healthier and more focused you have to be in it for the long game. Eat for the brain and the body will follow. Remember the brain is literally what controls all our bodily functions. Many people focus on the body first, which can have a negative effect on the brain. If you focus on the number of calories you eat, because you want to lose weight then you take the risk of eradicating important nutrients that your body and mind requires to function effectively. Eating food that allows brain to perform, focus without stopping every couple of minutes and feel supercharged is the new frontier of nutrition for leadership performance. Let’s turn your attention to focusing on eating for your brain, a healthier gut, and fully functioning cells.
What food and fluids should we ingest to unlock our body’s true potential?
Our society is being burdened by
a growth in the number of people with cognitive, emotion and mood dysfunctions,
which most often occur due to metabolic disorders, such as obesity, and/or poor
nutrition habits. The human diet, especially in the Western world, has become
cluttered with highly processed food, and foods lacking in important
polyphenols, antioxidants and Omega 3’s that are required for health brain and
body functions. What we eat and the number of calories we ingest, each day,
have large and lasting effects on our cognitive function and our emotions.
Consumption of a high-saturated fat diet has a negative effect on the hippocamapus region of the brain causing memory deficits and cognitive dysfunction. This leads to reduced focused attention and retrieval speed of information. Low levels of Omega-3’s in our diet may contribute to depression and memory loss, whereas high levels of Omega-3 in our diet can reverse the effects of a diet high in saturated fats. We do need a moderate amount of un-saturated and saturated fats in our diet, as long as it is not paired with high levels of simple sugars, as the brain is made up of 60% fat and 25% cholesterol. Cholesterol comes from fat and is required to produce our hormones such as testosterone, estrogen and cortisol, as well as acting as insulators by creating healthy myelin sheaths around brain cells. Healthy cholesterol in your diet is important and the best sources of fat including un-saturated and Omega-3’s are avocado, nuts, salmon, almond milk, olive oil, full fat yoghurt and organic red meat.
The lowering of oxidative stress and inflammation as a result of consuming fruits and vegetables high in polyphenols micronutrients can prevent and even reverse age-related cognitive deficits. Free radicals, unstable oxygen molecules in our body, are thought to damage DNA, decrease organ function and speed up the ageing process. Free radicals create havoc in the brain, lead to less energy and poor mental focus. Antioxidants neutralize free radicals in the body, and neutralize nerve growth factor leading to faster learning and memory. They also fight inflammation in the bloodstream and brain. Great sources of Polyphenols, which provide exceedingly powerful antioxidants in our body, include blueberries, grapes, red cabbage, organic coffee, cloves and dark chocolate with at least 85% cocoa. They are fat soluble so require some fat to assist with absorption.
More than one third of adults are
obese or overweight and it is totally preventable. Obesity costs Billions of
dollars each year and is killing us. In 2016 the World Health Organization
(WHO) noted that the worldwide obesity has nearly tripled since
1975. There are more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, considered overweight,
with over 650 million obese.
It’s time to make the healthy steps to take control of your body.
Physical inactivity has increased
in the workplace due to automation, manual labour shifting to predominately
inactive tasks, the arrival of desktop computers, and Work Health and Safety
guidelines reducing manual labour activities. With less physical activity there
is a greater need for exercise and nutritional incentives to be introduced into
the workplace.
The workplace is a perfect environment to begin a positive trend towards employees making positive changes in the physical activity, health and nutrition. Employees spend a significant amount of time in the workplace. As a CEO you have the powerful opportunity to utilize peer groups and employee incentives to encourage healthy behavioral habits, when it comes to the food that people eat. Improving the eating habits of your employees can lead to decreased absenteeism, presenteeism and sick leave. As a result productivity and performance is likely to be increased.
You can provide a positive
influence over attitudinal changes to diet and activity. Favorable physical and
social environments as well as supportive organizational culture to encourage
positive behavior change through providing knowledge, providing healthier food
options in the staff café, substituting lollies and cakes for fruit, nuts and
vegetables options during meetings, and increasing healthy options in vending
mentions, at a reduced price. Encourage your employees to bring a water bottle to
work and having filtered water stations, which are easily accessible.
Is there a food-mood connection?
Studies have shown mixed results when looking at the correlation between an
unhealthy diet and the effects on emotional wellbeing, depression and other
mental health issues. Foods that include nutrients such as vitamin D,
magnesium, Omega-3, B vitamins, folic acid and tryptophan are associated with
supporting your emotional wellbeing. These can all be found in foods that are
part of a health diet.
The World Health Organization
recommends the following for a healthy diet:
Caloric intake should balance
with energy expenditure;
Sustainably produced, consumed
and where possible cooked at home;
Wide variety from different food
groups, with an emphasis on plant-based;
Eat un-refined carbohydrates rich
in fibre, minerals and vitamins such as fruit, vegetables and whole grains;
Include a minimum of 2-3 portions
of fruit and 2-3 portions of vegetables per day;
Consume moderate amounts of high
quality lean protein that has amino acids which are easily digested, such as
fish, seafood, turkey, pork and chicken;
Incorporate moderate levels of
dairy products and milk;
Have starches such as banana,
potatoes, sweet potato, carrots, brown rice and taro;
Add legumes and nuts including
dried beans, nuts, peas and lentils;
Restrict the amount of red meat,
processed meats, simple sugars, sodium, saturated fat and fruit juices;
Reduce the amount of food that
comes from a bag, box, bottle, jar or can.
Avoid processed foods with trans
fats (crackers, cookies, pies, pizza, fast food, and dough products)
Live healthier, happier, stronger, smarter and longer. Improvements in diet are associated with lengthening of lifespan and decreases in the risk of most chronic diseases. It is important to think of your life in regards to healthspan, the number of healthy years of life, rather than lifespan, the number of years you are alive.
“It’s much better to live long and die fast rather than life fast and die long.” CRAIG JOHNS
People are often looking for the quick fix, when it comes to food. Many people jump on the bandwagon of the thousands of fad-style, celebrity endorsed and marketing designed diets, which have no research into the long-term effects on the body, mind and soul. Science compared every diet and the winner is real food. The only diet that has been implemented and remains over a long period of time is that established 10,000’s of years ago. It is a predominantly plant-based diet with no processed foods and only included the occasional meat when they were quick enough to catch it. Those living by the sea would catch fish and seafood. Why would you incorporate the middle-person in the diet, so to speak, when you can go straight to the source an eat it. What do I mean by this? Land animals generally eat plant-based diets including fruit, vegetables and grains, which are the stable of all nutritious diets. So why do we need to eat red meat, when it is just the by-product of the plant based foods we need anyway?
If you are looking at weight loss
or maintenance then it is important to include foods that are high on the
satiety scale in every meal. What does that mean? Satiety provides a feeling of
fullness, reducing the likelihood of over-eating. Foods high in satiety are
high in protein, fiber, volume (water and air) and low in energy density. They
consist of foods such as potatoes, eggs, oatmeal, fish, Greek yoghurt,
vegetables, legumes, apples, oranges, quinoa, nuts, and watermelon.
There is a lot of over the
counter dietary supplements out there in the market place. It’s a $30 Billion a
year business in the USA alone. Are they helping your nutrition intake and
health or just a waste of money? A majority of supplements have no health
benefits and aren’t regulated. They are never a substitute for a balanced and
healthy diet, and can often be a distraction from healthy lifestyle choices,
which provide much greater benefits. They can play a role for some high
risk-groups such as adults with osteoporosis (Vitamin D & Calcium), Crohn’s
disease, Celiac disease, people with vitamin D efficiency, or people who don’t
have easy access to plant-based foods produced in nutrient rich soil. You are
far better to save the money you would spend on supplements and use it to buy
higher quality fruits, vegetables and other foods high in quality nutrients.
CEO’s and employees who are well
hydrated are smarter, can think faster concentrate longer and stay alert. Drinking
fluids are the most underrated components of keeping your body and mind healthy,
especially when you take into consideration that the body is made up of 60%
water. They are crucial for maintaining the function of every system in our
body including your brain, heart and muscles. Fluids carry important nutrients
to cells, support a healthy gut and prevent the dreaded constipation. Dehydration
affects your mood, reduces cognitive function, decreases your memory
capability, increases pain sensitivity and impairs motor skills. Many people
make the mistake of being reactive when it comes to hydration, waiting until
they feel thirsty.
Drinking a minimum of 1-1.5L over a period of a day is advisable if you are relatively sedentary in a mild climate. The warmer the climate and the greater the exercise you do, the more fluid you require. A great way to test whether you are drinking enough water and suitable fluids such as juices, is to check the colour of you’re your urine. Pale or clear urine means fully hydrated. A dark yellow colour indicates that you are dehydrated. An easy way to boost your hydration levels is to ingest foods such as watermelon, salads and other fruits that are high in water content.
Boost mental acuity, skin quality, toxicity in the body, boost immune function and regulate body temperature by developing a daily hydration strategy. An inadequate intake of fluids can impair performance, leading to tiredness and headaches. Your main hydration strategy should incorporate water, milk, fresh fruit juices, caffeine free teas, coconut water and sports drinks, only if you are doing moderate-high intensity exercise or struggling to hydrate in hot and humid environments. Limit the intake of, alcohol, soda drinks, coffee, flavored milk, smoothies and energy drinks as they can have adverse effects on hydration and health.
Fuel your body with the energy to perform. It all comes down to common sense and keeping it simple. If you feel you need to make a big change in your eating habits or your are unsure how to make the right changes, then it is advised that you seek help from a certified dietitian or nutritionist. A variety of fresh, plant-based and lean food and hydration options will help you maintain a healthy body and mind to perform at your optimum every day. Remember, good things take time, so it is important to make a small change each week so it isn’t too much of a shock to the body and over-time eating healthy for performance will become a normal part of your day.
So how do you recharge the batteries, refuel the tank, switch off and find time for yourself, so that when you are “on” as a CEO or Leader, you are fully present?
Over the next two articles we will talk about freeing your mind and recover with purpose, and why it is important to maintain a synergistic approach with exercising daily and fueling your body with the right food, if you want to be a high performing leader. They make up the four basic fundamentals of the FOUNDATION phase of Breaking The CEO CODE, the future of leadership performance.
In the meantime, please take the time to read the Breaking The CEO Code whitepaper. Click the download button:
World Health Organization – Obesity & Overweight Link World Health Organization – Healthy Diet Link
Recommended Reading:
How Exercise Enhances a Leaders Performance Read Article Four Basic Fundamentals Of Being A High Performing Leader Read Article How To Be A High Performing Leader In 2020 Read Article active CEO Lessons In 2019 Read Article Four Ways To Overcome CEO Loneliness In 2020 Read Article
Why should a CEO dedicate time in their busy schedule to incorporate exercise into their daily routine? A CEO with low energy poses a big problem for a company, as they create a stress environment each day. Creativeness, decision-making and attention suffer as a consequence. Family relationships and social life will be impaired, as they will take longer to complete tasks and will have less energy, than a fit CEO, to use use after work has finished for the day. For CEO’s and leaders to maintain high levels of integrity, think strategically about the future, have clarity when making decisions, be energetic and have the confidence to lead a high performing team, they need to be healthy. This means they need to be attentive to regular exercise, fueling their body with the right food, freeing their mind and recovering with purpose.
“Take care of your body. It’s the one place you have to live” JIM ROHN
In the last two articles we introduced Breaking The CEO Code, the future of leadership performance, and the four basic fundamentals of being a high performing leader. Over the next four weeks we will talk about how the synergy of all four basic fundamentals – exercise, nutrition, mind and recovery – is crucial to being a high performing leader, and not just one or two in isolation. This article takes a deeper look into how exercise, enhances a leaders performance and some valuable tips to make it work for you.
So, how does exercise have a positive effect on the amount of stress we have as a leader?
A common term in literature is the “runners high”, which is the result of exercise stimulating the release of important chemicals, associated with happiness, called dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphins. These four chemicals decrease our stress levels, help relieve pain, improve our sleep quality, enhance memory and learning, boost cognitive ability and increase our positive mood state.
“Business comes in all shapes and sizes, much like the CEO’s who run them” UNKNOWN
How often do you hear of CEO’s and leaders who have major health problems or look unhealthy? What message does this send to their employees? There are a number of health benefits as a result of regular exercise. Exercise is known to improve blood pressure, blood sugar levels, heart rate, and heart function, while decreasing the risk of heart disease. It also has a significant effect on decreasing body fat, increasing lean muscle tissue, lowering cholesterol, increasing metabolism and reducing the risk of cancer.
The fitter you are the better the sex life, life improves as a whole and there is evidence that it slows the ageing process. A positive by-product of exercising regularly is that people tend to improve their eating habits, sleep more, and cut out unhealthy habits such as smoking and drinking alcohol as they want to improve their exercise experience.
Completing regular exercise provides a sense of accomplishment, satisfaction, liveliness and pleasure, which all have an impact on your self-esteem. As a CEO or leader, the greater your self esteem the higher your confidence in your ability to make decisions, being realistic in your expectations, assertive in expressing your needs and opinions, able to form secure and honest relationships, and have greater resilience in times of stress and setbacks.
“In order to make great decisions, a person needs to think clearly” CRAIG JOHNS
Being a CEO or leader requires you to think quickly, make smart decisions, and understand a wide range of information and topics. Our brain’s are a vital organ of our body and the health of the brain has a major impact on how we perform as a leader. Aerobic exercise not only provides an escape from your day, but also boosts the size of the Hippocampus region of your brain, which is the center for memory and learning. Moving your body, through exercise, improves mental clarity, upgrades your ability to be present and decreases cognitive decline. There are also benefits of increasing your concentration levels, alertness and cognitive function. It’s time to start exercising your brain.
Motion is known to evoke emotion, so it is no surprise that many people note their best ideas come while out exercising. Regular exercise is known to improve people’s ability to solve problems, come up with new ideas, better analyze incoming perspectives and enter a flow state. Our decision-making ability improves due to increased blow flow and oxygen levels to the cells. CEO’s and leaders find that aerobic exercise can feel like a form of “active meditation”, as it provides a time to think alone, get to know yourself and inspire deep solutions.
“The human body predictably follows the input and actions of the brain that is controlling it.” GREG JUSTICE
Exercise supports the development of confidence, discipline, focus, energy and resilience. Being active provides an opportunity to shift your mindset and enables you to power down from the stresses at work, while also creating a disconnect and technology break. Other leadership benefits from regular exercise include enhancing work productivity and quality, and increasing the strength and stamina to complete every day activities. Your mental health can be improved as exercise assists in removing the feelings of pressure, stress, unhappiness, confusion and anger. Exercise may just be the best investment you can make in yourself!
“CEOs have the power to get done anything they seriously want to do. The problem is they don’t even believe they need to.” UNKNOWN
To change the work first mindset and the prevalence of sitting at a desk, exercise in the workplace can be increased through encouraging commuting by walking, cycling or running to work; stopping at a bus stop or parking a car a few blocks away and walking the remaining distance; utilizing lunch breaks for exercise; encouraging the use of the stairs; initiating walking meetings; installing standing desks; creating regular group exercise activities; and utilizing gamification techniques such as providing employees with a FITBIT and doing 10,000 step challenges.
“There is a human energy crisis and what we don’t realize is that there are movement opportunities everywhere” CRAIG JOHNS
Positive habits generally take 6-12 weeks of regular repetition before they become part of our normal routine. Setting SMART goals that are specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and time dependent increase the likelihood of being consistent enough to achieve success. Goals provide a destination and consistency creates long-term habits.
A great way to increase the enjoyment, motivation and accountability of exercising regularly is by getting out with a training partner, family member, pets, friends, colleagues, a group of like minded people or hiring a trainer. Exercising with others helps build relationships and achieve goals.
Music can provide the motivation and stimulation to both relax and unwind while exercising or to focus on training harder, faster and longer. If you find it difficult to fit in exercise, then schedule it in your diary or place the workout in a calendar.
“Do you want to live long and die fast or live short and die long?” CRAIG JOHNS
To stay focused and improve the chances of sustaining a regular exercise routine, you may find it valuable to set adventure or endurance type challenges. Adventure type challenges may include completing a long hike like the Abel Tasman walk in New Zealand, or climbing Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia, doing a Spartan race or going on a 7 day surfing trip to Tahiti. Triathlon has become the new golf for CEO’s and leaders and is among a range of endurance type challenges you could set such as completing a 5km run, cycling around Samoa, sea-kayaking around Hawaii, tackling an Ironman or even an open water swim.
There are a range of difference exercise options you can choose from including running, hiking on trails, sweating it out in the gym, participating in a Parkrun event, joining a team sport, playing activities in the back yard with your children, going for a surf, taking Latin dancing lessons, having a game of tennis or doing yoga.
“There comes a certain point in life when you have to stop blaming other people for how you feel or the misfortunes in your life. You can’t go through life obsessing about what might have been.” HUGH JACKMAN
Setting aside just 30-40 minutes of time for exercise, 5 to 6 days each week, will help you complete the minimum weekly requirements as provided by the American College of Sports Medicine.
Variety is the spice of life. Mixing up your type, location, intensity, frequency, training partners and duration of your exercise helps you to stay focused longer, decrease boredom and will more likely to repeat exercise on a regular basis.
So how do you recharge the batteries, refuel the tank, switch off and find time for yourself, so that when you are “on” as a CEO or Leader, you are fully present?
Over the next three weeks we will talk about fueling your body with the right food, free your mind and recover with purpose. Along with exercise daily they make up the four basic fundamentals of the FOUNDATION phase of Breaking The CEO CODE, the future of leadership performance.
In the meantime, please take the time to read the Breaking The CEO Code whitepaper. Click the download button:
Four Basic Fundamentals Of Being A High Performing Leader Read Article How To Be A High Performing Leader In 2020 Read Article active CEO Lessons In 2019 Read Article Four Ways To Overcome CEO Loneliness In 2020 Read Article
How often are you performing at a peak performance state as a CEO or Leader? Do you spend time planning and improving your performance every day?
It is common for CEO’s and leaders to focus on the content of their work, the people they are working with and outcomes, rather than turning their energy towards how can they prepare the body and mind so they can optimally deliver a message, change the energy in the room, be more productive and have a positive influence on people.
There are four basic fundamentals that high achievers leading high performing teams are consistently engaged in and practicing on improving. These four components are the fundamental, non-negotiable, building blocks to determine how high your performance ceiling is. Talent will only set your minimum height, whereas the four basic fundamentals will determine how high you can raise your ability to perform at your absolute potential. The four basic fundamentals of being a high performing leader are: 1 Exercise daily 2 Fuel your body with the right food 3 Free your mind
But most importantly, and the area that more than 95% of human beings neglect, is 4 Recover with purpose!
You are probably sitting there thinking that you already know this. It is common sense. However, can you honestly say that you as a CEO or leader are constantly working on and have all four components in balance?
#1 Exercise daily
Expend energy through regular exercise to increase your energy in life. Exercising regularly for a minimum of 30 minutes a day increases energy levels, decreases stress, provides greater mental clarity and elevates your mood. Everyone can find at least 30 minutes to get the body moving, the blood flowing and the brain a chance to unwind from other stresses in our life. The exercise you choose maybe going for a walk at lunch time, commuting to work, having a walking meeting, going to the gym, playing active games in the back yard with your children, playing a game of tennis or doing yoga. For most people, scheduling their exercise in the morning prevents being distracted by work, family and other life commitments getting in your way. What will your 30 minutes plus per day of exercise, include?
#2 Fuel your body with the right food
Eat as though you are fueling a formula 1 car or a high performance athlete. Eating a healthy diet full of fresh grains, fruits and vegetables, allows us to sustain our energy levels, enhance our mood, improve our memory, sleep easier and prevent unwanted health problems. There are many diets and eating fads that come and go. In the end we are all individuals and the way we respond to eating food differs from one person to the next. Unless you have a medical reason or allergy to certain foods, then eating a variety of mainly non-processed foods, will provide you with the energy and vitality you require to perform effectively. What type of output will each piece of food you place in your body, give you?
#3 Free your mind
Free the mind, de-clutter and rewire it with clarity and positiveness. Creating habits and routines such as meditation, breathing exercises, going for a walk, and other ways to free the mind allows us to reduce our stress, control anxiety, enhance self-awareness, lengthen attention span, improve our sleep and enhance our emotional health. In a world full of technological distractions such as an iphone or laptop it can be easy to end up in a state where you are on all the time. The brain isn’t designed to be working at full capacity all the time. We need to let it rest, not just at night when we sleep, but also at regular intervals throughout the day. If you don’t allow your mind to recovery, take a break and be open you will become fatigued, more likely to make mistakes, limit your ability to have a birds eye view and isolate yourself from the other important aspects of life. What do you find works best to free your mind throughout each day?
#4 Recover with purpose
Proactively rest and recover with purpose. The most important component that gives us the really important performance edge is Recovery. Getting 6-8 or more hours sleep a night, taking planned and regular holidays to switch off work and allowing the mind to recharge can help decrease fatigue, improve our memory, reduce inflammation, spur creativity, increase our stamina, boost our cognitive function and lower stress levels. It’s not about the quantity of sleep, but the quality of sleep that is important. The busier you are and the greater the stress load you are placing on the body, the higher the likelihood you will require more time sleeping. If you are watching TV, working or on social media right up until the time you go to bed, then it is likely that your quality of sleep will be poor for the first few hours and reduce the number of hours of quality sleep. Over-sleeping on the opposite side, also doesn’t provide a performance benefit. Aiming for a minimum of 6-8 hours of quality sleep per night will provide adequate time for most people to recover effectively and deliver a good performance. How much sleep will you need each night and what time will you need to go to bed to achieve it?
So how do you recharge the batteries, refuel the tank, switch off and find time for yourself, so that when you are “on” as a CEO or Leader, you are fully present?
Over the next four weeks we will decode each of the four basic fundamentals of being a high performer leader. The four basic fundamentals make up the FOUNDATION phase of Breaking The CEO CODE, the future of leadership performance.
During 2020, we will decode a section of Breaking The CEO Code and present it to you, each week, in an article with examples and case studies to support your growth as a high performing leader.
In the meantime, please take the time to read the Breaking The CEO Code whitepaper. Click the download button:
Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable New Years Day. Our thoughts go out to everyone in Australia affected by the challenging conditions presented by catastrophic fires. It’s a reminder that we cannot take anything for granted and we need to appreciate the small things in life.
In the NRGizer by NRG2Perform January 2020 newsletter we share the top 10 active CEO lessons from 2019, NRG2Perform’s 2020 VISION of FOCUS, being a chief role model, keeping high energy times open, and your health is more important than the job.
We bring you incredible conversations, on the active CEO Podcast, with Todd Greenberg (NRL – National Rugby League), Bill Coletti (KITH), Liz Volpe (Ambisie), Abraham Kamarck (True Made Foods) and Deepthi Bopaiah (GoSports Foundation India).
To close out another decade, we are providing ten active CEO lessons that you all can learn from. Take some time to read, digest and reflect on how you can use each lesson to support your growth as a person and leader in 2020. It’s time to countdown the top 10 active CEO Lessons 2019.
#10 You are the product of your environment
Your ability to perform is determined by the people you interact with, place you play in and pressure you apply. Are the things in your environment helping or hindering your progress?
#9 Tune out your critic & trust your instinct
Our inner voice can be our greatest influence. Believe in yourself and back it 100%. There will always be voices, trust the one deepest inside of you. How will you tune out the critic in 2020?
#8 The more you give the more you get
Spend time helping, sharing, teaching and giving to people, and you will be rewarded. As Zig Ziglar said, “You will get all you want in life if you help other people get what they want.” If someone does something for you, you will naturally want to do something for them. What value or wisdom will you share in 2020?
#7 Spend quality time with family
It can be easy to become consumed in your work, passions and lifestyle, while taking family for granted. They are your greatest supporters and will always be there during the challenging times. You have a responsibility to guide, nurture and be a role model for the next generations. What are you doing for your family today?
#6 Character before charisma
The truth of your character is expressed by the choice of your actions. Make sure your influence doesn’t grow wider than your character goes deep. How will you develop your character in 2020?
#5 Successful people are curious
The greatest problems provide the greatest business opportunities. The most common trait from the CEO’s and Leaders who are guests on the active CEO Podcast is their curiosity. As Tony Robbins said “successful people ask better questions and as a result get better answers”. Why not be more curious in 2020?
#4 Everyone needs a coach
Your truth, ideas and behaviors are only as good as the lens you are looking through. Having someone you can trust who can ask you the tough questions that enable clarity, focus, confidence and provide accountability is crucial and valuable if you want to achieve the success you desire. A great coach can help shape ideas, provide perspective and challenge you to think differently. “If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.” Who is going to be in your corner and be the coach you need in 2020?
#3 Courage & vulnerability are inclusive
In the past vulnerability maybe seen as a weakness, when in fact it is actually a strength. We grow through adversity, changing our environment and challenging the status quo. Without vulnerability we cannot be courageous and without courage we cannot find the strength to speak up and be vulnerable. It is ok to say you don’t have an answer, that you were wrong, are feeling a lack in confidence and that other peoples answers are better. Having vulnerable discussions helps to build psychological safety within your team or between stakeholders. Vulnerability cultivates trust and respect from others, while creating the space for others to speak up about problems, issues or feelings they have. It fosters discussion about key problems and allows people with different perspectives to provide solutions that may not have surfaced before. How will you let your guard down, put your ego to the side and create a space for vulnerability and courage to flourish in your work environment?
#2 Unlock your limiting beliefs
We all have beliefs that hold us back from realizing our true potential. They are subconscious and usually have developed from negative moments, environments, fears, excuses or messages as a child. It could be that you don’t have enough money, are too old; don’t have enough experience, you can’t take a risk because you will fail, someone else is better suited or you just don’t have the talent. The strongest limiting belief I uncovered this year was – a fear of finishing second best. Now i have never been consciously aware of it, but now that I am aware I can easily identify the root causes and the actions that occurred as a result. The reason I found it was through speaking. I have no problem speaking in front of thousands of people and people I have never met, but I found that when I was public speaking in front of people who I respected or felt where better in the field I was speaking in I would go blank and sometimes not even be able to say anything. Through identifying the root cause and putting new belief statements and actions in place I now can deliver with confidence and certainty in front of any audience. Thanks to my coaches who used NLP strategies to unlock my limiting belief. Who will you unlock your limiting beliefs in 2020?
#1 Proximity is power
The people you spend the most time with will have the greatest influence on who you will become. If you want to step it up in 2020 and achieve your dreams and goals faster, then you need to surround yourself with people who play a bigger game than you are currently in. The proximity you keep is very powerful. They must challenge you, keep you accountable and provide the shortest path to your desired destination. Their knowledge, experience and network can have a profound effect on your growth. In 2019 Speakers Institute provided me with the proximity I needed to turn my purpose into reality. The diversity of insights, failures, successes and life experiences is phenomenal. I know that this proximity will take active CEO and Breaking The CEO Code to a whole nuther level in 2020 and beyond. I also have other people in my proximity who shape and accelerate me in other areas I want and need to develop to have the impact on the world that I am FOCUSed on. What proximity will you create in 2020?
What lessons have you learnt from 2019 that will help you create your 2020 VISION?
If you need someone on your side to help you provide
clarity and certainty, then contact Craig Johns at craig@nrg2perform.com
or click on the contact page of the www.nrg2perform.com website.
CEO loneliness is a real problem affecting our society. Have you ever felt lonely, isolated and there is no one you can speak to, as a leader? Well, you are not alone!
Harvard Business Review reported that 61% of CEO’s feel that loneliness hinders their job performance. The higher you move up the ladder the greater the responsibility, pressure to deliver results, expectation to remain calm and the level of confidentiality, increases. Has CEO loneliness invaded your life?
CEO’s may find it difficult to speak about their biggest challenges, complex problems or strongest fears with their boards, senior executives or colleagues. They also struggle to confide in their friends outside of the organization as they feel they don’t have the depth and breadth of understanding the challenges that they face. There is also the risk of sharing information and doubts as it could catalyse rumours.
The lack of privacy that has occurred, as a
result of technology, has opened the door to greater public and media scrutiny,
and therefore a grey area of what is and isn’t private and public life. To
compound this, there are also developing expectations that CEO’s should increase
their transparency, vulnerability and openness to become a better leader.
“With great power comes great responsibility”. SPIDERMAN
As a result, CEO’s quite often experience
social isolation as the number of people they can confide in shrinks. Sometimes
the number of people CEO’s confide in reduces to a level where they don’t feel
comfortable speaking with anyone about the important topics, things that keep
them up at night and the tough decisions that need to be made. This occurs
because they find it difficult to make it relatable to people who are not
experiencing the same challenges and also the risk of confidentiality being
breached.
When pressure comes on and issues arise, many
CEO’s will try and fix them without reaching out for help, both internally and
externally. Poor decisions and escalated problems can occur, and it is at these
times when you need to depend on people you have built trust and relationships
over a number of years.
According to a study completed by the
University of Chicago, social isolation affects human behavior and how the
brain operates. fMRI scans showed there is a decrease in the activity of the
parts of the brain associated with rewards and a seeing things from other
peoples perspectives in lonely people versus non-lonely people. The research
suggested that loneliness might be accentuated as lonely individuals may seek
to “find relative comfort in nonsocial rewards”. (Cacioppo et
al. 2009)
In the PNAS Journal in 2015, research by Cole
et al, identified how flight-or-fight responses triggered by perceived social
isolation (PSI) and loneliness can lead to illness and premature death. PSI and
loneliness can adversely affect sleep patterns, stress hormones, inflammation
in the body, production of white blood cells, and executive function, learning
and memory (Bergland, 2015).
As a CEO, it is critical that you learn how to overcome the feelings of loneliness to improve your health, home-life and work productivity. It is important to proactively build and develop emotional connections with a broad range of people, as it leads to increased collective positive emotions and well being.
The important question is – Who can you speak
with when the going gets tough and the challenges become overwhelming?
Here are 4 Ways To Overcome CEO Loneliness:
1. Build a Team of Mentors
These are the people whom you can consult with when faced with challenges and problems where the answer may not be clear. They are people who are curious, like to ask questions, be prepared to listen and at times make you feel uncomfortable by challenging you to consider other approaches. It is valuable to have a diverse range of mentors, who aren’t just like you. You want people who you trust their advice and opinions, but most importantly will provide the hard truths and perspectives from a different angle. Personally I ensure that my mentors come from different industries, cultures and age ranges. Having a mentor who is younger than you is just as powerful as having someone older with lots of wisdom. Who are the 4 to 8 people you need in your life that give you the confidence, clarity and perspective you need.
2. Create Work-Life Integration
Successful people are congruent with their values and character whether they are at home or in the workspace. Work is part of life, so the theory of work-life balance may not be the best approach. Work-Life Integration is all about understanding that work is part of life and we need to effectively manage the boundaries between when we are working and we are doing other components of our life. Your body and mind needs the space to recharge, rejuvenate and reimagine. Having space in your life for relationships, exercise, freeing your mind and other passions is important in providing opportunities for an outlet, growth, success and diversifying your perspective. It also can provide motivation and inspiration not only to yourself, but other people when you have a passion or two outside the workplace. The relationships; whether family, social or work-related, in your life are important. If you have a partner and/or children then it maybe useful to leave the office before dark and create a cue to ensure you are present when spending valuable time with them. What changes will you make in 2020 to ensure that you have an outlet and focus outside of work?
3. Join a Support Group
Having a support group or mastermind is different to a team of mentors who you are likely to consult and confide in individually. Support groups meet on a regular basis, whether that is weekly, monthly, quarterly or even yearly. It’s a group that is likely to be diverse in nature and provides the psychological safety to discuss, brainstorm and challenge solutions to problems, ideas or challenges that people in the group face. These groups provide a sense of belonging; an honest feedback mechanism where they act as a nurturer, mirror or provider of truth; and can also function as celebrator, motivator and inspirer. They enable you to find clarity and most importantly perspective. An extra bonus is that support groups allow you to form connections that help alleviate stress, anxiety and improve mental health. What mastermind or support group will help you go to the next level in 2020?
4. Embrace the Inclusivity of Courage and Vulnerability
In the past vulnerability maybe seen as a
weakness, when in fact it is actually a strength. We grow through adversity,
changing our environment and challenging the status quo. Courage and
vulnerability are inclusive. Without vulnerability we cannot be courageous and
without courage we cannot find the strength to speak up and be vulnerable. As a
CEO it is ok to say you don’t have an answer, that you were wrong, are feeling
a lack in confidence and that other peoples answers are better. Having
vulnerable discussions helps to build psychological safety within your team or
between stakeholders. Vulnerability cultivates trust and respect from others,
while creating the space for others to speak up about problems, issues or
feelings they have. It fosters discussion about key problems and allows people
with different perspectives to provide solutions that may not have surfaced
before. As a CEO you need to lead by example by taking the first step to
showcasing that vulnerability is positive and a key pillar to growth in your organization
and life. How will you let your guard down, put your ego to the side and create
a space for vulnerability and courage to flourish in your work environment?
It is important to remember that we do not
succeed on our own. There is no instant solution or cure to CEO loneliness, and
it requires patience and time to create a strong support network and
environment. It is important to that as an influential leader that you identify
and build strong team of mentors and support group for valuable guidance when there
is uncertainty, difficulty confronts us and we need to celebrate successes in
life. Take the time to reflect and then recognize how the 4 Ways To Overcome
CEO Loneliness can you help you rise up and become a better leader in 2020.
References:
Cacioppo et al. (2009) What Are the Brain Mechanisms on Which Psychological Processes Are Based?Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2009; 4 (1): 10 Link
Bergland, C. (2015) Loneliness: Perceived Social Isolation Is Public Enemy No. 1 Psychology Today, 23rd November 2015. Link
Comerford, C. (2018) Loneliness: The Executive Challenge No One Talks About. Forbes, 7th July 2018. Link
Own Your Own Influence. In the NRGizer by NRG2Perform November newsletter we talk about 8 Ways To Own Your Own Influence, Change, Mindfulness and 5 Tips For The Busy Executive.
We also bring you inspiring conversations with Leigh Russell (Swimming Australia), Yamini Naidu (Business Storytelling), Oscar Trimboli (Deep Listening), Diana Rau (Board of Mentors), Lisa Hasker (Vicsport), Andrew Barnes (4 Day Week), Tim Oberg (parkrun Australia), Jennifer Dunham (Time, Money & Happiness Matters with Jennifer Dunham) and Mark Turner (Triathlon Scotland), on the active CEO Podcast.
