|
|
Navigating the Territory: Good Ideas for Leading in Complex Environments
|
|
Volume 2, Number 5
June, 2010
|
|
 Greetings! It's been an intense month, so I'm going to keep this short and sweet. This month's theme is toughness. There's a lot to say about this topic but I've chosen to focus on two areas: a review of the excellent book by Jim Loehr, Toughness Training for Life, followed by a personal reflection about the importance of recovery in promoting toughness. Hoping you are having a summer with lots of recovery. That's my goal.
For back issues of this newsletter, you can find them in the archives:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs076/1102561682356/archive/1102700377250.html
Thanks for your interest and support.
Deborah
|
Book Review
|
Toughness Training for Life
by James E. Loehr, The Penguin Group, 1993
Review by Deborah Reidy
I first read this book around the time it was published and I found it to be a useful application of methods used to train professional athletes to the rest of us. The book posits that instead of focusing on stress reduction--which in today's world is not realistic--we need to focus on toughening up in order to handle more stress and be "healthier, happier, and more productive." I grabbed the book again last week after a particularly stressful experience that I was scheduled to repeat in just a few days. I devoured the book voraciously over the weekend and set about applying every relevant lesson I could. I can report that my second stressful experience, although not pleasant, was an unbelievable improvement over the first.
Synopsis: The author defines toughness as being flexible, responsive, strong and resilient in three life areas: physical, mental and emotional. Physical toughness and mental toughness together produce emotional toughness. Toughness training exposes a weakened individual to positive challenges of sufficient intensity to cause adaptation to higher levels of stress through alternating cycles of energy expenditure (stress) and energy recovery (rest).
Review: This is an immensely practical and scientifically-based system based on many years of work with professional athletes. Reading the book over the weekend, I was able to apply very specific physical, mental and emotional strategies to my stressful experience and I also have gained some insights that I plan to apply to the longer term.
Takeaway Ideas: "You can start your body chemistry moving in whatever direction you choose by directing your thoughts that way. Equally important, the more you practice this skill, the better you become at it." "While you can't directly control your feelings, you can control your thoughts. Control the direction and content of your thoughts, and you will exert considerable control over how you feel." "In almost every situation, being able to laugh puts you in emotional control." |
|
Recovery: The Best Kept Secret for Physical, Mental & Emotional Toughness
| By Deborah Reidy
Most of us are aware of the importance of recovery in the physical realm. We exercise our muscles, then allow a period of recovery in order to maximize the strength gains. We expend significant energy over the course of a day and then recovery by eating and sleeping. We work hard during the week and we recover on the weekend by relaxing and having fun. Even if we don't always follow these principles, we know they contribute to our physical well-being. In the mental ream, the benefits of engaging in a pattern of significant energy expenditure followed by periods of recovery also seem fairly apparent.
What's not so obvious--or hasn't been to me until recently--is the importance of emotional recovery. Maybe we're not used to thinking of emotional toughness as something that can be developed through training. "He's an anxious person," "She's so thin skinned" suggest that emotional toughness is something that is either part of one's personality or not.
As described above, Jim Loehr suggest that all three kinds of toughness--physical, mental and emotional--can be developed through the deliberate cycle of applying stress (challenge) followed by periods of recovery. While we might need to intentionally seek out physical and mental challenges, in the emotional realm few of us have to go looking for stress. What we need to increase are deliberate periods of emotional recovery that can punctuate the neverending onslaught of stress.
Do you know what helps you recover emotionally? How do you feel and how do you behave when you're in need of emotional recovery? What does it feel like to be emotionally recovered? It's only recently that I've been paying attention to these things. Ever since I can remember, my pattern has been to "power through" the stressful periods in my life. Even when I had choices, I would usually pile on the stressors, assuming that I'd be able to maintain the same intense pace through sheer will power. In the language of athletic training, I've been overtraining for most of my life. It's not working for me anymore, so I've begun paying attention to the questions above. And it's calling for greater awareness of how I schedule my time, who I spend with, and what I agree to do. If cultivating emotional recovery is something you are exploring, let me know what you're learning! I have no doubt that it's a practice many of us could strengthen. |
|
| What We're Up To
| Coaching clients sought...
Starting in July, I've got openings for three or four new executive coaching clients.
Executive coaching is a powerful tool
for the development of organizational leaders and is beginning to be recognized
as an important succession planning strategy. I bring a unique approach to executive coaching: A systemic approach, real work as the
centerpiece, and the practical application of cutting edge theory in the
coaching field.
Here are some typical
outcomes of executive coaching:
- Greater efficiency, effectiveness, and time management
-
Greater sense of purpose and clarity about priorities
- Greater self confidence and self awareness
-
Greater ability to make choices that work toward meeting
goals
-
Improved ability to communicate
-
Shifting your mindset to produce different results
I've coached dozens of mid-level and senior executives in the public, private
and nonprofit sectors. I've also coached a number of teams. I am certified by the International Coach Federation and Coaches Training Institute and qualified to
administer the Myers Briggs Type Inventory and the Team Coaching Diagnostic.
Complementary sample sessions are available, along with more information about the coaching process and what you can expect.
| @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Reidy Associates offers customized solutions that enable leaders and their organizations to succeed in complex and uncertain environments.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
