How to Handle Leadership Workouts
By Dr. Tim Elmore of Growing Leaders
Michael’s Note: Dr. Tim Elmore and I have been friends for over 20 years. His example of coaching younger leaders and his public speaking excellence has made me a much better trainer. As an avid road cyclist, I found this blog very insightful on how growing your leadership is so similar to improving your physical fitness. Read on!
I just finished a workout with our personal trainer, Tammy Dennard. Three times a week, Tammy facilitates strength training for my wife and me and some friends. As you can imagine, we joke about having a “love-hate relationship” with her.
Recently, Tammy reminded me of an insight that goes far beyond physical fitness. She said, “When we work out, we actually damage ourselves a bit. Good workouts strain our bodies. It’s in the recovery time that we grow and reclaim what we worked for.”
I believe the same is true for leaders and teams.
Experiencing heavy seasons (of sales) or hosting (training)events are a little like a workout. They’re not sustainable over a long period of time, since they’re intense experiences of investing time, energy, and talent. They can be exhilarating and exhausting. Here’s what Tammy reminded me of that informs how I recover from a taxing season of leadership:
After a workout, you need nutrition, especially protein. Similarly, we need to feed ourselves through articles, podcasts, books, and mentors. These things are good intellectual and emotional protein. I have a rhythm of each of these that refresh me: two books a month, five podcasts, one mentor meeting, and four articles weekly.
After workouts, we must slow down and rest. That’s when cells recover. Similarly, we must slow our pace after events or big meetings. Rest is key to renewal and healing. I try to ensure that after I do an event or have a heavy writing or planning season, I have a work-from-home day or a get-away day that week.
After workouts, we need good movement. We must not be sedentary. Keeping a doable pace prepares us for the next workout. Likewise, we must be intentional about our pace between heavy seasons so we’re ready for what’s ahead. Each of us has our own pace; I’m at my best when I’m stretched but under control.
This is our only hope of thriving: to treat our leadership fitness as we treat our physical fitness. Workouts are great, but recovery time is essential and must be intentional.
Too often, we’re like starving bakers. Have you heard of this term? This baker is the one who spends so much time baking goodies for others that he forgets to eat, and he starves himself. This metaphor symbolizes the number one occupational hazard of leadership. Too often, we take better care of others than we do of ourselves.
Workouts damage you—but follow them with recovery time, and you’ll be stronger in the end.
Michael adds: My cycling workouts are in the intense humid heat of Singapore. I have learned that regular recovery days are a must if I want to cycle in top form, stretch myself and not get injured. So too are my activities in my career as an entrepreneur and corporate consultant. The intensity and heat I experience in my job may be caused by my own desire to achieve, client deadlines and pressures, or travelling across Asia or time zones on tight schedules.
I have found a delightful synergy between “running” my company, “relieving” my stress through cycling, and having days of “recovery” to nourish my mind, body and spirit. How do I keep these “three R’s” in sync so as not to burn out or even get sick? You can learn from the ideas and actions that Tim and I take to live a life of balance and growth. Find my insights below.
Exercise at least three times a week. Try for aerobic exercise. I get up at 430am and ride my bike when there is less traffic and cooler. This allows me thinking time and a sort of meditation from the spinning while I ride. Exercising only 3 -4 times as week allows my body to recover to keep away the harmful effects of a too sedentary lifestyle.
Get up early and enjoy nature, see the sunrise, and be grateful for another healthy day that you can live your life mission.
Simple….cultivate a hobby that you enjoy and possibly with friends.
A must….Get adequate sleep. Be careful to limit your screen time in the evening.
Take Sundays off. No work, no emails, no social media, no catching up on work. You will be amazed how your success still continues even when you take Sundays off!
If you are spiritual, meditate or pray on a regular morning basis. Refresh your spirit and mind.
Read at least one book a month, and subscribe to regular blogs and podcasts that feed your talents, career and hobbies, and healthy relationships that nurture you. Learn from others who are more successful than you. Be purposeful what you put into your brain!
If you have children or grandchildren, spend quality time with them. So refreshing! Just hang out and see the simplicity of their world.
Schedule holidays with family, or if you are single, in advance. Go to your favorite venue to relax or try a new adventure to a new country. Unwind and keep work to a minimum. You will surely find out you are not the “chancellor of the universe” on longer holidays!
Use up all your holiday time. Schedule single days off from work at least once a quarter to refresh and recover by doing nothing!
Be intentional about your “workouts” and “recovery time.” Steven Covey reminds us, “The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” This week, do an inventory of your workout and recovery activities. Then be intentional to synergize them both into your schedule to enjoy a more fruitful life with healthy relationships that grow you!
Michael J Griffin
ELAvate CEO and Founder
Entrepreneur/Cylist of Workout with Recovery!