Anton Guinea
Entrepreneur, Speaker, bestselling author, and founder of The Guinea Group of Companies. For over 15 years, Anton has helped leaders move their teams to become psychologically safe, physically safe and overall better versions of themselves.
The 2022 leader arrives at the office… They’re greeted with a new and long list of unread emails, and cannot possibly understand how they all came in overnight. Before they sit down, their phone starts to buzz with messages and demands for their time. Then the phone rings with another catastrophe to attend to… or so it seems.
They think that today might be the day that they finally lose their self-control. And they know that they’re not behaving in a way that a great leader would. How can they? They are nervous, worried, anxious, and feel like they’re drowning… they are under pressure. To top it off, it can feel like there is no end in sight.
And then one of their team knocks on the door and needs their support, and their undivided attention.
Just think about what their teams must be going through, with their leader under so much pressure.
How can leaders take a step back, to pull themselves out of the stress and pressure that they find themselves in? To give their team members the care and attention that they need?
It can be hard, it can play on your mental health. Trust me, I’ve been there.
Here are three things that you can do when you step into your office, before you read those emails, before you check the messages and before the phone starts ringing.
Be still, breathe, and be in control
This really is easier said than done, though making the effort is certainly worth it. In resilience speak, this part is called getting composed. And being present. As much as you have a heap of other things to deal with, being still and breathing are the most important things you can do to be present for your team.
They need you in control. Team members can tell when you are not. We’ve surveyed teams, and asked them what they want from their leaders, and the responses are care factor and consistency. Consistency in the leader’s emotional state… not a roller coaster. Yes, staying in control is a skill. Yes, you can get in control just by breathing into your stomach and oxygenating your brain’s frontal lobes. Your team will appreciate it.
Be open, and step into care factor
Be open with your body language, and open with your head and heart. Stepping into care factor is about listening to your team, and their challenges, and the support they need in the moment (their issues are major for them right now). The biggest mistake that leaders make, is to be tapping away on a keyboard or checking their phone, when a team member is talking, sharing ideas, or asking for support.
And you won’t believe this – I have been asked in the past to coach a leader on how to be more ignorant, so that team members can see they are working, and stop bothering them. True story (I didn’t, of course). Stepping into care factor is stepping into psychological safety, where leaders are listeners.
Be courageous, and share some your responsibility
This is the process stuff. Be clear on the priority of the issue. Be clear on who’s issue it is. Be clear on the solutions. If there are none offered, prompt for them. Be clear on actions moving forward. Decide to support, where you can, and task allocate regardless. Maybe you don’t need to take it all on yourself, and you can get the monkey off your back. You can own the issue without owning the actions.
After all that is done, go to the coffee machine… and start your day with a positive mind, less self-imposed pressure and care factor for your team.
And please click the image below if you’d like to chat about what leadership means to you.
If you would like to learn more about Anton or The Guinea Group, please click here to book into Anton’s calendar, to:
UPGRADE your Mindset
UPSKILL your Leadership
UPLIFT your Teams