When Is The Last Time You Slowed Down ?
Did that just give you a moment of panic when you read that? Slow down? Who has time for that, right?
In the Amplify Your Leadership Masterclass this week, there were a few lessons that focused on slowing down. Why? Glad you asked! In order to speed up and achieve a higher level of progress, you need to take the time to slow down first.
For example, I shared with the masterclass that when I was in corporate and before I learned this lesson, I didn’t prepare for meetings. I went in and thought I will say whatever comes to mind. However, in that moment when I needed to come up with a question, I froze. Literally froze! My brain went into a spin and I couldn’t come up with anything intelligent to ask.
All the thoughts in my head became: What can I ask that will be just the right question? What if everyone judges me? How can I ask something original that others haven’t already asked?
My brain couldn’t come up with a coherent question, so I said nothing. Not great if you are working on speaking up and being more visible is it? Nope!
No matter what type of situation you have, if you want to communicate and show up effectively, take 5-10 minutes to slow down beforehand. I know you have 5-10 minutes…how could you use it to your benefit?
Here are some ways that slowing down can help you:
- How can you effectively communicate a recent success to your manager or team members in a way that they see you and your value?
- Prepare for meetings and create questions to ask or plan for what you will present.
- Look at a problem from a completely new perspective to solve it.
- Brainstorm ideas (nothing is off the table) to do something or communicate something complex.
- Make a quick plan for what you need to do or a outline a project.
- Reflect on a situation…would you do anything different to improve next time?
- Put your phone down and be present with other people to have a real conversation – you might learn something new!
- Draw a picture on a piece of paper with a pen or pencil…it isn’t about whether it is perfect. You will access the creative side of your brain which opens up new ideas!
- Turn up the music, read a few pages of a book, watch a movie, go for a run or dance around the house.
These suggestions may seem out of the ordinary when you think about slowing down, but they are meant to break your normal patterns. The intent is to give your brain a break and do something different. It temporarily moves you from automatic thinking and overwhelm to clear thinking and new ideas.
Many people in the class shared feedback that their communication would benefit by slowing down to prepare or trying something new after they learned some of these ideas!
Give it a try and let me know if it works for you!
👋 Hi! I’m Susan M. Barber!
💜 My mission is to broaden the understanding of what visibility means and enables for business leaders. ⭐ I work with leaders who want to break free from their limiting beliefs, shift the narrative they have about themselves, and help them to amplify their voices so they can have what they want in their life and career!
📘 Check out my book The Visibility Factor! You can find it online in Paperback, e-book or Audiobook!
🎧 Listen to The Visibility Factor Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts!
Follow me on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanbarbercoaching/