The E-series - 17.09.21

Explainer-in-chief: Bill Clinton once said his job was not to be the Commander-in-Chief, but the Explainer-in-chief. Whether you are leading a change programme, managing your team through tough times, or communicating your new hybrid working policy, don't underestimate the power of being able to clearly explain. You have to be able to say: "Here is where we are, and here is where I think we ought to go". And you need a 30sec, a 5min and a 20min version of the narrative. Reflect back on the last time you had to communicate your vision. Would you have done anything different? Click here for Bill Clinton's full lecture on the topic (1hr 5min), where he also lays out the 4 jobs of any leader in any sector: 1) To Envision; 2) To Explain; 3) To Include; 4) To Execute.

Energy management: we all have four energies that need to be carefully managed, specially in turbulent times. The four energies are: The Emotional Energy (that drives human connection and relationships), The Spiritual Energy (that drives passion, meaning and optimism), The Intellectual Energy (that drives thinking, reasoning and rationality), and The Physical Energy (the health and fitness that drives action). Two questions to reflect: a) Which energy comes most naturally to you? b) What can you do to bring the remaining three energies and better balance all the four energies available to you?. Here is a link for a great HBR article entitled: "Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time". Thanks to Andy Bird. who first introduced me to the concept of the four energies.

Empowering quote: Leadership is about the "ship" and not about the "Leader". Think about your role as a manager/leader. What proportion of the time you are focusing on being a great leader versus actually focusing on your team? What are you doing to take care of your ship?