There is a time to be easy on yourself, and it’s not now

by Sean Foster | December 15, 2022 | Newsletter

As a business owner there is no one more deserving than yourself to take a deserved break over the Christmas period. And if you can manage to extend that well into January then that would be even better. Your chance to recharge, to ruminate and to start plotting how to slay 2023.

Omitted from my wishlist for you is slipping the brain into free-wheel over this period. As tempting as this may be, as we tell ourselves we need to de-stress, it is usually not what is really required. Stress largely comes from overstimulation, needing to deal with complex issues that are fettled with uncertainty, being over-asked or feeling overwhelmed etc. The antidote to this stress is really just the opposite including: envisioning a better tomorrow, moderating your energy expense and most importantly feeling in control of your future.

So where’s this going 🙂? Having recently discussed Lead vs Lag measures in my last NewsBrief and in our BIG events, I have come to the firm realisation that people really do misunderstand them and are absolutely not implementing them. You can find the last Newsbrief here. Recommended reading.

So, getting back to feeling in control of your future, do you think having more Lead or more Lag measures is more beneficial to you right now?

By its very definition, Lag measures are not predictive, at best they will give you confirmation of past efforts. So should you wish to experience more control over your future, you need to dial up your Lead measures.

Back to our holidays. this is my Action List for this holiday period, what is yours? If you have not created yours then happy for you to adopt mine.

[1] Identify at least two business books (print or audible) to devour - If you are into novels then those are in addition to these. I have chosen:

• Connecting the Dots by John Chambers - only has 3 reviews so far but the brief and the title appealed to me.
• 15 Secrets Successful People Know About Time Management by Kevin Kruse - the title is a bit ‘clickbaity’, but comes recommended by a good client.
• The Other Side of Beautiful by Kim Lock - this is a ‘novel’, recommended by Audible with 2398 ratings. I have no idea what it's about

[2] Truly nail my Lead measures. In fact to become an absolute walking guru in them 🙂

As always, less is more. I have just two things to do. To listen and to ponder.

This is so brilliantly simple that few will implement it. As the famous quote goes: ‘what gets measured gets managed’ (by Peter Drucker), you have to consider that if you want to create change, or results, start by defining the end, i.e the measure that is predictive of the desired result. If your 2023 business plan is largely made up of creating a to-do list, then it is not unlike putting the cart before the horse.

Wishing you a fantastic 2023 and thank you for giving me the opportunity in writing these NewsBriefs. At times they are a chore to start but they always end up being insightful as I dig into reflection and identify what adds value.