INsight/ How Leaders Reflect

Photo by Abdullah Mustapha on Unsplash.

Manila, 14 July 2021 — Have you built a reflection habit?

Story

It happened this morning, as I snoozed my alarm to reflect on writing this post. I thought of all the leaders who have shared with me how they reflect, and of the challenges they face around building a reflection habit. Some end up doing it while they run, cycle, or walk their dog. Others while preparing a meal or doing a household chore. Many decide to make it part of their rituals for starting and finishing the day and week. Almost all shared that it took them a conscious effort to create quality time for reflection.  

So how do leaders record their reflection? To get it out of their head, some use a physical notebook, either out of habit or because they enjoy the tactile feeling of freedom when they put their pen to the paper. Many nowadays prefer to enter their reflection into a note-taking app on their phone, tablet, or computer. And some record their reflection into audio notes, which is handy for when they’re on the go — with apps being able to transcribe that into text later on.

So far, we’ve talked about conscious reflection. It’s good to know that reflection also happens subconsciously because your brain always works to help you make sense of the situations you’re in. For our exploration today, however, we focus on reflection as a conscious practice. So what happens when you reflect? Well, you tend to Zoom Out of details and problems to see the bigger picture, to understand what’s really going on. When people reflect, you can often see them move their eyes to Look Up. It’s an act of expanding our awareness of ourselves and our situations. Leaders discover that the practice of reflecting helps them to appreciate and celebrate life more, make better choices between alternative actions, and move forward in active collaboration with others.

Challenge

Like we saw, making time for reflection, and creating healthy habits for it, is a challenge to most leaders, at least when they start. The comment I hear a lot is “where do I find the time for that, I’m already so busy at work.” First thoughts are often about “doing it once a week.” Well, if that’s where you will start, go for it.

The good news is that with practice, it gets easier and more beneficial too, with more impact. Most leaders I know end up building reflection routines that have them spend a few minutes every morning and evening. Plus some longer reflection times at the end of the week (somewhere convenient between Friday lunchtime and Saturday morning) and again at the start of the following week (between Sunday evening and Monday morning). They wouldn’t want to live and work without it.

There isn’t one way of reflection that works for all, so what matters is to experiment and find out what works for you, while recognizing that every new habit takes some time to form, during which self-discipline and persistence are essential. You can also experiment with what you reflect on. Examples are three daily wins to plan in the morning and celebrate in the evening. You can also use that for the week. Or to reflect on what worked and what didn’t, and what you can learn from the experience. Other forms of questions you can ask yourself are about your effort (rather than result) to undertake behaviors that you are developing (for example, active listening, peer coaching, or networking).

Question

There’s lots more to learn about building a robust reflection habit as part of your leadership journey. As usual, however, the most important step is the first one, to start. Or, if you’re stuck or have plateaued, to start leveling up.

As you practice reflecting, you notice that your ability to act from an expanded self-awareness will grow. As a result, you will become more successful in leading yourself and others. Regular reflection will help you to create better outcomes from your influencing work, in direction, alignment, and commitment.

So the question I have for you is this: “How do you reflect as a leader, and how often do you make time for it?” You’re welcome to reach out and let me know.