Have you ever set out to accomplish something that feels ‘extraordinary?’ When I speak of the ‘extraordinary,’ I am pointing to places in your work or personal life where you need to ‘bring it.’ For you, that may be a huge personal or professional challenge. It may be a newly assigned long- or short-term project. It may be a challenging relationship, or a specific work context. It may be a life or career transition. It could be any of these, or several of these challenges that are not so gently nudging you to raise your game.
When a challenge requires more than what your current perspective, set of skills, tools, or resources can bring you, one place to look is your core. I think of ‘core’ as the center of what you stand for. It may be your spiritual center of gravity. It informs your perspective, the way you experience the environment around you, and the way you experience yourself. Working your core is not about doing more. It is about expanding your capacity to show up and be more as a leader in the world. The specific core work I’m referring to in this blog is the daily routine that sets you up for a whole new game.
Optimal daily habits are as unique as individuals themselves. Your daily practice may include morning time alone, meditation, exercise, prayer, a daily walk, or a series of deep breaths. Your practice will be most powerful when it includes both being and doing. You don’t need a complex process. Pick practices that feel meaningful and that you can sustain. Notice how you feel during and after your routine. Treat those practices as your lifeline. Give them your full attention and focus. When you lose your way, start again in the way that gets you back on track.
What if you treated your daily grounding ‘ritual’ with the same care you reserved for your ‘endgame?’ Look at your current process for setting up the extraordinary in your life and career. Think about the direction your current routine points you toward and decide on next steps.
How does your current routine serve you? Do you want more quiet grounding in your daily practice? Do you need to rev it up a bit more? How are you balancing doing and being in your practice? How can you integrate more of these practices into what you are already doing?
