The Importance of Leader Self-Care
By Dr. Fredricka Joyner, ModernThink Senior Consultant
Leading in times of uncertainty can be emotionally draining and cognitively taxing. It is important for leaders to develop habits, behaviors and mindsets that support their own self-care. This will allow them to more fully support others and to provide a calming presence in a turbulent environment. These five strategies can help. Increase schedule flexibility to accommodate quick pivots.
Some of the approaches that are effective at slowing the spin require swift responses to emergent situations. For example, a leader may need to intervene quickly to correct an inaccurate negative narrative before it goes viral or jump into an unplanned one-on-one conversation with a spinning faculty or staff member who has been overtaken by anxiety. A senior leader at a medium-size public institution recently shared with me that he has developed a new approach to managing his calendar – building in some open time each day – to allow himself the flexibility to respond quickly when necessary.
- Be realistic about bandwidth – prioritize aggressively.
While on faculty I taught undergraduate and graduate courses in change management. One frequent guest speaker was the CEO of a large banking organization who had been explicitly recruited to “bring organizational processes up to current operational standards.” In other words, to lead systemic change. The scope of his charge was in many ways similar to what is currently being asked of leaders in higher education. His core message to the students was to not underestimate the bandwidth – personal and organizational – required by systemic change, and to manage other resource commitments accordingly. - Get comfortable with saying “I don’t know.” Shift from providing answers to asking generative questions.
I was sitting in a Town Hall meeting at the very beginning of the Pandemic as I watched senior leaders one by one stand up and respond “I don’t know” to questions posed by faculty and staff. It was clearly an unfamiliar and uncomfortable experience that ran counter to the traditional notion of a leader as someone who has answers. Through the Pandemic experience and into the current environment in higher education responding “I don’t know” is no longer the exception but the rule. In those “I don’t know moments,” well-placed generative questions can demonstrate authenticity, broaden feelings of connection, bring out the best thinking across stakeholder groups and perhaps reveal a path forward. - Let go of the urge to plan and shift the focus to preparation.
Several years ago, I had the opportunity to hear Margaret Wheatley, the iconic leadership thought leader, speak. Decades ago, Wheatley identified that the increasing complexity of both organizational systems and the external environment requires new approaches to change. In her memorable talk Wheatley shared a paradoxical statement made by a senior leader that exemplifies the distinction between planning and preparation – “I don’t know where we are going, but I know how to get us there.” Although the talk was years ago, this leader could have been talking about the current landscape in higher education. While there is no clear, stable desired future state at which to aim our change efforts, there are preparatory actions that can be taken that will increase the agility with which an institution can navigate through uncharted waters. Shift focus and institutional bandwidth to exploring questions such as: What resources do we need to develop? What competencies might we need to draw on in the future? What networks and ecosystems should we strengthen? What team structures will allow us to move forward? What data do we need? - Most importantly, build a support network for yourself.
For leaders navigating large-scale system change, the pressure to “hold it all together” can be exhausting and seemingly thankless. Earnest efforts are often met with a new round of complaints, shifting demands cause frustrating starts and stops, and expressions of positive feedback can be few and far between. Having a strong trusted network is an essential aspect of well-being and key to surviving and (maybe) thriving in this environment. Find those few trusted colleagues with whom you can speak candidly in times when you need to slow your own spin. You will emerge from these conversations better equipped for the leadership journey ahead.
About Dr. Fredricka Joyner
Dr. Fredricka Joyner is a Senior Consultant at ModernThink LLC, a management consulting firm that own and operates the Great Colleges to Work For program®. She is passionate about building tools and processes that clients can use to gain the insight from data necessary to take effective action. Collaborating with leaders and teams on culture development is at the core of her practice.
Fredricka’s resume includes more than 20 years in academia; three decades in business consulting for companies in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors; published work in numerous journals and national and international conference presentations. She speaks on a variety of topics and often customizes presentations to meet specific client needs.