What is your state of mind as your reading this?
Are you tired? Energized? Frustrated? Confident? Bored I hope not!
Our state of mind changes dozens of times throughout the day; a boring meeting, a difficult phone call, an accepted offer, a misunderstanding with a demanding client. We know that all of these things affect our state and, as a result, our performance. But, are we aware of how it affects our co-workers and staff?
As a leader, you can't afford to let your state manage you; you need to manage your state instead. People who work for you tend to mirror, and even magnify, the emotions of their leader positive and negative. If you're confident about a situation, they'll trust things will work out. If you're worried about business performance, they'll fear for their jobs and business will suffer.
Managing your state is not always easy. After all, we're human and have a right to our own feelings be it upset, frustrated or worried. A mentor of mine shared his 5 minute rule with me. You are allowed to get emotional about a situation for 5 minutes, behind closed doors. Then take a deep breath and change your state. Here are some of the ways I've learned to change my state:
Smile