4 Steps to Transform Urgency in Leadership
Urgency is a strong energy that gathers momentum as it moves. Like a flowing river, as urgency builds even the most tranquil conditions become choppy and chaotic.
Urgency Can Become a Leader’s Comfort Zone
When this happens, urgency for the sake of urgency permeates the culture. You hear people saying things like, “There’s never enough time in the day” or “We are always putting out fires”.
What is hard to see in the midst of urgency is that many of those fires are created by a constant sense of urgency. Smooth operations becoming choppy and chaotic, and that can derail the effectiveness of any team.
If you are uncertain yet curious about how your sense of urgency is impacting not only your success and happiness but those around you, ask a few people for feedback regarding how you show up in a state of urgency.
4 Steps to Transform Urgency
1) COMMIT TO DEVELOPING SELF-AWARENESS
First and foremost, increasing self-awareness will defuse the tension of urgency. There needs to be an understanding that urgency is a tool that can be applied as needed. A choice, rather than a constant state of being.
2) ASK IF URGENCY HAS BECOME YOUR COMFORT ZONE
Where in your life (work, home, community) do you operate under a continued sense of urgency?
How does your urgency impact the aspects of your life that could be tranquil?
How does your urgency impact those around you?
What would be lost if you slowed down?
What would be gained if you slowed down?
3) REVISIT YOUR STRATEGIC THINKING
Do you have a strategic plan?
Does everyone in your organization understand the plan?
Do the values of the organization support the plan?
Is everyone in agreement to upload the values of the organization in service of the plan?
Does everyone understand and agree to what their role in the plan is?
4) PRIORITIZE DIALOGUE
It is in dialogue that we learn what fosters success, what is most needed, what skills and talents others bring, and what hurdles to success need to be uncovered. Fostering a culture of dialogue fosters a stronger, more collaborative team.
Becoming a Better Leader
The leader who is willing to be vulnerable and acknowledge their own strengths and weaknesses will create a workplace where staff are willing to do the same. This can foster a collaborative organization with individuals who embrace teamwork and positive risk taking.
Prioritizing dialogue, asking clarifying questions, and being open to giving and receiving feedback identifies you as a leader who can communicate with clarity. A leader who easily engages staff will develop a motivated and engaged team.
The leader who has all of these characteristics can become more than just a successful boss but also the charismatic leader of the organization. And that can lead to new and greater organizational success.