The Leaders Playbook: Taking care of yourself so you can take care of others

It’s the New Year and the time for new beginnings. As a leader, we owe it to the teams that we are either a part of or lucky enough to lead to be the best leader we can be.

A big component of this is ensuring that we are taking care of ourselves; physically, and mentally – the whole nine yards. Sleep is a big part of this and I always encourage leaders to “hack” their sleep and get very serious about it early in their professional lives. Diet and nutrition are big components as well. (Talk to a pro if need be).

As we enter the New Year please take the time to develop a plan and associated habits to take care of yourself. Be rested and ready to go every day. Know what you need to be the best leader you can be, and equally importantly make sure your teammates and subordinates have the ability to do the same.

Your family and your team(s) deserve this. So do you. Don’t mess this up.

The Author is currently serving as an active-duty military officer. Any comments or recommendations on this post or on this site are solely and expressly my personal views and do not represent the position of any branch of the United States Government, the Department of Defense, or the Department of the Air Force.

Happy New Year 2023 – Onward!

This is such an important time of year for me.

Each year between Christmas and New Years I set aside time to carefully look back over the last 12 months, think about the lessons I have learned through the last year (there are always many), and then set out goals for myself during the next 12 months building on the lessons learned from the last year.

As I did my morning reading this morning I was struck by this passage from St. Francis of Assisi which really captures the essence of what I’m trying to do daily in my personal life and in my professional life.

St. Francis said, “Start doing what is necessary; then do what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

What a perfect quote to start the New Year.

I wish you and yours the most happy, healthy, joyful, and blessed 2023.

The Author is currently serving as an active-duty military officer. Any comments or recommendations on this post or on this site are solely and expressly my personal views and do not represent the position of any branch of the United States Government, the Department of Defense, or the Department of the Air Force.