It’s the decision that shapes a leader’s week. Every decision you make is an opportunity to choose; will you be a warrior or a worrier? Will you own the week, or will it own you? Choose now and choose well.
Be a warrior not a worrier
How to be a worrier:
Be a worrier by obsessively concerning yourself with what might happen. Check every government update, read every opinion piece, frantically search for breaking news. Fret about the world’s problems, whether or not they affect you. Be a worrier by projecting pessimism onto the future, mistakenly believing that whatever is going wrong now will be around forever.
Be a worrier by battening down the hatches, sitting tight, and waiting for this all to blow over. Worry so much about doing the wrong thing that instead you do nothing. Worry that a brighter future doesn’t lie ahead and accept that things are awful and probably always will be.
Worry externally to the people you speak to. Lose all sense of worth, under sell or under value what you do. Lower your standards and convince yourself that you’re lucky to have anything. Heavily discount. Aim to break even. Let your worry lead to a mindset of scarcity, where you are convinced there will never be enough to go around.
Hark back to the good old days and wish they were back. Keep your fingers crossed for “normal”. Daydream about how good things used to be. Fear they won’t be that good again. Worry that this all lies on your shoulders and that your people are counting on you. Feel the weight of that pressure. Believe they are helpless without you and worry even more. Overestimate the competition and underestimate your ability. Be led by imposter syndrome. Speculate based on dread.
Your thoughts shape your actions and your mindset. If you find yourself caught in worry-based unhelpful thought patterns, snap out of them before they shape your present moment and your future existence.
Be a warrior not a worrier
How to be a warrior:
Be a warrior by waking up with the undoubtable belief that you are wholly equipped to get through whatever is thrown at you. Nod confidently to yourself. Find the game in overcoming challenges and daring them to break you. Don’t be surprised when they don’t. Tell yourself that this is a test. Act accordingly.
Sleep soundly each night knowing that tomorrow is when you’ll put your best thinking into action. Thrive at the chance to start again. Recognise that being knocked back a few steps is the chance to rebuild stronger. Do it the same, but better. Antifragile. Re-find the excitement and the passion.
Leave no stone unturned. Question everything. Why didn’t that work? How can I improve? Find the ways in which you can advance. Continue with the dead certs and the remarkable ideas and park everything else. Rally your troops and unite them for the cause. Inspire them to up their own games. Carry no one. Strengthen your weakest links and cut your losses.
Forget about the news. Forget about opinion and judgment. What you know for sure is that 80% of this is within your control, and the other 20% is anyone’s guess. Focus on the 80%. Be open to learning, not closed to improvement. Take advice only from those you would accept criticism.
One day, you’ll look back at the week you’re about to have and assess what you did. In this decision lies the chance to make it the week that everything changed. Make it the week where a switch was flicked, and you stepped up your game. Look back on it as being the best thing that ever happened to you. Marvel at how much you were capable of. Choose to be a warrior, not a worrier. Repeat.
