Leaders have a lot to worry about. Rising costs, team member and customer concerns, market shifts, and changes with suppliers or partners. All produce anxiety. The worry, at times, can even become debilitating. Learning how to stop worrying and start leading in those moments depends on the view we take with time. Worry always resides in what might happen. In extreme moments, the many possibilities of what might go wrong can zap our self-confidence and clarity.
The best leaders exude confidence and strength, even when they feel extremely anxious, by maintaining a sharp focus on what is within their control. As leaders, we never control the past or the future, but we are always 100 percent in control of our actions and choices in the present.
By focusing exclusively on the present, leaders can deny the anxiety of the unknown. Leaders begin this focus by recounting the known facts, especially the actions and options they can take right now. Reviewing the current facts and truths with others can also ground us in the present. Staying busy in the now is of the utmost importance.
We look to leaders to give us confidence at the precise moment there is much to worry about. Difficult times and situations require leaders to rise to these moments or risk undermining everyone’s confidence. Worry needs to be defeated in the everyday. As John Locke reminded us, “What worries you, masters you.”
