The Leadership Lesson I Keep Relearning

If you looked at my resume, you’d notice that most of my career has been spent in mission-driven organizations. That’s no accident. I truly enjoy and thrive in a space where I feel my work is propelled by bigger meaning. I don’t dive in headfirst. I cannonball in… letting the work completely surround me. I’m thirsty to learn, hungry to make a difference, and wanting to cast my net over all areas of the organization. I’ve spent much of my career believing that caring deeply was one of my greatest strengths.

I still believe that.

Yet, I have found myself caring so deeply that it is hard to leave my work where it belongs… at work. Have you seen the memes of the marketer on vacation in the ocean but on her phone and holding a laptop? Yeah, that might be me… 

What I’ve had to learn, though, is that caring deeply without establishing the right boundaries isn’t sustainable. 

Commitment without support isn’t noble. 

And resilience isn’t the ability to absorb an endless amount of pressure without consequence.

When I reflect on my years of experience, the leaders and colleagues I admire most aren’t the ones who sacrificed themselves for the mission or even the organization. They’re the ones who built and maintained environments where others feel they can do meaningful work without losing themselves in the process. 

Well-being isn’t earned through exhaustion. And the truth is, the work is always there and we kid ourselves thinking we will catch up. 

Maybe that’s why this lesson is one I have to keep relearning.

The work will always be there.

We won’t.

The strongest systems aren’t built on extraordinary people carrying extraordinary loads.

They’re built by creating systems that allow extraordinary people to thrive.

What’s one lesson you’ve had to relearn about taking care of yourself while taking care of everyone else?