All Of It

As a leader, you are dealing with All. Of. It. But as leaders, we must remember to leave All Of It at the door when working with each individual. Frustrations with the budget, the politics, and people who can’t/won’t/don’t want to play nice have nothing to do with the person in front of you—even if the topic you need to discuss with her is a tough one.

The person in front of you may be there because you need to discuss a performance issue, but even if this is also a point of frustration for you, he deserves your very best. Which means leaving All The Rest Of It packed away elsewhere.

This is one of the very things that makes leadership isolating. Because leaders must isolate. The baggage of Everything Else going on cannot enter into any one conversation or relationship with a team member. This requires an ability to separate frustrations and challenges from people, and to only address the person and the situation at hand.

The team doesn’t, and doesn't need to, know All Of It. And that’s ok, because that’s not their job. It’s yours. Leaders lead.