What leaders are giving up to stay comfortable in their career and Life?

The 3 Hidden Costs That are OVERLOOKED

"I just need to get through this year."

I often hear this from leaders when they talk about their job. 

As you know, every business decision has TANGIBLE and INTANGIBLE costs; it's the same for us.

When leaders decide to get through this year for their job, the intangible cost is often overlooked. And if they are not well managed, that unpreparedness can be costly.

The FIVE comfort beliefs

In my conversations with senior leaders, I hear these often. The beliefs that keep them comfortable in their status quo:

"My job pays well.”

“I enjoy and get used to working with my team." 

"My company is stable.”

“My performance and impact will protect me in any case." 

"Technology moves slowly anyway. By the time it affects me, I'll probably have moved on."

They were valid in the past. However, they are not helpful in the current environment.

The overwhelming pressure from technological evolution and difficult economic conditions is increasing. 

These beliefs will drive leaders to over-focus on higher performance to hang on to the status quo and overlook the opportunity cost.

The Three Hidden Costs 

When getting a good sleep is already a challenge, by the time you get through this year, the energy you have for people around you will continue to drop, and the time you will have to invest in yourself will be at a bare minimum, and your job satisfaction will deteriorate.

And the deeper costs are the ones that cannot be measured.

1. SELF-WORTH: "I'm worthy and valued because I am a senior leader of XYZ.” Without that title, you don't know if you are still valued by others or what else you can do.

2. VALUES: Your attention, energy, and focus are highly driven by work-related matters because you want to hold tighter to the status quo. You are not emotionally free to reflect deeply about "Why am I doing this?"

3. JOY: Beyond making money and achieving career success, you forget what's truly important to you. “I don't know what brings me real happiness. Financial security, I guess?”

The Not Knowing What's Enough

And here's what makes it harder to see.

Many leaders (me included) are professionally trained to achieve more: more customers, more projects, more revenue year after year. We are rarely asked to define enough.   

Without knowing what enough looks like, the default is always more, just like how we habitually increase business growth targets.

The "ENOUGH" goalpost keeps moving because there was never a goalpost to begin with.

The Moment of Truth

Some leaders shared with me that they had those beliefs running at once. And told themselves they just needed to get through the year. 

They believed or hoped they would have moved on before they were affected.

Until the day came, they were informed their jobs were made redundant due to restructuring.

The belief that they could escape faster than the change is shattered. That shakes their sense of control in life and creates a void in their identity. 

Depending on the situation, it may take years to rebuild themselves. Not to mention making amends for the potential impact on people around them.

YOU ARE IN CONtROL

You have options.

You are FREE TO CHOOSE how to protect what matters most to you. Yes, it requires some effort to figure it out, but it's possible. You can change your trajectory if you start now.

What becomes possible when you stop and look honestly?

The loss of control and identity is mainly driven by the attachment we had to our profession for decades.

It was built unconsciously with the time, energy, and attention we spent at work, plus the pressure to perform under stress every day for years. 

When you can start learning about YOU intentionally, you have the opportunity to look at your life with a wider angle through reflecting NOT about how good you are as a leader at work, but how you can lead a better life:

• What kind of life do you want to live?

• What you truly need and want?

• What enough actually means for you?

That allows you to be a better leader who is not driven by chasing for more due to societal norms, but by creating something meaningful for you and others.

You need a new approach

The world has changed: increased life expectancy, rising cost of living, and new technology. 

They are not temporary or minor disruptions. They are the new context.

Unless you are approaching retirement, the conventional success formula of working hard, staying loyal, and retiring no longer works for you.

The rules were written in the past for the past. Yet most of us are still following them.

If you want to create a good life, you need a new approach. 

The truth is, you already know WHY you need to think about this.

How many times have you told your teammates:

"Just because it worked before, it doesn't mean it works now?"

What if you told yourself the same? This time for your own benefit?

YOU LIFE IS BIGGER THAN YOU THINK

You are NOT your job. 

You just haven’t spent enough time getting to know YOU and the opportunities you can create.

If this has made you stop and think, here is the next question: Do you know where you actually stand right now?

I wrote an article about the four career positions every leader has chosen to be in. Whichever position you are in, the best time to know is now. 

The better you know where you are, the better you can reach where you want to be.

Hope this article inspires you. If it does, do share with others because

~ WE RISE BY LIFTING OTHERS ~