Leadership: The Pitfall Of Pressure
Leadership has been an area of interest to me after College. I read books on it, listened to podcasts about it
I would be less than honest if I made any claims to being an expert in this area, if anything, I am a novice, a prodigy, a learner, a beginner as far as leadership is concerned but even in my novelty, I have a few nuggets of wisdom that I can share from my personal journey in Leadership.
Before I began this plan of sharing my personal experiences in this big world of leadership, I wondered what to share. I knew I had something, in fact, a lot of things but I didn’t know what to say or even how to say it. The problem with having the “perfectionist syndrome” (that’s my term) is waiting until you have it right, right before attempting. Now, this is a real killer of motivation. If you’re like me, know this, you don’t have to have it all together, just start from right where you are.
As I processed what to write about a few ideas popped into my mind and like a slow but steady flow of a stream, I began seeing the topics I would like to share for a start. I remembered hearing this somewhere, “Speak from the heart” and that was it! Only that instead of speaking, I would be writing from the heart.
One of the things that have plagued me in my leadership journey is the matter to do with pressure. For a while now I have known myself to be the internal pressure cooker. I know how to give myself pressure, I don’t need anyone’s help in doing that.
Pressure can be debilitating, it may kick you off into action but it certainly won’t keep you there, instead, it will boil you up until there’s nothing worthy left. I often approached leadership responsibilities with such a heavy weight on my shoulders, the weight was characterized by an acute fear of failure, a need to please others so as to gain their approval, a need to show I got it all together, a need to perform well and these things terrorized me from within.
At first, I didn’t know what it was I was battling, it felt like I was in a boxing ring with a faceless enemy, but I was in a battle for sure.
But when I finally was able to identify some of the issues that fed my pressure, I gained a vantage point. I had to deal with them and not deny that I had them and I can assure you that the process of facing up to those ugly realizations was nothing short of daunting. It meant for me that if I was ever going to get a handle on the pressure I was carrying around, I had to deal with the issues if not heal from them.
What I am trying to say is that pressure is a symptom of an underlying issue. For me, my underlying issues were a few of the things I mentioned in the paragraphs before and leadership was the tool used to expose those issues or bring the issues to the surface. If you’re struggling with pressure, it’s a sign telling you that something is off the radar.
If you’re willing, you will realize that there are some issues that require fixing and sometimes some of those things will require you to reach out for help. Either way, what matters is that you get round to dealing with those issues.
The pain of dealing with the issues is a lot less compared to the continuing pain you suffer as a result of choosing not to deal with them. It will cost you a lot more if you choose not to be honest with yourself and take the necessary steps in getting the help you need.
Succumbing to the pressure that leadership is going to bring, because it will, is costly. It is better off if you are at your best or you are well on your way to recovery from an issue than giving in to the demands and pressures of leadership.
This pitfall and I chose to call it a pitfall, isn’t oft-spoken of because it doesn’t necessarily come up as an urgent issue. It cleverly disguises itself, that’s why it was so hard for me to identify it, but it is a real issue if not a monster, that needs to be handled with care and attention as any other issue.
Pressure in life is inevitable but the most important thing is not to be pressurized from within but to be at true peace in spite of tumultuous circumstances. If you are at peace within, you will lead successfully no matter how dire outward circumstances might be.
Take time to do an inward self-examination, be honest with yourself, besides what do you have to lose in being honest with yourself other than gain the necessary freedom that ushers you into a world you never knew existed.