“The environment is the invisible hand that shapes our behavior” (James Clear)
I recently had lunch with the founder of company, which happens to be spread across the globe, leaving him rather lonely in his Copenhagen office. As with the majority of founders, his business is his “baby”, his life, his No 1 priority right now. We spoke about loneliness, how it sneaks up on you without you really realizing.
That’s also the case with stress. Being ambitious, hungry… perhaps suffering from imposter syndrome or being an insecure overachiever in any type of business, will also put you at risk. All of a sudden you feel yourself at the bottom of a hole, and it can be a long, slippery way up.
So do yourself a favor. Ensure the environment you operate & live in supports you – gives you energy – and remove the ‘energy drainers’ where possible!
Consider:
1. Your Physical environment: Reward and enable good behavior! As an example, make it easy to be healthy by having healthy food at home. (Don’t have potato chips lying around if you know you can’t resist them!)
2. Who do you choose to hang out with? Are they giving you energy, or are the draining you? Ensure you see people outside of a business context, people where you use other aspects of yourself, and people you admire and who inspires you! And – let’s not forget solitude – maybe you get energy from being alone
3. What do you feed your brain? What do you read, watch and listen to? The content you consume shapes the thoughts you draw upon and the decisions you make …
4. Organizational; The routines, patterns, rewards… and the culture at your company- what is the impact on you?
THEN ask yourself- are the standards and the success criteria you set for yourself supported by your system above?
If not, you’re swimming up-stream, rather than letting the river carry you.
