If you’re feeling overwhelmed as a leader and unsure about what to do next, watch Bobbie LaPorte’s January 31 “Your Best Next Move” video for a helpful leadership tip she picked up from her Ironman triathlon training. Learning how to manage “inside the box” can help you gain momentum—and achieve the small wins you need to keep moving forward.
Your Best Next Move: How Leaders Gain Momentum by Managing Inside the Box
Hi everyone, Bobbie LaPorte here again with my weekly leadership tip for your Best Next Move, where I help you see continuing curveballs as an opportunity. We’re done reacting to them or pausing, waiting for a new kind of certainty to return. This year, I will help you actively use your personal agency to accelerate what you want to accomplish in 2022.
A couple of weeks ago, I shared how I was hearing from many leaders that they were struggling with “getting going” in the new year to gear up for all that’s ahead in 2022.
And now that we’re already heading into February, I am continuing to see this condition: it feels like it’s a combination of the continuation of Covid (and all the uncertainty that represents) and not feeling like you really got a break over the holidays; and annual planning and looking at all that’s expected of you in 2022. It’s enough to make anyone feel overwhelmed and stuck.
If you look at this in total…it’s hard to see what the first step is AND how you will get to the finish line, right?
Let me share a personal scenario:
When I get to the start line on an Ironman race day, I can’t think about crossing the finish line some 15 hours later – and wondering – what if I get a cramp in the swim? what if I get a flat on the bike or blisters during the run? What if I’m really slow and the aid stations on the run course run out of food (all of which have happened)? If I ruminated on all the possible curveballs that COULD come my way….I’d never put on my wetsuit and get in the water. The whole day and what I am trying to accomplish can seem out of reach.
So, here’s something for you to consider:
In Ironman racing, we have a saying called: “Managing inside the box.” The BOX could be different things to different athletes. For me, “the box” is swimming to the third buoy ahead (about 75 yards); on the bike, it’s riding to the next aid station (about 10 miles); on the run, it’s getting to the next aid station – which thankfully is only a mile ahead.
That is the box for me; that’s how I manage myself through a long day, through any challenges that might arise, and through the possibilities that things will change – and they always do. It’s the time and space that allows me to focus on micro goals and be able to respond to challenges.
For you – “the box” might be one week; or through a series of meetings tied to an important project; or even the end of the day. Whatever time and space give you a sense of control, of being able to respond and regroup, that represents success – an all-important “small wins.”
It sounds simple. It is. And it can be a very effective and powerful approach to regaining confidence and getting your mojo back.
So, that’s my tip. I’ll see you next week. In the meantime, use your personal agency to make uncertainty a part of your success strategy for 2022.