Albert Einstein liked to go out and sail for hours. He would lean back and let the wind take him, often coming to rest against a sandy island. There he sat until friends or family came to fetch him. He wasn’t goofing off. Sailing allowed him to relax, eliminate distractions and focus on his job—thinking. You might argue that while taking time to go sailing sounds great, you are not a theoretical physicist and your work requires you to stay in your office. But if I asked your boss, I bet he would say he hired you for your ability to think, not your ability to do. And if you are like most people, you spend a lot more time doing than thinking. The first challenge then is making time when you can stop the action and think.
Critical reflection is the act of stopping to look at ourselves. It does not mean being self-critical. Rather, it means objectively examining our thoughts, underlying assumptions and behavior. Where are we headed? How well are we doing at getting there? If we are constantly running we cannot ask these questions and so risk going off course. Try this exercise to help you build the discipline of regularly stopping and reflecting.
Exercise: Emptying Your Garbage
Our minds need regular rest and reflection. Vacations (from the Latin Vacare, to empty) are times to put out our mind's garbage so we can replenish. By temporarily putting aside our daily challenges and allowing ourselves to daydream we are able to discover new ideas. We need to find as many opportunities for mini-vacations as possible:
- Stopping to reflect—stop the action at least once a day and ask two questions:
- 'What am I focused on?' and
- 'What am I learning?’
- Keep a journal of your answers and look for patterns in your learning.
- Stopping in place—you don’t have to leave work to make time to think:
- Get away from your desk and daily routine
- Reserve a conference room or find another quiet place in the building
- Go for a short walk around the block
- If there are no other options, go into the bathroom for a minute and wash your face. Warm water can be very soothing and relax your face.
- Make time each week for something creative or nurturing (e.g., take an art class, visit a museum, go to a concert or take a walk).
- Schedule a week or more vacation each quarter (or as close to this as your employer allows) and make sure not to fill it with constant activity. Decide how often you need to check your office voice mail/email and communicate that decision to your colleagues.
- If you can’t take a week vacation, take a day and treat yourself to a long weekend away.
- Notice how stopping the action positively affects your focus, mood and energy.
- Joshua Ehrlich, PhD, is the Dean of the BeamPines/Middlesex University Master’s Program in Executive Coaching (www.graduatecoach.com). Josh advises CEOs and senior leaders on complex organizational challenges. He is an executive coach, supervisor and accreditor of coaches at BeamPines, a talent management consulting firm based in NYC (www.beampines.com). Josh speaks to a variety of audiences about international coaching standards and brings together coaches from around the world to teach best practices. His research at Yale and New York University and numerous articles have clarified the psychological and physiological mechanisms by which stress impairs effectiveness. Read his full bio at http://www.beampines.com/bio_Joshua_S_Ehrlich.html. He can be reached at jehrlich@beampines.com or on LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuaehrlich
Read Joshua’s previous blogs in this series at http://www.hci.org/lib/unload-your-brain; http://www.hci.org/lib/getting-no and http://www.hci.org/lib/trouble-thinking.
Photo courtesy of **Mary**
