Professional Self Care—Why Leaders Need Recognition Too

Most of us have set goals to start and end this year strong. For many, this involves a vow to be better at self-care. I will…eat in a more healthful manner, exercise consistently, meditate, take yoga breaks, get massages, facials, pedicures… fill in the blank.

But it all boils down to better self-care. We have all been under increasing stress in the past four years, and psychologists are emphasizing self-care as a way to combat added stress.

What about professional self-care?

Right now, most coaches and leaders are looking blank and thinking, what is professional self-care? Professional self-care is about to become a hot button for you.

In order to coach and be present for your team in the best way possible, you need to take care of yourself. How?

Know Your Strengths

If someone asks what you are good at, you likely have lots of answers. It is the same with what are you bad at. If someone asks what your strengths and talents are for leading a team, you probably have some insights there as well.

• How do you best use those talents?

That’s harder.

• How do those talents mesh with the team you lead?

Still harder.

• How do they mesh with the rest of the leadership team?

That’s a tough one.

Here’s why it matters. You are energized when you use a strong talent. Enervated when you try to use a weakness or work against a talent.

It’s simple to say that, but in order to feel that energy of using a talent each day, you have to define what they are. If you have taken the Management Talent Assessment, do you have your Top Talent Report handy?

If so, pull it out and review your top five strongest talents. Now, take a minute and think about your day. How often do you use those talents, and do you seek situations where you bring those talents to the fore?

Keep your TTR next to you. We’ll need it in a minute. If you have not taken the MTA yet, ask your leader to order it for you or reach out to the CSS Talent Department. Knowing your leadership strengths is your first step in professional self-care.

Strength Development and 360 Executive Coaching

When you review your Top Talent Report, some questions will likely come to mind.

I know I have this talent, but I don’t see it working for me. Or I know I have this talent because it’s constantly tripping me up and making my life harder.

Reviewing your top five with your leader or with a Certified Talent Analyst can help to clear up some of those questions. You might be great at holding your team accountable, but send a muddled message so they don’t really know what you are measuring. Or maybe you are great at taking charge, but others feel unheard, run over, or resentful.

Clarifying how to use talent most effectively is vital to leading a successful team and to feeling professional satisfaction in your job.

To know if you are using your talents most effectively, think about 360 Executive Coaching. This coaching gives you a clear understanding of your innate leadership talents and then looks at whether your team sees and feels you using these talents. You might have strong talents and potential as a leader, but if your team doesn’t see those talents in action, they are wasted.

Team Composite Conversation

Now that you know your strengths, it’s time to look at the strengths of your sales team. As a group, what do they do well, what do they do poorly, and who are your outliers? Where can you assist your group by using your strongest talents? And are any of your talents likely to frustrate your team?

Understanding your team’s learning style, for instance, can make team meetings much more effective. If your group craves information and details, while your style is “just the facts,” that can create a disconnect.

And conversely, if you tend to love information and details and your team just wants the facts, this can cause frustration and boredom. Schedule a Team Composite Review to see how best to work with your team.

Once you have a sense of your team, schedule time to review each person’s Sales Talent Assessment in more depth with a Sales Talent Analyst. Insights into each person’s individual talents, cross-referenced with your Top Talent Report, can make your coaching more effective and help your sellers to have more success.

As a Leadership team, do you know each other’s Top Five Talents, where you mesh, and where you could potentially clash?

If not, share your Top Talent Reports with each other. Seeing where your talents match up and where they don’t can provide insight into how to work and collaborate more effectively.

Recognition

All leaders know they are supposed to give meaningful recognition to their sellers on a regular basis. What about you? As a leader and coach, when do you get recognition?

Many leaders can’t remember the last time they were recognized for their accomplishments. Their team, yes, them, not so much. In a perfect world, company leaders will recognize and reward management accomplishments along with sellers.

If your leader is open to giving feedback and recognition to their leadership team, discuss feedback that is meaningful to you. Leaders tend to say recognizing my team is enough, but it’s not. Without personal recognition, you may begin to doubt yourself and your value to the team and company, so instead of deflecting recognition, embrace it.

If you tend to get left out when praise is handed down, maybe it’s time for self-recognition. Think about personal goals for you, not your team, that you want to accomplish this week, month, quarter, and year. Something measurable. Set S.M.A.R.T. goals, monitor your progress, and set a reward when you hit a goal.

It can be anything that’s meaningful to you. When you hit a goal, give yourself the appropriate reward and pat yourself on the back. Verbally. “Great job, me; I accomplished something, and here’s my reward.”

Sure, it’s a little corny, but acknowledging your accomplishments and rewarding yourself is a way to stay motivated.

Professional Growth

When was the last time you attended a webinar, read a book, or went to a seminar on leadership training?

In our post-pandemic world, leadership training has tended to slip by the wayside as life has gotten more complicated. It’s time to change that.

What is one thing you would like to learn or focus on this year? It might be being more organized, actively listening, or being a better coach. Whatever your hot button is, map out a strategy to gain insight and a plan to improve in this area.

• If you are a reader, Google the best leadership books for the last few years in your area of interest.  
• If you are a visual learner, search for webinars or TED Talks in your area of interest.

To be the best coach and mentor for your team, you need to know and take care of yourself. Set a plan for professional self-care and be the best leader you can be.