I had the privilege of hearing best-selling author Tony Schwartz speak in a Vistage Webinar on the topic, Leading in the Storm: Generating Positive Energy in Tough Times. Tony, is the author of #1 best sellers, Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy Not Time, and The Art of the Deal, with Donald Trump. He shared scientifically based keys to skillfully and systemeatically managing our own energy and the energy of others for sharper focus and enhanced performance.
The lesson I learned is how critical it is to manage my own energy for peak performance. Tony cited scientific research that proves that we need a break every 90 minutes. The best performers get plenty of sleep at night and take pit stops throughout the day. This is not the way that most CEOs run their lives and the consequence is that we can become impatient, irritable, frustrated, and angry. We and our employees are much more productive when we are in the Performance Zone, when we are calm, optimistic, challenged, confident and engaged. To get there, we need to take the time to be carefree, mellow, peaceful, relaxed, and relieved; we need to spend daily time in the Recovery Zone.
These are great lessons in this stressful time.
