Slow Down & Get More Done!

What if the thing that got you here is the very thing that keeps you and your team from getting more done?!

Good leaders get things done! Two common characteristics I observe in leaders who have made their way to the C-Suite are Power and Speed. Some exhibit almost superhuman power, sheer will, through their own innate strength to accomplish what others cannot. Other leaders are so efficient that the volume of what they are able to accomplish leaves the rest of us in the dust. Some leaders possess a combination of both. Which do you think describes you?

The shadow side of these two strengths will show up as the you lead ever larger teams. In the early years, team members are just accessories that enable your Power and/or Speed. But real leadership is about leverage – getting more done through the initiative and actions of others. If you continue to be out front in a “it’s all about me” way (please see my previous Note for more on this!), you won’t get as much accomplished, and you’ll likely lose quality people who chafe at not being developed.

How do you avoid going over to the shadow side of your strength? You slow down . . . so that you . . . and your team . . . can go FASTER!

Here are three examples of what I’m talking about:

Delegation. I have had a front row seat to “get it done” leaders who are finally red-lining and reaching their capacity limits. Their habitual “I’ll do everything” begins to result in dropped balls and/or burnout. It is at this point I find they are ready to commit to delegating more to others. And delegating requires slowing down.

You have to slow down and teach others. At first, they will not be able to do the task as quickly as you have done it all these years. But slowing down ultimately leverages the talent of others to get more done and frees you up to do more of the tasks that only you can do.

Problem Solving. If you are delegating well, your reports will inevitably come to you with questions or problems they can’t solve. Leaders I would describe as “powerful” have admitted to me that they enjoy being the hero who quickly has an answer or, even more forcibly, essentially tells the person, “just step aside, I’ll handle this.” When you do this, you miss an opportunity to slow down and coach the person on how to solve the problem themselves. In the analogy we all know, you are doing the fishing for them instead of teaching them to fish.

The best coaching here requires you to slow down and ask them questions with the confidence that they can problem-solve more on their own. By developing your people instead of playing the hero all the time, your team will get more done, faster.

Self-Leadership. Years ago, after initial 1:1 sessions with a CEO and his executive team, the CEO commented to me, “The word on McKinnon is that he slows things down. Everyone’s starting to be more self-aware.” (His comment could have been said about any professional leadership coach.) Too often, you begin and move through your day on auto-pilot, not pausing to check in with the leader who is leading you – you! When you charge ahead like this, you are vulnerable to being a reaction to your environment – in your body, in  your thought life, in your emotions – rather than intentionally leading well in spite of physical, mental, emotional stresses.

Those of you who have worked with McKinnon Leadership Group know that we give you techniques for slowing down, checking in with yourself, and leading your different parts better than if you are on autopilot. It doesn’t take a lot of time – as little as a few minutes – but the ROI of pausing is tremendous.

Lastly, I cannot end this note on slowing down without sharing a powerful phrase that has stayed with me from my good friend and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Deirdre Modesti:

“The power lies in the pause.”

Ruminate on that in the days ahead and you will discover, as I have, ever more opportunities for a slowing-down pause to help you go faster.

-------------------------

I haven’t read either, but there appear to be two good books (both 5 stars on Amazon) with a similar title as this post: Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman; and Slow Down to Go Faster: Living and Leading Intentionally by Ralph and Renny Simone.

-------------------------

A book I AM finally reading, and re-reading, is Inner Excellence by Jim Murphy. Many of you have probably already read it – learning about it while watching the 2025 Super Bowl. I finally picked it up after reading a profile on the author in Golf Digest. Excellent!

I’m always happy to hear your  thoughts and feedback.