Countless leaders I’ve worked with have uttered, “I’ve lost my mojo.” I respond the same to each, “Oh my gosh, where did you see it last?” Puzzled at first, they recognize the folly of their thinking: giving credit for their success to some inanimate object called mojo.  

This Week’s Edition

Lost My Mojo: One of the Five Types of Doubt.

Clarify Your Thinking

“Robin, I’ve lost my mojo!” Charles said. “Things are just not clicking like before. I’m working hard, doing the same things I’ve always done, but I’m just not generating the results I used to.”

The good news is that Charles has neither lost his mojo nor misplaced it. The simple answer is that Charles is applying his tried-and-true leadership approach to a set of goals or vision that no longer exists due to some disruption.

It’s as if Charles was climbing Mount Everest, arrived at Base Camp II only to wake up one morning and find that Mount Everest had vanished. Shocked at the loss of his vision, he reverts to sheer muscle memory and keeps climbing even though the “mountain” is no longer there. 

Charles developed a leadership approach that was effective. That is why he is caught off guard when he begins to experience poor performance results. Leaders who find themselves in Charles’ position feel both confused (Why is this happening to me?) and lost (Where do I go from here?).

Old Thinking: “I’m intimidated by the changed environment and its impact on my leadership efficacy. My team looks at me like I’ve lost my leadership touch.” 

Thoughts Lead to Actions

His instinct is to fix it by muscling his way through it. “If I work hard enough, doing the same thing I have always done hopefully I will get where I need to be.”

For Charles, the game has changed, but his thinking has not.  With the changed circumstances, he must change his thinking by defining a new vision.

As a strong strategist, clear on their identity as a leader, Lost My Mojo leaders operate with a clear purpose.  What they lack though is a clear vision for the future. Vision answers the question, where are you going? 

In three years, what will you have accomplished? In that future state, what will exist in your business that you will have realized?

If you spend your time defining your vision, you’ll end up finding your “mojo.”

Boost Your Performance

This week a reader shared with me that the posts on Doubt have not been particularly uplifting to her. Let’s reflect on that great feedback. My discovery of the Five Doubt Types is good news. It takes the plight of leadership doubt from hopeless to hopeful. Find out why in this week’s video.

What’s Your Opinion?

Have you ever experienced leadership doubt similar to Lost My Mojo?  Let me know at robin.pou@robinpou.com.

Don’t let doubt count you out. Have a confident week!

Robin Pou, Chief Advisor and Strategist

If this was helpful, feel free to share it with another leader who needs to defeat doubt and complete their confidence.

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What is “The Confident Leader”?

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, I began a video series called “Panic or Plan?” It was designed to equip leaders to navigate the doubt they experienced and to rise in the confidence they needed to lead during turbulent times. It took off. I then started this newsletter to equip leaders in the same fashion each week for the doubt that crashes across the bow of their leaderSHIP.