What Do You Do When You Have Nothing To Say? (#173)

The Confident Leader

BOOST YOUR LEADERSHIP IN UNCERTAIN TIMES

When determining what to share in this week’s newsletter, I had an idea that is probably not fit to publish.

“You say it best, when you say nothing at all”

― Keith Whitley (American singer)

This Week’s Edition

When is it the “right” thing to do to say nothing?

Clarify Your Thinking

What if you opened this newsletter and all you saw was,

“I’ve got writer’s block. See you next week.”

Probably not fit to publish, right?

Old Thinking: I don’t know what to say, but I think I should say something. Maybe if I keep talking something good will pop out. 

New Thinking: It’s okay to not say anything. I am confident I know what I want to say and when to say it. I can wait to share it when I am prepared to communicate it. 

Thoughts Lead to Actions

Writing a newsletter for 172 consecutive weeks could create pressure to perform.  

• What am I going to share this week?
• Will it be as good as last week?
• Was last week any good?
• Am I able to make this week better?

I’ve not experienced a situation where I have been unable to find a story or leadership theme to discuss. I think the primary reason is because I don’t write the newsletter… you do. Your exceptionally challenging issues of the day are incredible fodder. 

But, if I truly hit a wall in my creativity, I would tell you so. My role is to serve you with the leadership message you need (not hear myself talk). 

As leaders, are you clear on your role? Do you feel pressure to perform as a leader each day concerned you might run out of good leadership “stuff” for your team? To avoid leadership block consider the following steps:

Step 1: Know your strengths. Design your leadership life to cater to your strengths. Outsource your weaknesses.

Step 2: Ask your team how they like to be led? Don’t guess. Determine what you are prepared to do to meet those expectations. 

Step 3: When you have nothing to say, don’t. Sometimes enough is enough. Don’t keep talking when you’ve said your piece. 

Whether you experience writer’s block or leadership block, recognize it’s a natural part of the journey. Find your source of creativity to continue writing. Find your source to develop your leadership skills. We’d be happy to help or find someone for you who can.

Boost Your Performance

I was working with a team this week who had collective writer’s block. Watch this week’s video to find out the source of that block and the solution to moving forward. 

What’s Your Opinion?

Have you ever experienced “leadership block,” where you just didn’t think you had anything to offer? If so, share it with me at robin.pou@robinpou.com. 

If you are going to be a leader, you might as well be a good one. Don’t let doubt count you out. Have a confident week!

Robin Pou, Chief Advisor and Strategist

We live to make bad leadership extinct so forward this newsletter to others who strive to be confident leaders. 

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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.