Why Leaders Go First

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As a leader, if you want to make a difference in your life, you must go first. You must start first. You must have the courage to go first.

When you go first, you are ahead of those who are still waiting for someone to tell them when to start.

That is what great leaders do. They go first. They don’t wait for someone else to tell them when to start doing things.

According to Brian Tracy, ‘Leaders don’t wait for someone else to do something.’

‘Leadership is about responsibility, and that includes the responsibility for taking control of your life and ensuring your happiness.’

‘Leaders take care of themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally, which gives them the energy and peace of mind to deal with the challenges and stress of leadership.’

‘Leaders are paid to make the difficult decisions, and sometimes that means issuing a command.’

‘Good leaders are able to find people who are strong where they are weak; that way they can concentrate on developing their own strengths to even greater heights.’

‘Leaders are self-motivated to put in the work required to achieve their dreams.’ Leaders work harder. Leaders work faster. Leaders work longer hours.’

‘Effective leaders treat everyone, the weak and the powerful, in the same way.’

‘Leaders recognize that they are not perfect, but know that they are still competent and skilled.’

‘Leaders commit themselves to excellent performance. They will accept nothing else from themselves or others.’

‘Leaders believe that they have the control in their hands- otherwise, they could not be leaders.’

Source:

Brian Tracy (2014). Leadership

10 Ways To Be More Productive Without Burning Out

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If you want to enjoy your work, you must take charge of your work. Do not take more than you can do. Do not try to impress other people.

You are not working to impress anybody. You are working to learn how to work.

If you are not enjoying your work anymore, if you are feeling tired, ‘Strive to reduce your obligations to the point where you can easily imagine accomplishing them with the time to spare. Leverage this reduced load to more fully embrace and advance the small number of projects that matter most.’

‘Our brains work better when we’re not rushing.’

‘Focusing intensely on a small number of tasks, waiting to finish each before bringing on something new, is objectively a much better way to use our brains to produce valuable output.’

‘If you fall behind on a project, update your estimate and inform the person who originally sent you the work about the delay.’

Be clear about what’s going on, and deliver on your promises, even if these promises have to change. Never let a project just drop through the cracks and hope it will be forgotten.’

Don’t rush your must important work. Allow it instead to unfold along a sustainable timeline, with variations intensity, in settings conducive to brilliance.’

Obsess over the quality of what you produce, even if this means missing opportunities in the short term. Leverage the value of these results to gain more and more freedom in your efforts over the long term.’

If you want more control over your schedule, you need something to offer in return. More often than not, your best source of leverage will be your own abilities.’

Obsessing over quality isn’t just about being better at your job. It’s instead a secret weapon of sorts for those interested in a slower approach to productivity.’

‘Quality matters, but if it becomes everything, you may never finish.’

Source:

Cal Newport (2024). Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout