CEO Silence
Vijay Eswaran (pronounced Veejay Eeshwuhrn) wrote a book titled In the Sphere of Silence. USA Today caught up with him for a November 19th article titled, CEO succeeds through silence - 1 hour of daily reflection gives you time to set goals, get focused.
Mr. Eswaran reinforces my suggestions for Sanctuary and Success Plans. At first you think he is referring to an hour of prayer or meditation, but actually he recommends the time to be filled with active thought. If you believe in a higher power then use the time to review your plans, ask for advice and plan your next bold moves.
What would happen to your investment of life’s most valuable asset that is in your control - your time - if you started each day with one hour of:
- Bible study or meditation
- Prayer, possibly in the ACTS method: Adoration of God, Confession of sins/mistakes, Thankfulness and Supplication - asking for assistance.
- Review what you accomplished the day before, week-month-or year before.
- What went right? You want to do more of this.
- What went wrong? You must learn from this.
- What needs to change for you to achieve your dreams?
- Define your goals / plans for today and the future. Be specific, clear and measurable. Be realistic, yet stretch yourself. How can you delegate tasks and manage them through others? Are you providing the support your people need to achieve the tasks you have set with them (not for them).
- Read a book to gain new insight for 15-30 minutes. Seek knowledge early in the day before time has lapsed and you cannot develop your mind.
- During this time all forms of communication are turned off and your staff understands they are not to interrupt you.
Why not try this for 1 week? I’ll try it this week and let you know how it goes for me. Leadership requires alone time to gain perspective. This may be an effective habit to develop. I admit an hour sounds challenging, yet my understanding is Martin Luther prayed for 2 hours each day until he became a well-known leader. Then he prayed for 4 hours a day.