It doesn’t matter if you’re a co-founder of a multi-million company or you lead a team of ten. You still need mentally balanced leadership in order to sustain peaceful life.
Peace with the work you do so that you can lead people in the right direction; peace with your personal life so that you can grow as an individual. Therefore, mentally balanced leadership is crucial for growing personally and professionally.
What is Wrong with our Lives?
Being mentally balanced is way easier said than done. For instance, ask yourself, “what was the last time you did nothing?” Nothing as in your mind was empty with zero thoughts of completing any task. Nothing as in, you weren’t bothered with how many emails you had to answer.
Or simply put: What was the last time you truly enjoyed leisure time with your family, friends, or even with your own company alone? Probably a really long time ago. Maybe you don’t even remember. But that’s fine. Because it has become the new norm—burning out is a new buzz word in the entrepreneurial industry.
Working for long hours, not taking breaks, being a night owl, abusing the usage of technology, etc. All these factors affect your physical health of course, but it is also destroying your mental health. Now imagine, in this situation, how can someone be mentally balanced or heck just be mentally healthy at all?
It’s Not that Simple
But who are we kidding also. In this time and age, you must work more than you need—that’s only you get above the mediocrity. You must always be on your phone or laptop to be focused all the time. You must be productive in order to get all the boxes to check in your to-do list.
And even after completing all these routines and rituals, you still can’t find a peaceful moment. For example, even if you tried to go for a vacation, you still can’t run from your workaholic life—your stream of consciousness is always on the peak.
Now, after putting all these conditions, do you still think you can acquire mentally balanced leadership? Because we all are familiar with the potential, a highly motivated leader can bring to the table. And for that to happen, a leader also needs a clear head.
Habits for achieving Mentally Balanced Leadership
Therefore, in this very article, you are going to unleash the 6 habits which will help you to become a mentally balanced leader.
Habit #1: Difference Between Being Busy and Being Productive
People mix being busy with being productive. Whereas in reality—these are exceptionally different mindsets to handle the tasks around. For instance, being busy is working harder, not smarter. Being busy is when you are stuck with so many tasks but are not able to focus on anyone—being focus on one task is being productive!
Other examples include: Being busy is achieving every goal with perfectionism while being productive is about purposefulness. And we know that it’s impossible to achieve things once you try to make everything look perfect.
Hence, we should focus on the most important matters at a time and try to get them done. With or without being perfect. Therefore, once you understand the difference, you have more time and you’re more focused.
Habit #2: Write that Thought Down
What happens when your mind is constantly running and you can’t switch that off. Now it’s a good thing when you are working or trying to figure out something, But what if you’re trying to relax or want to get some introspection done.
Seems impossible right—switching your brain out? Even if you manage to quiet your brain, what happens with all the amazing ideas your supercomputer is projecting all the time?
Well, note that down. No kidding! Whenever you think of a great idea, write it somewhere—smartphone or go old school and keep a small notebook, why not! Once you make this a habit, not only you get to remember all those amazing ideas, you can finally shut your brain for some time and think nothing.
Habit #3: Divide Time into Three Sets
Behind all the stacks of working hours, we are not able to see the lines. Lines that divide our time with friends & family, work, and personal time.
As a result, we are constantly working—on all three time zones. This can result in poor mental health and can alter our decision-making skills.
Therefore, schedule your time very clearly. Make time for your friends, work, and leisure time. And try not to mix them up.
Habit #4: Power of Saying ‘No’
Let’s say that you have created three sets of time successfully—cheers! What you want to do now is, to inform people about your schedule. Provide these details with your co-workers and tell them you’re not going to be available.
Don’t answer calls, emails, or other notifications during your leisure or personal time, unless it’s an emergency. This will give you some surprising results.
People around you are going to respect your time more. They will help you to set the boundaries. Most importantly, you will start enjoying your life more. Hence it becomes easier to sustain mentally balanced leadership.
Habit #5: Multitasking is a Myth
There is no such thing as multitasking for humans, we are bad at it—just like that. Therefore people try to juggle between the task and assume that they are getting more things done at once. But in reality, studies show just the opposite.
So you are not multitasking, you are just helping yourself to get a cluttered mind. Because of the many tasks being at your disposal.
There are two major benefits of focusing on one task at a time: you will end up saving more time and getting more things done; you will have a clear mind. A clear mind is crucial for balanced leadership.
Habit #6: Prioritize Screen Time
This was not relatable five years ago but at this moment, prioritizing screen time can improve the overall quality of your life. Why? Because we are addicted to our shiny little gadgets—all the time.
We are bombarded with tons of notifications asking for our attention, and boy it’s hard to ignore. Therefore, just like we detox our body when trying to get rid of harmful elements. We also need to detox our minds from the digital harms that the overuse of technology brings.
There is a term for this, called, digital minimalism. We have covered this in great detail. How to go about the process of digital minimalism. Read the article, it might change your behavior towards the usage of the internet and smartphones.
Conclusion
The truth is that these habits are not just about obtaining balanced leadership. It’s about balancing your life in general. It’s about enjoying your life while also getting things done in a rightful manner—being actually productive.
Once your personal life and professional life walk hand-in-hand, your mental health improves. All of a sudden, your foggy brain is clear and laser-sharp, and things are running smoothly. And ultimately, you have achieved a mentally balanced leadership also. Cheers!
