Last week, I shared some insights from some of my favorite columns of 2024. My goal was to find some simple, yet impactful actions readers can work on to improve their leadership skills in 2025. This week I’d like to share a few more.
With the holidays upon us and the end of the year almost here, I find myself feeling introspective. My observation is that when we share our most personal thoughts and feelings, we are more likely to connect with others. They are more likely to hear us.
A few tips for the upcoming year:
Lean into feedback that you didn’t want to hear. In this column on critical feedback, I wrote mostly about giving and receiving feedback in the business realm. Listening to our employees and customers when they are saying what we don’t want to hear is tough—but it’s also a path to improvement. The same is true of feedback that’s more personal. We are all works in progress. We all need improvement. When someone looks you in the eye and (with good intentions) gives you honest feedback that’s hard to hear, that’s a gift. When we lean into that feedback rather than deflecting it, we learn, grow, and keep getting better.
Don’t be afraid to tell on yourself. I have spent a lot of time in the rooms of recovery. One thing we hear is that when people admit to feeling dark emotions or struggling with wanting a drink, they are telling on themselves. As described in this column, telling on oneself is a good thing, because it helps us hold ourselves accountable. Being vulnerable is a good thing. Too often people may feel they will be seen as “less than” if they tell on themselves. Some will see it that way. Those are not the people we want in our life.
Do not quit until the miracle happens. I will close with a thought I feel is appropriate for the season we’re in. It’s excerpted from my column Do Not Quit Till the Miracle Happens. I have a front row seat to miracles. I sit in recovery meetings and see individuals put their lives back together. I see organizations that at one time had poor employee engagement become Best Places to Work. I see communities that were once unsafe become places people want to be. I see people who were takers become givers. These miracles are there for all of us if we look, if we are forgiving, and if we are patient.
This last point, patience, is the key. You might also call it perseverance. Many find ourselves struggling during the holidays. We may not feel great about where we are at the end of 2024. Yet this is the season of hope and miracles. When we focus on gratitude, find ways to do good for others, and learn to forgive, we will one day find ourselves in a better place.
Keep moving forward. Do the next right thing. Do not quit till the miracle happens.
