Want to grow your leadership skills and experience in a practical way? Keep a daily journal. A journal will help you document and remember key life and business events so that you can reflect on them and learn from them more effectively. Harvard Business Review says, “Extraordinary leadership is rooted in several capabilities: seeing before others see, understanding before others understand, and acting before others act. A leader’s unique perspective is an important source of creativity and competitive advantage. But the reality is that most of us live such fast-paced, frenzied lives that we fail to leave time to actually listen to ourselves.”[1]
Use a written journal. The benefits of writing outweigh journaling on your computer. Buy a journal you can write in. The time and effort of writing, and the thought that goes in to putting words on the page, will be of specific benefit.
Set aside a time and place. Look for just 15 minutes a day in the same, quiet location. This may be among your greatest challenges. Do it early before everyone else wakes up, or after the rest of the household has gone to bed. Or perhaps set aside time at lunch, or right after dinner.
Give yourself a phrase that will trigger your writing each day. Consider a question like, “What am I leading others through today?” or “What key decisions am I making right now?” or “What most deserves my time and attention today?” These kinds of thoughts make it easier to focus on useful journal thoughts for the day. Consider also keeping journal thoughts around gratitude—what do you have to be thankful for today? Or stress management—what is stressing you out today and how can you deal with it? There are so many areas of leadership and life development you should not have difficulty finding something to write about. Other topical suggestions include:
What strengths do I notice in myself?
What am I doing today that is meaningful?
How am I investing in others today?
What have I learned recently?
What is challenging to me right now?
Your journal is for you. Resist the urge to share your journal with others. Let these be private thoughts that help guide you in your leadership and self-management. Over time you will begin to see changes and adjustments you are making in your leadership to more effectively deal with circumstances and decisions that arise—this is leadership growth.
When you keep a daily journal you will be following in the footsteps of Teddy Roosevelt. And Harry Truman. And Leonardo da Vinci. And Mark Twain. And Lewis Caroll. Henna Inam of Forbes comments, “The exercise of leadership is not unlike a sport you play. When you review your actions in the field you learn what worked, what didn’t, and adjust along the way.”[2] A journal is, then, both a look back, and a look forward, in your leadership. It is a prudent and valuable investment of your time each day.
