Provision #666: Rituals Matter

by Bob Tschannen-Moran

Laser Provision

Our effectiveness at work declines if we are always on the go. That's why great leaders develop regular, reflective rituals. We find ways to step back and to connect with purpose, plans, and people. That's what makes great leaders so refreshing to be around. Instead of wearing people out with nonstop performance momentum, great leaders infuse people with energy by knowing just when to push and when to pull back. It's an intuitive dance but it doesn't materialize out of thin air. It's cultivated one day and one ritual at a time. If you don't have such rituals, then this Provision will give you at least 11 ideas. I encourage you to go out and make at least one of them your own.

LifeTrek Provision

1. Breathing deeply and rhythmically

2. Listening to inspirational music

3. Eliminating distractions

4. Entering a quiet and calm space to compose oneself

5. Reading out loud your purpose statement and core values

6. Setting your intention

7. Checking your perspective and attitude

8. Reviewing your notes and agenda points

9. Releasing your attachment to an outcome and all sense of demand

10. Remembering that it's all about them

What a great set of rituals! They certainly apply to leadership presence just as well as to coaching presence. If we, as leaders, fail to incorporate reflective rituals in our daily lives then our leadership will succumb to what Tim Gallwey describes as "performance momentum." Being constantly in a go-go-go state does not make for excellent leadership. Developing and taking the time for reflective rituals that interrupt our busyness is what great leaders do.

These rituals take place in between our moments of busyness, in those times when we STOP: Stepping back, Thinking, and Organizing our thoughts before Proceeding. Great leaders turn such stops into rituals. They won't happen unless we take the time to make them happen.

Life doesn't slow down or stop of its own accord. That's true even in the natural work, but it's especially true in the world of work which is increasingly a 24/7 operation. For one thing, in the global economy, someone is always awake working on something. I see that even in a small organization such as the Board of Governors of the International Association of Coaching. Our 16-member Board currently includes people from every time zone in the United States, plus zones in Europe, Israel, Australia, and Asia. As I sleep people on the other side of the globe are working.

Computers also contribute to the 24/7, go-go-go phenomenon. As a silicon-based life form, they do not follow the same rhythms as their carbon-based associates. People need time to rest and recover from our exertions; computers do not. Anyone who tries to keep up with the global economy or with their computers is doomed to fail. That goes for leaders as well as everyone else.

So don't let that happen. Rituals matter. What do you do when you get up in the morning? David Whyte, in his poem "What to Remember When Waking," reminds us to first peer into the small opening of the new day which closes the moment we begin our plans. Any of those ten rituals brainstormed in class can be done at the start of every day. There are plenty of other ones as well.

Julia Cameron, in her book The Artist's Way, recommends the practice of journal writing. She calls them "morning pages" and she recommends exactly three. Write less and we don't go deep enough. Write more and few people will be able to sustain the practice over time. Cameron views three pages as being just right when it comes to a morning ritual.

Later in the day, many leaders have been famous for the ritual nap taking, including Winston Churchill and a number of US Presidents. "You must sleep sometime between lunch and dinner, and no halfway measures," Churchill famous wrote. "Take off your clothes and get into bed. That's what I always do. Don't think you will be doing less work because you sleep during the day. That's a foolish notion held by people who have no imaginations. You will be able to accomplish more. You get two days in one – well, at least one and a half." I have a friend who does that one better, taking two naps a day.

The point of this Provision is not to promote one ritual over another. The point is to emphasize the importance of renewal rituals for great leadership. Different leaders develop different rituals. That's fine and as it should be. People have unique interests, abilities, and experiences. No great leader, however, goes without rituals altogether. They become intentional parts of our daily, weekly, and monthly routines such that we can easily describe and point to the ones we do on a regular basis.

If you don't believe me, you might want to test the hypothesis for yourself. Go ask the leaders you know whether or not they have rituals or recurring practices that help them to be effective. Ask them how they stumbled upon those things and how important they think they are. Ask them to distinguish between the little things they may do on a daily basis and the larger things they may do on a weekly or monthly basis. Discover what things they do alone and what things they do with others. Then write me and let me know what you learned.

If your experience ends up being anything like my own, then your research will reveal just how much rituals matter. They are not nice-to-haves; they are have-to-haves. And great leaders develop great rituals for success.

Coaching Inquiries: Who do you think of as a great leader? What do you know about the things they do when you're not around? How could you find out more? What questions do you have? How could incorporate your discoveries into your everyday life? What rituals make the most sense for you?

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LifeTrek Readers' Forum (selected feedback from the past week)

Editor's Note: The LifeTrek Readers' Forum contains selections from the comments and materials sent in each week by the readers of LifeTrek Provisions. They do not necessarily reflect the perspective of LifeTrek Coaching International. To submit your comment, use our Feedback Form or Email Bob.