Leadership and Reflection

There was a long time when I did not appreciate the value of reflection.

My life and leadership were based in action, without much real depth. I tend to be pretty focused, motivated by achieving goals, and very analytical. Those qualities helped fuel my approach to life and leadership. I was comfortable solving problems and reaching conclusions. Rational and analytical thinking felt linear, as if my mind was moving from point to point toward a goal.

Reflection is different.

For me, reflection allows the connections between things to become clearer. Many people describe it as beginning to learn to let go of things. As a way of processing it allows me to incorporate many more factors into my considerations. Reflection tends to be less about controlling information than about allowing things to fall into place.

Reflection has become central to the way I live and lead.

There is a window above the desk on which my computer sits that usually allows me to look out at trees, hummingbirds, and a few squirrels. The large mirror on the wall behind me reflects more light into the room during the day. When I talk with someone via Skype or FaceTime, I can see the images on the screen and the trees outside the window reflected in the mirror on the computer screen. The reflection creates a series of images, each from a slightly different perspective.

Reflection draws things to my attention that I might miss when I am looking in a more linear way.

When I spend time reflecting I am giving things an opportunity to bounce around a little and show themselves to me in new ways. It is not that reflection is aimless, it is more that it is open to the possibilities.

How do you spend time reflecting?

Do you appreciate the value of reflection?

[Image by mike.wilson]