How great leaders end their day

How you end your day is just as important as how you start it.

There are tons of articles about being a successful leader. They talk about the habits and behaviors you should emulate if you want to be part of this elite group. What do great leaders eat for breakfast, how much do they exercise, how do they dress, etc.? Great leaders do some things differently than others. So, let’s focus on just one area and talk about how they end their day.

I’ve always found it amazing that when talking to great leaders, they talk about how much they work out, go on weekend getaways, try new restaurants, spend time with their family…all after working a 60-hour work week. How do they do this? Many actually employ the same strategies at home that they do at work. They allocate time for all of these other things by compartmentalizing their lives. There is a time for work and a time for play. When they leave work at the end of the day, they leave work. They spend time with family, explore new restaurants, and think about great adventures for the weekend. Sure, they may still check their phone and answer an important email or call, but they do it efficiently.

It’s very important that at the end of the day, they think about what they accomplished during the day. They think about prepping for the next day so they already know what they need to do when they get up; no time is wasted getting started on the day. And at some point in the evening or on the weekend, they actually do unplug. They also understand that they need time for themselves, and often that time comes when they exercise; something they also recognize is critically important for overall balance and creating a healthy personal and professional life.

So to review, here are some of the things you can try to get yourself on the road to becoming a great leader:

•  Organize your personal life just like you organize your professional life – plan ahead
• Make time for your family – give them your full attention
• Allocate time for yourself – a healthy body is just as important as a healthy mind
• Process the day’s events – explore how things went; the good, the bad, and the ugly
• Plan ahead for the next day’s agenda – prep for the next day

By John P. Savas