7 Ways to Tap into Personal Leadership Vitality

vitality

Your vitality level is a personal leadership trait.

At what vitality level are you living and leading your life?  Personal Leadership Vitality is about putting your energy where you get energy in return. It’s about making shifts that are more aligned with the change you wish to see.

Your vitality level may be low – especially if you are focusing on things like day-to-day survival or  the busyness of just getting by.  You know what I mean – surviving vs. thriving.  It may also be low if you are focused on things like running a business – and you have the 3 am night sweats because you are worrying about how you are going to build your business.  Basically, anyone who is in the oh-too-common situation of being ridiculously overwhelmed may be experiencing a low vitality level.

Your vitality level may be more mid-level if you have the survival stuff handled and you are now working on things like enjoying a sense of belonging, becoming more social, and nurturing a desire to do more connecting.  Low and Mid-line vitality levels have a lot to do with getting our needs met, basic ones or otherwise.  They are also indicative of times of transition.  For times like these,  you might just want to focus your attention on the 1st of the 7 ways.

If you have already your core needs met and you are in a place of wanting to do more actualizing and thriving and you are ready to grow and challenge yourself; here are 7 ways to increase your personal leadership vitality:

The good news is, if you do it right for yourself to your own self-defined success, you’ll unleash all kinds of physical, emotional, and spiritual energy— and give yourself additional vitality for living and leading.

1.  Tap into what brings meaning

Bringing greater awareness to what is really important is one of the best ways to gain immediate vitality.

Here are two perspectives:

The first is when you decide what is important – you also decide what is less important.   When you release those things that you recognize as non-important – it’s an energy booster.  The second side of bringing your attention to – and deciding what is truly important to you – within that acknowledged meaningfulness there is always personal fulfillment and transformational leadership vitality to be found.

A very simple example:

Let’s say you believe that getting out into nature is important to you (and you realize you haven’t done that for a while).  Then going out for a stroll in the woods may be just the ticket to shift your vitality level.  You honored your value of Nature.   There is fulfillment in that.   When you do the thing – you decided was really important to you – the by-product is greater vitality.

The key is to identify what is meaningful and then look for how that meaningfulness suggests you behave. (it’s not a should-do, but it will be more of love too).  It’s behaving from the love that will lead you to greater vitality.

2. Tap into what brings satisfaction and joy

Sometimes this is about personal passion – those things that bring you to life.  Those things you focus on – when the time just whizzes by.  Sometimes it is also more about making choices.  When you focus on how you feel when you are in a relationship, working on a task or project, or working towards your goals – your body will send you signals as to whether you are really enjoying things.   When you become even more aware of what is giving or draining energy, you can then choose to put in energy where you get energy in return.

If you are putting your time and focus into things that mentally and physically sap your energy; it may be time to bring some additional choices into your life.

3. Tap into what brings ease

Tapping into ease also has a lot to do with the messages your body will send you.  When you are struggling with something – it’s telling you at least 3 things.  You may not know enough of what to do, you don’t know in specific enuf detail now how to do it or you need more practice and flow.  Personal leadership ease is about moving thru each of those 3 stages without inner resistance. Your body in ease can show you the way thru struggle.

It’s also about creating environments so you can do that work without external resistance.  Ya know… the things like getting the just right amount of sleep, nutrition, and support.

4. Tap into what brings effective performance

Tapping into effective performance is being on the road to personal mastery.  When you have both the flexibility and the capacity that comes from being masterful, there can be a swing in your step, a glint in your eye – and a sense of flow that is vitalizing.

5. Tap into what brings  “Aliveness”

Finding the best of a situation in your personal story can be a clue to where the aliveness resides.  The next time you share a personal story; look for the best of what is within that story. Look at the strengths you were demonstrating.  Look at the gifts of the situation.  It’s in the appreciation that there are clues to sources of your own personal aliveness.

6. Tap into what brings awareness of the present moment

Whether like the Buddhist practice of mindfulness,  or expanding your awareness, or just appreciating the little things.  Being conscious of the present moment can bring amazing vitality.  If you are not sure where to start.  Start with being fully present while watching a sunset the next evening.

Witnessing your own breath can also be a wonderful way to bring your awareness to the present moment. Experiencing the rise and fall of your chest, the sound of the air moving as you inhale and exhale and just generally feeling what is going on in your body.  It’s a great 5-minute time-out if you need to tap into one.

7. Tap into what brings simplicity

Simplicity doesn’t always mean simple.  Simplicity is a lot about the choices you make as to where to spend your vitality.  For example, sometimes the simplicity option means putting more into something.  More focus for more results, more responsibility for more contribution, more mastery for more fulfillment.   Sometimes it means putting less into something.  Less focus on relationships that sap your energy, less perfectionism in writing, less judgment or criticism extended outwards.

From a top-of-the-mountain perspective – simplicity has a lot to do with knowing your own definition of success in how you want to think, feel and act – and then making choices with a bias to that personal definition.

At what vitality level are you living your life? Are you living at the survival level,  security level, social, belonging, or connecting level, or are you in a growth stage?

Tap,Tap, Tap

  • ZoeSexton says:

    Hello- I am posting a bit of your commentary on my website. I feel vitality is essential to leadership and developing a support base. Thanks for your comments. I have added your link to my blog.
    Blessings,
    Zoe

    • Anne Preston says:

      I agree Zoe. Personal Leadership vitality is one of those things – that will support so much of what is needed to be a great personal leader. It’s pretty challenging to drive your ‘car’ if you are out of gas. Personal Leadership vitality is like gas for someone pursuing a path of self leadership

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