Is Working Really Working?

If 2022 was the year of “purpose” in business, let 2023 be the year of community. 

Resolutions infiltrate more than just our personal lives at the start of each year – January is when businesses set out to hit the ground running, setting the framework for an even bigger, more successful year than the one before. But at a time when burnout is at the highest it’s ever been – a whopping 80% – we have to take a step back and ask ourselves, “Is this really working?”

On a recent episode of our Leadership Launchpad podcast, we talked about what leaders need to know to succeed in 2023 and beyond. It’s no surprise that many of the strategies are nothing new: A 2010 study conducted by a private equity consulting firm in partnership with Cornell surveyed 72 executives working in companies with revenues from $50 million to $5 billion and found that the common thread that tied the top performers together was a high level of self-awareness and interpersonal skills.

These skills don't feel like the same words you’d find on the job listing for a CEO – and yet our workforce is in more dire need now than ever before of people who possess them. 

The pandemic was a catalyst for a lot of people awakening to how important their own health, mental and physical, is, especially as it relates to their work. And they’re carrying that with them into 2023, leaving no room for the old guard of leadership: unending overtime followed by declarations of, “That’s just how it’s always been!” Not anymore.

Care is the foundation from which trust and safety in the workplace are built. If I work in a disorganized environment where I consistently lack direction and support, that shows a lack of care, which destroys trust, and a lack of me mattering, which destroys my picture of myself as a human being.

Leaders who enable toxic workplaces create negative cycles of thought – when all you’re surrounded by is negative gossip, it begins to leech into everything you do and follows you outside the workplace. It’s hard to put healthy people into unhealthy conditions and have them stay healthy. 

Real change starts with personal growth. That Cornell study asserts that “soft values drive hard results,” and it’s true. Practicing self-reflection cultivates trust with your employees and in turn, helps them create a strong foundation for a positive mindset.  

Does it take time to reach that point? Of course – and what better time to get started than the present? 

Innovation is not coming from scarcity and it’s not coming from a deficit. Human-centric practices are not new, but the application and integration of them into our leadership practice – which is what makes our growth and learning vertical – seems to be a challenge in 2023, still. But the more we continue to heal and grow both as individuals and as leaders, the more we’ll be able to create environments where people can thrive.

This is just the framework. If you’re ready to start doing the work, be sure to give Leadership Launchpad a listen each week as we explore different leadership strategies and dive into the stories that make us who we are.