Repost: Overachieving and Overreaching – A Sign of Imbalance

May 22, 2012
Overachieving and Overreaching
A Sign of Imbalance

by Madisyn Taylor

Sometimes when we don’t feel good enough, we create imbalance by overachieving or needing to be the best at something.

Overachievers are people who have achieved but still feel the need to do more, creating an imbalance in their lives. People who exhibit this behavior may be trying to compensate for feelings of insecurity and doubts about their worth. They may be chasing unresolved issues from their past into the present, or they might not be looking at their lives as a whole, but judging themselves based only on one aspect of their being. If this is a word that we’ve heard used with respect to our choices and lifestyle, it is worth examining in order to balance our lives for a more rewarding experience.

If we find that we cannot allow ourselves to experience and enjoy the present moment, putting pleasure off into some distant future, it may be a sign that we are being driven to achieve more than is truly necessary. Pushing ourselves beyond the point of exhaustion, or to the exclusion of important people in our lives, robs us of true and meaningful joy. Once we make the connection to the eternal part of us, it can nourish us and allow our priorities to shift from chasing after an elusive feeling to being fully present in the moment so that we can live our lives in the now.

Sometimes we need to look to those we love and admire in order to realize what we value about life. We can take time to note what we like about others, and then turn the mirror to reflect the light of those same words and feelings toward ourselves. It can be quite a revelation to see ourselves in this nourishing light. When we can put the energy that we’ve been devoting to a phantom sense of achievement into the truly satisfying aspects of our lives, we can restore the balance between our inner and outer worlds and experience true joyful peace. [From DailyOm]

He hit the nail on the head about negative energizers. And he should know — he’s a self-proclaimed natural negative:

Deplete.
Devalue.
Diminish.
Degrade.
De-motivate.

Leadership Freak

If the world naturally drifted upward like hot-air balloons, leaders and leadership would be irrelevant.

People wore rose colored glasses in the 60’s when they thought drugs and “free love” would create a New World. Apart from positive intervention chaos reigns. Call it pessimism if you like. Even hot-air balloons require burners to stay afloat.

Downward drift is leadership’s opportunity
for positive impact.

Doom and gloomers, nay sayers, and hand-wringers may firmly grasp the present but they seldom create desired outcomes.  20% of leadership is seeing the downward drift. 80% of leadership is firing the burners.

Research indicates there are “positive energizers” and “negative energizers” (Cameron).

Negative energizers:

1. Deplete.
2. Devalue.
3. Diminish.
4. Degrade.
5. De-motivate.

Negative energizers live in, focus on, talk about, and wallow on the dark side. Pulling down is easy. Negative energizers are critical, talk in dark tones, don’t engage, and are more self-centered. I know…

View original post 136 more words

These statements struck hit a nerve for me: “Any fool can make others afraid. It takes real leadership to fill others with courage” and “Focusing on people before projects. Standing with not above encourages.”

Leadership Freak

Courage is the willingness and resolve to act when outcomes are uncertain. Everyone needs courage because we live in turbulent, changing times.

Nothing good gets done without courage.

Powerful leaders encourage – fill with courage – so that others can press through their fears. Fear pulls back; courage pushes forward.

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” Anais Nin

Leaders who fill others with courage always go further than those who don’t. Any fool can make others afraid. It takes real leadership to fill others with courage.

Model courage by:

1. Occasionally express concerns – frequently focus on opportunity, potential, and vision.
2. Expressing confidence in the team’s talents, abilities, and performance.
3. Standing with your team when it hits the fan.

Go beyond modeling courage to encouraging. Fill with courage by:

1. Speaking calmly and clearly during tension and stress.
2. Focusing on people before projects. Standing with not above encourages.
3. Lifting up…

View original post 157 more words

Self-promotion without being arrogant. That’s the trick.

Leadership Freak

If the right people don’t know about your work your work doesn’t matter. It may be important. It may be valuable. But, you’ll never get ahead if those over you don’t know your value and accomplishments.

Keeping your head down and working hard
keeps you down and lets others take credit.

Self-promotion:

Self-promotion isn’t a dirty word. “It’s not bragging if you can back it up,” Muhammad Ali. (From Getting Ahead) Self-promotion done well is so powerful that even those who haven’t performed get ahead, for a while. I’m not promoting empty self-promotion – just saying it works!

The tip that keeps on giving:

Joel Garfinkle offers bucket loads of useful ideas on self-promotion in Getting Ahead. My favorite is keeping track of your accomplishments. You may be the type that does more – takes on more responsibility – but forgets all you’ve done. Record your achievements every…

View original post 219 more words