I have always heard that sometimes the best thing you can do to move forward is to take a pause, or even take a step back. I don’t think I fully believed this. It doesn’t make a lot of sense on a mathematical level, but after this last year, I now appreciate the sentiment behind this idea.
First, let me thank all of you who have inquired about my blogging. After many years of creating weekly blogs and writing books – not to mention the often writing-heavy job that I had with the military, I just needed a break. I thought that I would simply finish my tour of duty in Japan, move back to the United States and continue with my professional endeavors with the speed and enthusiasm I had been attacking so many things.
I discovered plans are only as good as the piece of paper they are drawn upon. Real life presented itself and I embraced it with open arms. Because of a health issue with one of myl sons, my family didn’t join me in Japan. Sure, I visited on leave and technology allowed us into each other’s lives daily, but after three years of not co-habitating with my wife and boys, I found myself wanting to spend time being husband and daddy more than I wanted to be life coach or mentor shortly after returning home.
At first, I felt a little bit guilty. The news was full of stories of people who couldn’t get their act together following the pandemic and were finding it difficult to even work from home, let alone make it into an office. Everywhere I turned there were stories about people reinventing what it meant to work, but I wasn’t in a place where it was time to do that. I wanted to continue getting to bond with my family and, while it took some time, I don’t feel guilty that I stepped away from work for this experience.
I still maintained a light coaching schedule, working with my existing clients and taking on the occasional new client, but when it came to all the advice and knowledge I’d been handing out to people over the last many years, I recognized it was time to take some of my own advice and re-prioritize what was going on in my life. When you’re on the other side of the world, there’s just so much you can do when your son skins his knee or when your wife’s car gets a flat tire. Now that I was back home, I was front-and-center. While I’m guessing many people would see the scrapes and unexpected problems as hassles, I saw them as welcome challenges allowing me to integrate the most important people back into my everyday life.
One of my regular clients – who holds a high-level corporate position – said to me the other day, “Arnel, you seem more focused than ever before. Your leadership advice has never been better.” It was a bit of an ironic statement because I think if the man I was five years ago saw the man I have been this last year, they would think that I was slacking off. I, however, agree with my client. I’ve been honing a different kind of leadership this last year and it’s made me a better man.
I’m so pleased to be back with you writing these weekly blogs and I’m going to focus on leadership in these first few weeks. I’ve had a lot of thoughts this last year and I look forward to sharing them with you. If there are any subjects you’d like to me to tackle, please don’t hesitate to let me know and I should also mention I am now taking new clients on again, so if you’re looking for a professional coach with a personal touch, drop me a note.