Release:
July 6, 2022

Women of NATE Today Newsletter
Volume 4, Issue 7

Warm Greetings to all Women of NATE from Germany.

I believe many of us can relate to the picture in this month’s feature article by Nicole Lipkin: “Why Many New Leaders Become Too Busy to Win.” As I write this article, I feel exactly as the unanimous lady shown in the picture, yet with a smirk on my face.

I just finished two week-long business travels which brought me across seven countries. The benefit of being in Europe is that you can indeed visit many countries in one day. It felt so nice to be able to travel again, chat with immigration and customs officers, run to catch the train, have few minutes at the airport prior to a takeoff for a breather…then reach the destination, wait 30 minutes to get your suitcase, have a chat with a cab driver, finally meet humans in their 3D version at meetings, shake hands (or not), attend social events and at night, experience the sound of a crowd -the variety of accents and noises, have a glass of wine with new friends. Then pass out exhausted, have a 5-hour sleep, and do it again and again.

I am not sure where these past two weeks went. I was simply too busy with urgent things, but possibly not the important stuff. This is my first set of back-to-back in person meetings in last two years. Yet am sure my story of not traveling for business is not unique.

As explained in the feature article, during my two weeks, I was trying to prove my worth, trying to convince myself that my organization made the right decision to hire me as the first female Technical Officer in Geneva, Switzerland. That I was and still am worth the investment they made by hiring me; to prove that I am a hustler.

As exhausted as I was during my meetings, I did have a good feeling at heart, as the people I worked with supported and encouraged me, as I was able to take those short breaks as recommended by Ms. Lipkin, as I allowed myself to sit quietly and listen to the thoughts and needs of my body. The advice of ‘giving your mind some time away from being task-oriented’ really hit the spot. I believe I found my prior-to-Covid self.

Working with good people, mentors, and having the right balance allowed me to finalize my meetings and realize that 'Yes I was worth the job I have.' I am no longer exhausted, as I do believe in what I do, and thanks to great people I do love my job. I will not make myself too busy to win. I will continue to prioritize people over tasks and ensure that I keep listening to my body and my thoughts, which will allow me to gain advancement and not be too busy.

I wish the same for each one of us.

Marianna Kramarikova is a member of the Women of NATE (WON) Committee and a Technical Officer at IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission). She can be reached at mkr@iec.ch.

WON Profile: Chelsea Lester

Where will you find the Women of NATE?

Take Women of NATE with you!

Are you traveling for work or taking a leisure vacation? Take a creative photo holding a Women of NATE (WON) logo in front of a landmark that lets us know where you are. 

Women of NATE members have been traveling the continent.
Enjoy the views below!

(Above) What a view as you look Budva. Budva, with its several large sandy beaches, numerous hotels, and amazing nightlife, represents the capital of Montenegrin tourism. St. Nikolas island is on the left side and the old city of Budva is on the right.

Upcoming Events

Join Women of NATE for a one-hour Zoom meeting on July 19, 2022, at 2:00 PM CDT to talk about Work/Life/You Balance. This session will be hosted by WON Committee Member Jeanne Piercey of Tower Engineering Professionals, Inc. Canada and Alisa Reed of Valmont Site Pro 1.

Recent Event Highlights

(Above) NATE Administrative Team members, Kari Stein, Sandy Jurgens, and Sara Goddard take a moment to sport their Women of NATE (WON) swag during the 2022 NATE UAS Expo hosted by Valmont in Valley, Nebraska. 

(Above) NATE Director of Safety, Health & Compliance Kathy Stieler; Women of NATE Committee Chairwoman, Andy Lee; NATE Member Kat Clemmons Lea of Elk River, Inc. and JELCO; and Delisa Calhoun of Elk River, Inc. pose for a photo at the NATE booth during the ASSP Safety 2022 event.

(Above) The NATE SEMC Committee convened to start working on a best practices guideline for Powered Ascenders.

Why Many New Leaders Become Too Busy To Win

One of the most common leadership derailers: too busy to win. - GETTY

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You just got hired in a leadership position. You want to prove your worth. You want to show that promoting you was the right move. At the same time, fear and doubt are kicking in. You are questioning whether you are up to the task.

Plus, you are now in charge of people - some of whom may have previously been coworkers - will they respect you now that you are the boss? You want to be liked and respected. You also need to lead and meet your goals.

To preserve your reputation, you begin to stay late and sleep less. You are exhausted. Your mood is negative. Your influence is waning. You cannot make decisions. You feel frustrated, angry, and impatient. You have gotten so lost in the forest that you can no longer see the trees.

Welcome to one of the most common leadership de-railers: too busy to win.

It is not entirely the individual’s fault. We live in a society that praises busyness. We are bombarded with hustle memes:

·         Hustle never sleeps

·         If you want to make it to the top, you have to hustle

·         Good things come to those who hustle

·         Hustle until haters ask if you’re hiring

To be clear, to be busy is not bad in and of itself. It is when you are taking on too much - and for the wrong reasons - that busy becomes unhealthy.

Why Do We Become Too Busy To Win?

Typically, leaders - both new and seasoned - become too busy to win because they resist delegating, and the resistance to delegate work is usually because of the following:

·         We want people to like us

·         We do not want to waste time telling someone else how to do it

·         We think we can do it best

·         We think delegating makes us look weak

Ironically, people end up respecting their leader less when they do not delegate. When you are swamped with work, you become stressed, which negatively affects your mood, which makes you irritable and difficult to be around.

Another Reason We Succumb To Busyness

You may have entered the workforce long ago with busyness tied into your self-identity.

There is a societal perception that we should always be doing something. We tend to reward the busy and scoff at the lazy, which makes us feel better about being busy.

A 2010 study tested the theory that humans like to be busy:

They had students fill out a survey, then choose one of two options: either stand around and wait 15 minutes before completing another survey, or walk about 15 minutes to another location where they would drop off the survey before returning to take the next survey. In each case, students received candy as a reward.

More students chose to walk, to be active and not idle. When the researchers measured the participants’ sense of well-being, they found a higher degree of happiness among the walkers.

Next, they repeated the experiment but did not give the students a choice. They told some students to walk and the others to stay put. Even when some of the “idlers” were forced to do busywork, the walkers felt happier.

Suppose, however, that the researchers had ordered half of the students to run a mile to the drop-off point while juggling ten balls. Keeping busy may make you happy, but at some point excessive busyness can overwhelm your coping capabilities.

If you see yourself in the following statements, you might be someone who feels good about themselves when they are busy:

·         When I’m busy, I make that fact known to others

·         When people see how busy I am, I think I gain more respect

·         When I hear other people complain about being too busy, I am a little jealous

·         When I am idle I am uncomfortable

OK You Got Me, I am Too Busy To Win - Now What?

Maintain self-awareness. This is difficult if you are already bogged down and do not fully realize why. Make it a life practice to examine your behavior and thoughts. This is how you grow personally and professionally.

One strategy you can use to help you get to the root cause of your stress if you are not sure why you have become too-busy-to-win is the “OK, why?” strategy. For instance, it might go a little something like this:

“I’m stressed” … OK, why?

“I’m overcommitted” … OK, why?

“I have no idea how to say no” … OK, why?

“I like being busy” … OK, why?

“Being busy is tied up in my identity. I don’t know how to disconnect the two.”

Ah ha! Now we’re on to something. That is a great place to be. From there you can work on yourself.

Get a coach. The right executive coach can provide invaluable objectivity. You will know you have found the right one when you feel comfortable opening up to them and being transparent about your situation. The right coach can motivate, reveal your mental blocks, and point you in the right direction.

Take breaks. As a short-term fix - and ultimately one that should be part of your life - it is extremely important to take breaks. Go for a walk, get some fresh air, grab a cup of coffee, just change the scenery in some way. Watch something funny or relaxing on the computer. You can also sit quietly with your eyes closed and follow your breath. The important thing is to give your mind some time away from being task-oriented.

Allow feedback. If people that know you are telling you that you seem stressed and overworked, you probably are. Rather than brush them aside because you are too busy to listen to them, or because you cannot accept feedback, let the feedback in!

Delegate. In the end you will have to let go and delegate. This is not a surrender, it is actually part of your job. You have been put in a leadership position specifically to delegate, so do not take it as a sign of weakness. It is the opposite! Delegating does not make you look weak, it makes you look capable.

When you delegate you gain respect, your workload will lighten, and you will have the mental space to take a bird’s eye view of your team and/or organization.

You want to nip excessive and unnecessary busyness in the bud because it creates a negative emotional footprint in your work culture. Emotions spread like wildfire. Even remotely we can feel someone’s mood via text, instant messaging, email, you name it.

The mood of a company or team is often set by the leader and if the leader is stressed and unhappy, it is a safe bet their emotional state will trickle down to everyone else.

When everyone’s stressed and unhappy it creates an unpleasant workplace culture. Engagement goes out the window as people start looking for a new job and you may risk losing your own leadership position.

As a newly appointed leader you should not be expected to do all the work, but rather figure out the workflow that creates productivity, innovation, and creates a meaningful work experience for all involved. It takes a willingness to let go and to trust yourself and your team.

[study cited earlier: Christopher Hsee, Adelle Yang, and Liangyan Wang (July, 2010). “Idleness Aversion and the Need for Justifiable Busyness”]

This article was originally published on the Forbes website at https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolelipkin/2022/04/26/why-many-new-leaders-become-too-busy-to-win/?sh=3e45450dd081.