We’ve talked a lot recently about some of the foundational elements of team culture, and how you can use those attributes to grow and nurture your team’s unique culture. We talked just recently about leading by example, and how important it is for you to be practicing the very things you want to develop within your team, as they are looking to the leadership for their cues.

Today, we want to talk a little more personally. You see, leadership behaviors directly correlate to leadership impact. To put it another way, attitude is a reflection of leadership. There’s plenty of guides out there for how workplace leadership impacts team dynamics, or making a difference as a leader, and those are critically important aspects of leadership, but there’s something you shouldn’t overlook that many people do: you.

Why Me?

Many people associate leadership in the workplace to mean routinely checking in on your team, avoiding being one of those toxic managers that pops up on listicles, and generally displaying authentic leadership characteristics. In the midst of all the talk about why leadership matters, people tend to forget to add in to their check lists on positive leadership examples that you need to check in on you.

Top down leadership gets dealt a crippling blow pretty quickly if the ‘top’ part of the equation has run themselves absolutely ragged. You want a quick path to the dark side of leadership? Find a manager who does nothing but go all out endlessly. Eventually, that strain will cause cracks, and overtime, you’ll wind up with a very broken person in your leadership spot. That’s not good for anyone, least of all you.

Self Check-Ins

So what are some steps you can take to make sure that you are keeping an eye on your own health as well as the health of your team? First of all, it’s important to remember that you aren’t alone. Even if you don’t have peers in your organization that you feel like you can talk to, there are plenty of people around the world who are likely experiencing similar things. LinkedIn can be a powerful resource for finding people to get advice from or just to talk to.

Secondly, there’s solid odds that you’re part of a team yourself, and just like you’re supposed to be keeping an eye on the health of your team, there’s probably someone who is meant to be keeping an eye on your health. If that relationship is a safe one, check in with them. Everyone benefits from these kinds of mutual checks. After all, a health team is likely a more efficient and productive one, and certainly a happier one.

Third, make sure you have people outside of work that are safe for you to relax with. Even if you have to be vague on the details, talking about frustrations in a social setting is a good way to clear the weight of it from your mind and help you find alternative solutions to problems. Get your brain out of a rut by engaging with people who aren’t down in the rut with you.

Finally, check in with the team you’re leading. Besides being the most direct feedback in some regards, it will also go a long way towards demonstrating and developing trust between you and your team. Of course, with all of these, you need to use your best judgment on what aspects of your mental and emotional health you’re discussing, and if you suspect there are larger issues, please take the proper steps to bolster your mental health whenever you can.

We have several other articles on culture building within your team that you can check out, and if you’d like to see how TourGuide Games can help, drop us a line! We’d love to hear from you.