“We can’t be everything to everyone, but we can be something to someone.” – Simon Sinek

Why do you exist?  That’s a pretty heavy question for a Monday morning (or any morning, really).  Why are you here?  What exactly are you supposed to be doing with the time you have on this planet?

Those may sound like questions for great philosophers, but we’re really answering those questions every day with the choices we make.  How we spend our time and what we focus on declares to the world our answers.

That’s especially true for leaders.  People in our organizations watch what we do and assume that whatever we’re doing must be the thing we’re supposed to do.  Then they most likely copy it.

All of that is to say that, as leaders, it’s critically important that we stay focused on the stuff that really matters, the stuff that really makes a difference.  Unfortunately, focus is one of the things leaders struggle with the most.

Too many leaders are trying to be too many things to too many people, and a lot of those things and people aren’t what’s most important.  So, leaders run around frantically doing things and being busy and working ridiculous hours, and at the end of it all they’re no closer to achieving something meaningful than when they started.

It doesn’t have to be that way.  We are not required to run ourselves ragged trying to please everybody.  We are allowed to say “No”.  We are allowed to tell someone that we’re not able to meet their needs right now because these other five things are more critical at this time.  And we don’t even have to say we’re sorry.

What are you spending your time on?  Who are you really working for?  As a leader, your job is to identify the organizational destination, and then do what needs to be done to make sure it gets there.  While that might mean balancing a number of things, it doesn’t mean doing what everyone else wants you to do so that their lives are easier and more comfortable.

Be honest with yourself about what matters.  Be honest with yourself about where your time and energy are going.  Make whatever changes you need to make so that the stuff that matters is your focus.  Then get to work.