Dear leaders, this week I have been on an exploratory journey – things in life that can reset work frustrations and stresses.
Do you ever feel stressed or frustrated and can’t kick the feeling? I bet the majority of it in a work setting is either a challenging colleague, a management team member or a recurring bad meeting.
Meeting recovery syndrome (MRS) is the time it takes to recover from a bad meeting, you have likely had a few that took hours to shake off and get back into the zone.
Something I am a big believer in is getting out of your space, that work environment and getting a reset, both when frustrated or creatively you feel like you are struggling.
I have spoken at length about the power of a walk, something I often do is go to London Zoo, it’s a destressing place for me and seeing animals swim, fly and play gives me a fresh perspective on many things.
I have previously mentioned the power of art for me, getting me into a different thought process, it resets my brain and gives me a lot of ideas.
Find your place: I used to go to the Tate in London at moments when I couldn’t shake a bad meeting or another interaction with a frustrating project. The Tate was right near the office I worked at and just entering the space gave me a different feeling.
When the management team of a business line I was responsible for and I were having a few disconnections we ended up on artwork that was a swing, you should have seen the joy in their faces and it was like a reset for the four of us. This was a micro-moment that I fondly look back at and know the hour reset helped us through a challenging time and a memory we all probably look back at and appreciate it helped to reduce our frictions.
I have a deep appreciation for the artist KAWS, my girlfriend brought me a KAWS What Party Book recently and it is like an escape whenever I need it, from seeing his original tagging in New York (above image), to the more modern work where he floats a 115ft inflatable sculpture (image below).
This inspires me to think differently, think bigger or more broadly and understand that at a certain level you need to think differently, get out of your space, your industry and be inspired by different and more.
There are many ways to reset work issues, some rely on music, others on walks, one thing I would love for you to do is to consider seeing more art, and less content in your social media feeds and get out to see or feel something someone has poured their heart and soul into creatively.
Have a great week and remember MRS is real, the only way you improve MRS is by optimising meetings and your calendars.
Thanks,
Danny Denhard
How can I help you? Need help improving your company culture or build strategy with people and performance at the same importance.
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