Recently we cleared a lot of our dad’s personal items from his home.  Carefully, reverently and between tears and laughter my mum, my brother and I, took to this task that we have been avoiding.    Too soon, not soon enough, it is a time of mixed emotion and another part of our physical goodbye.  Whilst mum had hoped that we could reuse and repurpose a lot of things, there were only a few things my brother and I decided to keep.

One of these items I kept among others including an awesome collection of dad’s ties through the ages, was my dad’s sun hat.  In his later years, and perhaps as he lost his desire to sport a baseball cap, he took to wearing a fedora style hat.    It was stylish, uber cool and really suited dad.  As I surveyed the bags of clothes, books and tools, I observed that dad had quite a lot of stuff and whilst he would say over the years, don’t buy me gifts (we were just adding to the stuff that we had to eventually clear) it occurred to me that for many of us, we have far more than we need, and we add to our collection of stuff, often unnecessarily. 

Dad loved that hat.  I loved seeing him wear that hat.  I now have the hat, and I have been wearing it happily.  I did not need a pile of Dad’s stuff to remind me of him, just a few things including his hat.  Practical, stylish, and it was my dad’s so I will always treasure it. 

This got me thinking though about all the stuff we have in our leadership toolkits and how often we cull what is in our toolkit.

Shedding the Excess

Much like decluttering a space to create room for meaningful items, you can shed the excess in your leadership toolkit. This involves identifying and letting go of practices, processes, or tasks that don’t contribute significantly to your leadership goals. By eliminating unnecessary complexities, you can create a streamlined and efficient work environment. 

It’s worthwhile being curious about the relevance and impact of each element in your toolkit. Are there meetings that could be condensed or eliminated? Are there redundant files and documents that can be simplified? Shedding the excess not only frees up time but also allows you to direct your focus on high-impact activities. I could have kept some of Dad’s other hats, but one was enough to avoid having excess stuff I would need to shed later.

Clearing the Mental Space 

Minimalist deliberate leaders understand the importance of a clear and focused mind. To achieve this, it’s crucial to declutter mental space. This involves setting clear priorities, establishing boundaries, and learning to say no when necessary. It’s necessary to reflect on your values and goals, ensuring alignment between goals and vision. 

Clearing mental space also includes practicing mindfulness and being present in the moment. By fostering a calm and focused mind, you can make more deliberate decisions and lead with intentionality.  We observed a fog lift from our mum as we physically cleared more space.  I could see her clearing mental space as we did this too.

Reusing Valuable Resources 

Instead of constantly seeking new tools and techniques, minimalist deliberate leaders look for opportunities to reuse and repurpose existing resources. This may involve leveraging the strengths of your team members, utilizing proven strategies, or adapting successful practices from other industries. 

It’s useful to encourage a culture of resourcefulness within your team, promoting the idea that innovation can come from maximising existing resources. Reusing valuable resources is efficient and contributes to a sustainable and resilient leadership approach.  I am loving that I can reuse my dad’s hat.

Upcycling Leadership Practices

Minimalist deliberate leaders are innovative in their approach to leadership. Instead of discarding outdated practices, they upcycle them by giving them a fresh and relevant twist. This may involve integrating new technologies, adapting to changing trends, or repurposing traditional methods to suit modern challenges. 

Deliberate leaders are open to experimenting with new ideas while upcycling tried-and-true practices. This approach keeps leadership strategies relevant and encourages a culture of continuous improvement within the organisation.  I am thinking about some creative ideas for dad’s eccentric tie collection.  Stay tuned. 

The minimalist deliberate leader is one who strategically sheds, clears, reuses, and upcycles their leadership toolkit to focus on what really matters.  This helps us to be sharper, more focused, have clarity about what we want and need and be a better leader for our teams and organisations. 

Check out our upcoming events for new deliberate leadership programs and activities in 2024. 

Here’s how we can work together: 

💬 One-on-one coaching

👩‍🏫 Facilitation of your next leadership team activity

🎯 Leadership development and training

🎤 Book me as a Speaker or MC for your next event