Which zone?

There's a feeling we all get, more or less often, when our mind is switched on to the task before us.

It's fantastic.

We call it “being in the zone” but the truth is, there's not just one zone.

Your brain is capable of several distinct modes of thinking.

• Strategy mode, when you're focused on big-picture thinking for the future.

• Planning mode, when you're organizing specific plans for yourself or your team.

• Execution mode, when you're knocking out tasks in your plan.

• Learning mode, when you're ready to vacuum up and understand a lot of new information in a short time.

• Fighting mode, when you're ready to perform at a high level under stress.

• Reflection mode, when you're assessing your current situation or past work.

They're all important and valuable. But you can only be “in the zone” for one mode at a time. Switching from one to another is not easy. And each one takes a bit of practice.

Here's the thing:

If you value the results you can get in any given mode of thinking, it helps to spend time there, often.

As a leader in your organization, are you making time for the modes of thinking you value most, and that are the best use of your time?

it’s not a bad thing to spend time wrestling with a tough technical problem. Somebody has to solve it, after all.

But tough technical problem mode is very different from strategy and planning mode.

If you're not making the time to switch from the one to the other, when will you be in the zone to guide your team’s future work — or your own?

All the best,
A.