7 Tips That Will Make You A Faster Leader

“Working at a startup is like turning the corner in a fast car...if two wheels aren’t off the ground, you’re not going fast enough.” - Dan Steinman

As a leader, it’s important to keep that balance of two wheels being off the ground at all times. If all four wheels are on the ground, you’re probably going too slow, and if all the wheels are off the ground, then you’ve gone too fast.

Here are seven tips to help you maintain speed as a Leader:

1. Don’t wait for all of the information.

“Most decisions should probably be made with somewhere around 70% of the information you wish you had. If you wait for 90%, in most cases, you’re probably being slow.” - Jeff Bezos

If a company like Amazon with billions of dollars on the line and billions of users to account for is making decisions with 70% of the data, then how much more do you, a presumably less established organization, need to be pushing the envelope? How much more do you need to trust your intuition and your instincts?

You were hired for a reason. You have the expertise and the knowledge required to make the right decisions for your team. Trust your gut. Trust your intuition. You’ll find that most of the time, you’ll be right anyway. And when you’re wrong, remember that failing isn’t being a failure. Failure is learning. If you don’t get every decision right, that’s not a big deal. If you wait too long to make sure that every decision is right, that’s when you’re going to lose.

2. Be a Whiteboard Startup.

This point is simple. You can solve a lot of problems by drawing on a whiteboard, or by putting information in a spreadsheet. You don’t have to have every SaaS tool under the sun to be successful. Just figure out a way to do it. Getting started is half the battle.

3. What’s most important right now?

Innovation is about saying no, the ability to move fast, and focusing on what’s most important. What is the one thing that you want to be the best at? What is the one thing that you can do today that’s going to have the biggest impact? The most effective leaders know which fires they can afford to let burn.

4. Are you managing your calendar, or is your calendar managing you?

Set aside time to work on the things that need working on instead of just accepting every invite that comes your way. I have to set aside dedicated, blocked time for big projects. Sometimes this looks like blocking a 4-hour window on my calendar to knock out high-priority tasks, focus on high-level approvals, or give myself space to plan and strategize effectively.

Managing your calendar is not about saying yes to every little thing that comes across your plate. Managing your calendar is about saying ‘no’ to the things that you can afford to let burn, and setting aside dedicated time to focus on the things that are most important right now.

5. Live for inbox zero.

I have a competition with myself that, every day, my inbox has to be at zero. Every single notification represents someone waiting to hear from you. You’re a brand ambassador for your company, and your responsiveness to requests and questions determines how customers view your company. Commit to the challenge that every email or notification you receive gets touched every 24 hours, even if the response you give is brief or you designate the email as a future task on your to-do list or calendar.

6. What’s filling you up?

It’s really important to answer this question for yourself. All of us are unique in what fills us up so we can run at a consistent speed. You can’t run with an empty tank for a long period of time. You need regular refreshing. This could look like daily exercise, weekly time with family, or investing regularly in a hobby. Take the time and write a list of things that you need on a consistent basis so that you’re not running on empty.

7. If you don’t turn it off, you can’t turn it on.

If you’ve reached a point of burnout, one week off is not going to fix the problem. You switch off for a week, you enjoy the week, and you come in refreshed for the next week, possibly. In that scenario, however, what’s going to be different about the culture at your company, what’s going to be different for you after just one week? Give it a couple of weeks. Find ways to turn off the noise so you can recharge and turn it back on again.

Rest needs to be a regular part of your schedule, whether it’s one day a week that you don’t touch work, unplugging in the evenings or a different rhythm that works for you. Taking time off only a few times a year is not a sustainable way to live or work, but resting regularly will make work more enjoyable and make you more efficient.

Remember, if you feel like two wheels are off the ground, if you feel like the car is about to tip over, that’s good.

MT

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