​Empathy is often seen as a soft skill but make no mistake—it is one of the most challenging and essential tools for effective leadership.
 
Jon Micheels Leiseth, Theatre B’s artistic director, offered a powerful reminder of this during his Creative Mornings session titled Threads. He shared a personal story of feeling miserable while navigating the diverse needs of his collaborators while adjusting to new directing challenges. A mentor’s advice helped him refocus: the project itself is the baby.
 
This advice shifted his perspective from managing people’s emotions to birthing the work. It allowed him to align his skills and energy with the purpose of the project.
 
In both creative and business settings, empathy must be used wisely to avoid frustration. Otherwise, compassion overload can lead to a resource drain.

I started running just before I turned 30. After realizing I had never completed a consecutive mile, I wanted to see if I could reduce the amount I sweat (my cooling system is a slick thing to be admired) and transform into a long-legged, running gazelle (nope).

Still, what I have discovered after years of trotting is there are similarities between running a race (like a half marathon, 13.1 miles) and the project management work I do at Reach Partners (everyday, baby).
 
For both, success starts by committing to do what I say I’ll do. 

People often say they need something specific to generate more energy and are disappointed when they never seem to have enough of it. I suspect this gap occurs because we focus on the things that gives us energy instead of the processes we set up.

Think about it: How often have we been asked, “What gives you energy?” How often have you been asked, “How do you produce energy?” Maybe it’s the “how,” not the “what,” we should seek. After all, we have more control over the “how.”
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As I reflect on this, I want to share a few ways you can create positive, helpful energy: