Does this sound familiar. You’ve done incredibly well in your career, been a part of some exciting initiatives, even forged new ground in your industry and have gotten recognized for your outstanding achievements.
But why are you feeling so incredibly lonely in your career? You’ve got a great life, a great group of friends and family but at work, in your career, while your decisions are made with the support and input of a talented management team, you still have this overwhelming sense that the bottom may fall out, that you’re swinging from a trapeze without a net or that you’re stuck!
A recent study from the University of Stanford business school, showed that the majority of leaders (CEOs, board directors and senior executives) feel particularly connected with that term ‘its lonely at the top’
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/david-larcker-lonely-top-resonates-most-ceos
And, research shows that that sense of loneliness and isolation is bad for business. This feeling of isolation and seclusion was in fact a major hindrance to the leader’s performance. Obviously, it goes without saying that when your leader is feeling isolated, alone and without ‘trusted advisors’ the impact on the business can only follow suit. From where does this feeling come? Perhaps it’s the expectations and intensity of the pressure that is put on leaders today? It’s inevitable that the pressure on senior leaders today, is much different then it was 30 years ago – the entire foundation of the economy has shifted and continually charting new ground. How could someone who everyone looks to to have the answers, admit she/he does not? How could she show her vulnerabilities but still maintain the confidence of her people? Who does he trust with the most intimate information, without the feeling that is could be used against him, down the road?
We are told that leaders are strong, stand firm in their resolve for what they believe in and know exactly how to navigate very choppy waters. But what happens when the leader doesn’t know what to do and doesn’t have the trust in those around him to admit that fact?
This is where we are in corporate leadership today. All the ground rules have changed and not only that, they continue to change every day. We have an emerging work force that has grown up in an environment that many of those in leadership cannot understand nor relate to. And the loneliness in the C-suite is palpable.
It is the single most common denominator amongst those leaders that I have worked with and meet on a daily basis. Whether they define it as ‘loneliness’ or just the need for a ‘trusted advisor’ is of no matter. The answer is incredibly simple and requires just two small things. The first is to recognize yourself in these words and the second is to ask yourself one question: Who can I be completely honest with, that doesn’t have any self-interest in the outcome or who doesn’t have a bias view of my business or me?