The Leadership In Focus: Weekend High-Five - February 1, 2025

You’re reading the Leadership In Focus Weekend High-Five 🖐. You deserve a high-five for a week of hard work.

You might notice that we’ve switched things up this week. We’re making this newsletter more engaging, thought-provoking, and action-driven, because leadership isn’t about passively consuming content; it’s about applying it.

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This Week's Big Idea 💡: The Art of Stepping Up Without Burning Out

If there was a theme to this week, it would be this: You can’t outwork bad boundaries.

We talked about saying NO (even when it feels risky), getting out from behind your desk to truly understand your customers, navigating the chaos of leadership transitions, breaking out of execution mode to think strategically, and why treating employees well is the best customer service strategy.

At its core, it all comes down to this: Leadership isn’t about doing more; it’s about doing what matters.

Let’s break it down.👇

This Week’s Big 5 🖐Ideas:

✔️ Monday: Stop saying YES when you should be saying NO! Boundaries are a superpower.

✔️ Tuesday: Your customer insights aren’t in a spreadsheet—time to hit the road and listen.

✔️ Wednesday: Happiness isn’t something you find, it’s something you create daily.

✔️ Thursday: Leadership transitions feel like jumping off a cliff—here’s how to land safely.

✔️ Friday: Stuck in execution mode? Start thinking strategically to level up.

Weekend Action Planner 🛠 : Step Back to Step Up

Now that you have some time, take a moment to reflect. What’s one leadership habit you need to strengthen? Here’s how to set yourself up for success this week:

✅ Identify one commitment you need to say no to next week.

✅ Schedule one conversation with a customer or frontline team member.

✅ Pick one area where you need to think more strategically.

Ask: Am I just executing, or am I shaping the future?

📌 Bonus: Reply to this email with your biggest leadership challenge right now. We might feature it in next week’s High-Five.

Last Week’s Not So Funny Funnies Recap 🎭

👀 Treat your employees right—and your customers will feel it. If you’re treating your employees like a cost center, don’t be surprised when your customers feel like they’re getting the short end of the stick.

🔥 Key Takeaways:

✔️ Disrespect leads to disconnection: when employees feel undervalued, they disengage.

✔️ Micromanagement kills ownership: give employees the trust to solve problems creatively.

✔️ Happy employees = happy customers: When your team feels supported, they pass it on.

Your move💡: Invest in your team, and watch how it transforms your customer experience.

Sneak Peek: This Week’s Not So Funny Funnies 🎭

📢 You can’t outrun bad leadership. This week, we’re diving into how bad leadership traits creep into organizations—slowly, subtly, and before you know it, they become the norm.

❓ Ever caught yourself picking up the same bad habits you once swore you’d never have? Stay tuned for Sunday’s comic—it might hit closer to home than you expect.

Quote of the Week:

"The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant." — Max De Pree

📌 Reality. Service. Gratitude. Which of these do you need to focus on more right now?

Interesting Listen 🎧 : Reed Hastings on AI & Opportunity

AI is disrupting everything—but Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings believes it’s an opportunity, not a threat. In this Armchair Expert episode, he breaks down how to embrace AI and make it work for you.

💡 Practical insights, no panic—just smart strategies.
🔗 Listen Here

🧠 Fun Fact: When Leadership Became an Obsession

The word “leadership” has been around for centuries, but it didn’t become a mainstream obsession until the 20th century.

📌 1900s: Businesses focused on efficiency (Frederick Winslow Taylor).

📌 1940s: Psychologists studied leadership styles (Kurt Lewin).

📌 1950s-60s: The shift from authority to influence began (Peter Drucker).

💡 1970s: James MacGregor Burns' book Leadership made it a serious study.

Now? Leadership is a billion-dollar industry. But real leaders know—it’s not about titles, it’s about impact.

Final thought: the best leaders protect their time

If you take nothing else from this newsletter, take this: Your time is your most valuable asset. Guard it fiercely.

📌 Before you check that email “one last time” tonight, ask yourself: Will this move me forward, or just make me feel safe?

🔥 The best leaders aren’t just the ones who grind the hardest. They’re the ones who know when to step back so they can step up.

That’s your Leadership In Focus Weekend High-Five. Go lead boldly. 🚀