In his book, Necessary Endings, Henry Cloud reminds us of why rose bushes need pruning:

Good branches take vitality from the best branches.. Sick branches harm the bush. Dead branches consume energy and space.

If you have ever been in transition, one of these three reasons is behind the ending you experienced, even if you haven’t recognized it yet.

Your leadership needs greater vitality that you would not have experienced without an ending. You were in harm’s way as a leader. You were never going to be able to jump start dead.

Welcome to a new beginning.

But. 

Between an ending and a beginning, there is usually a transition. Even in the Jesus story, he spent a few days between death and resurrection.

What do you do when you are waiting to rise again?

I speak several times a week with CIOs and technology leaders who are in transition. Few of them take advantage of the time to enrich their capacity and to add value for their next adventure. Most of the time, they don’t think about it. Understandably, they are focused on landing a new position. 

What if transition is more about you than about what is next?

You were pruned. Now it’s time to prune yourself.

When In Transition, Do This

Rest

You are deplenished. Your gas tank nears empty. Your soil is dry. 

Physically, you’re suffering from dopamine loss and other chemicals. Mentally, you’ve been fractured and unfocused, especially if you had to exercise great focus. Emotionally, you tilt towards off-center.

Sleep, my friends.

Sleep will help you rebuild your immune system and metabolism. You will improve your mood and reduce your stress. You strengthen your cognition and reduce risks associated with lack of sleep.

Revitalize

Prioritize movement and nutrition. Get back into hobbies. Finish projects that will energize you. Discover, learn, and explore. 

Your soul needs resuscitation. Your spirit needs energy.

Over the course of your work, you may have made compromises to your true self, who you are when you don’t need to be anything for anyone. 

See a counselor. Get a coach. 

You have identity, capacity and purpose. Renew all three.

Evaluate

You will want to be even more effective in your next role as a leader and as an executive peer.

What went right that you want to bring into your new position?

What went wrong that you will want to avoid or improve? How will you do so?

What feels missing that you want to add into your leadership?

What questions need to be answered before starting again?

Stay in Community

Transitions can be introspective, and they need to be inclusive. Bring others into your journey. Peers. Coaches and mentors. Casual conversations. Intentional groups.

No one is without transition in their life. Learn what others did well and not so well.

Plus, you want a community to celebrate with you the next that comes your way (and they may help you find that place).

Brand Yourself

A common element I find in reviewing resumes for leaders in transition is nothing beyond their experience that sets them apart from others. 

I see the same language (If i read the word “Driven” one more time…). I see the same keywords. Some of these are necessary in our age of automation.

But what happens when your resume is in front of human eyes?

Brand is your leverage point for distinction. What is different about you in how you work? What value do you hold that is a perfect match for the company? What is not true of you? 

Brand allows you to be memorable and intriguing.

When you think of pruning yourself, of maximizing transition, ask three questions:

• What is good in your life that needs to go to make way for what is great?
• What is sick that needs to be eliminated to keep you from harm? 
• What is dead that you need to stop trying to bring back to life?

As I was entering a time of transition, I had a fellow leader ask me, “If you had a magic wand and could wave it around and do anything you wanted, what would you do?”

Frankly, it had been an irritating conversation that led up to a question that irritated me. Perhaps a little too directly, I said, “I don’t believe in magic wands. I believe in preparation.”

There is no magic wand.

Never waste a transition. Prepare yourself.

‍