Letting Go

Two words you’ll often hear when you’re struggling with a decision, situation, or relationship come from a trusted advisor or a good friend. They mean for these words to be received in the best possible light and will softly and gently tell you, “Let go!” According to Candace Huntly of SongBird Marketing Communications, this simply means "...putting the needs of your business before your ego and getting feedback from someone who might know better than you.”

Why is Letting Go So Hard?

As is often the case, letting go is easier said than done. But why is it so difficult? Most of us tend to hold onto something for a reason, even if that reason is not to our benefit. Our reason may reinforce a story we tell about why this needs to still exist or how this person/situation is meant to be a part of our life/business, and we neglect to realize that because we are in it, we can’t see it. Checking our egos and stepping aside to entertain the idea that someone might see something we don't is a mark of true leadership.

Benefits of Letting Go

As entrepreneurs, the idea factory that is your brain generates a massive amount of content, developing ideas and strategies for growth as well as how to remain relevant in your field. According to Daniel Whalen at Medium.com, letting go of the following will drastically improve your business:

• Let go of your need for certainty, placing trust in your team and faith in your vision.
• Let go of your need to be right. “The business is as big as the leader. And a leader with all the answers is done growing, capping a serious lid on the business.”
• Let go of your discomfort (or affinity) for conflict. “Both the abrasive and the timid leader severely lack the same thing: understanding.”
• Let go of your obsession. “A leader that is out of integrity in one area of his life, will inevitably become out of integrity in every area of his life.”

You can look at letting go as a challenge or a gift. When seen as a gift, the benefits of letting go can lead to a new and beneficial path. As a leader, letting go of your role, title, and area of expertise allows you to move into your ultimate role as a leader.

. . . leaders don’t have precise job descriptions.

- “Letting Go” – Timothy W. Firnstahl – Harvard Business Review.

Strategies for Thinking

In his article, Firnstahl proposes the following regarding thinking, as it relates to letting go: thinking is an under-rated practice in a go, go, go society that wants results and production 24/7. Implementing the following allows for the flow of ideas and creativity which in turn enhances your business:

• View thinking as a strategy.
• Schedule large blocks of uninterrupted time.
• Stay focused on relevant topics.
• Record, sort, and save your thoughts.

Firnstahl proposes something that is foreign to most high performers as any “down time” is considered lazy and not giving your 110% each day, yet how do you give when you are so depleted? This week, practice the strategies listed above and simply notice what comes up. Pay attention to your body, your energy within your body, and the state of mind you are in. Ask yourself what did I gain from this and when am I willing to commit to continued thinking sessions? As with all things new, this may feel foreign and unknown, yet after several times of practicing, notate where your thoughts have taken you and the benefits of such exploration.

Letting go of our need to be in control is really where this all begins. Building a successful business requires various opinions, hiring individuals who complete our vision with a set of skills they possess which we do not, and being open and flexible to change. Rigidity will only hinder the process of growth. Letting go and allowing will facilitate the new, the unthought of, the next great idea, all without the effort and energy that resistance requires.

We must be willing to let go of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.

-  Joseph Campbell