How do you know if you’ve been successful? How do you evaluate your organization and decide whether you’re hitting the mark or falling short? It probably involves a hard look at numbers. Are profits increasing? Are you making more than it costs to run your business? Have you seen an increase in market share? Are your client satisfaction scores impressive? Do people want to work for you and do business with you?
Notice none of those questions asks, “Are you rested?” When it comes to hitting our marks and finding success, especially as a leader, rest is often viewed as a luxury. It’s the thing we get to grab a piece of after we’ve done all the other things that press those measures higher into the successful ranges. We quote the likes of Coach Pat Summitt who said, “By doing things when you are too tired, by pushing yourself farther than you thought you could… you become a competitor.”
We admire those with the grit to continue to press forward through the struggle. We conflate long hours with hard work. We glorify busyness. We see rest as the reward. And yet, rest is a necessity.
You can’t lead from survival mode. Rest sharpens decision-making, creativity, and emotional intelligence. Truly successful leaders understand that slowing down is how you speed up. Your body is not an obstacle to success — it’s the vehicle.
A 2023 report from McKinsey Health Institute found that chronic stress can impair cognitive functioning, emotional stability, and strategic thinking. The report also found that organizations that provide for and encourage holistic health for employees can mitigate the risk of burnout, while having a positive impact on the corporation as a whole.
This applies to you as a leader as well. Rest can help restore clarity. It can help you focus better and evaluate priorities. It can reinvigorate you and your team with intention. It enables clarity of thought and improves reliance.
You may understand the value of encouraging your team to take downtime. You’ve read the articles about the way Americans notoriously don’t use their PTO time and the negative impact that constant “go-go-go” mentality can have on our productivity, health, and job satisfaction. We won’t rehash all those stats again here. We will, however, remind you those stats aren’t just about your team. They’re about you, too.
You need the same opportunities to disconnect and step away from the stress and demands of work to recharge and refocus. Further, your willingness, or lack thereof, to take a break influences your team’s willingness to do so. You are setting the example your team will follow.
They need you to pause and take the break. They need you to leave the office at a reasonable time. They need you not to check emails and voicemails at all hours every day of the week. They need you to make the most of your weekends and to use your PTO. It makes you a better leader, as we highlighted above. It also gives them permission to recharge their own batteries.
It can be hard to step away and disengage. As noted, we culturally laud the hard worker who presses through exhaustion to keep moving forward. We, like Coach Summitt, identify the “never give up, fight through it” mentality as the sign of a real champion. Making rest part of your success strategy takes intention. It starts by recognizing that rest is more than a good night’s sleep or a day at the beach. It’s not weakness or laziness. In fact, stepping away and carving out space takes discipline and commitment. It takes strength. It recognizes that running on an empty tank will do more long-term damage than short-term good.
Physical rest is one part of the equation. Yes, your body absolutely needs space to stop moving and reset. It needs sleep. It needs to step out of that fight-or-flight mode we can fall into when we’re stressed and pressing forward without pause. There’s also, however, a need for emotional rest. That may look like time to turn your focus away from the demands of work and leadership to focus on something that brings you joy. It may mean time to work through challenges with a mentor who can help you reframe and refocus.
Rest also includes cognitive rest, a chance to disengage from the constant running commentary in your mind walking through the options and scenarios. You need a break from being “on” all the time at board meetings and client dinners. You need a creative rest, or a chance to step away from staring at the same problem in the same context. Get out and see the business from a different vantage point to change the way you look at the big picture.
This bears repeating over and over: Rest is a leadership strategy. It is not a weakness. It is strategic. It is not laziness. It is intentional. It is not a luxury. It is a necessity. It isn’t a quick fix or an occasional thing. The breakdown in focus, patience, and skills we experience from a lack of rest doesn’t happen overnight. It builds. You may not realize how deeply you’re leading from depletion until you take the time to rest and experience the richness of leading from a place of fullness. Rest protects your leadership and it fuels your success.
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