In Lead Yourself First, the authors Raymond M. Kethledge and Michael S. Erwin emphasize “to lead others, you must first lead yourself” and “personal leadership comes through solitude.” They present the reasoning for their argument, not via qualitative research, but rather anecdotes, illustrative stories that demonstrate their point.
In particular, they highlight the usefulness of solitude in providing space for reflective thinking to foster creativity, clarity and moral courage.
The busyness of modern life is real. In the typical corporate workplace, calendars and schedules tend to become more crowded, more planned out, not less. Emails, messages, texts come your way, seemingly at all times; by responding, you often cause more of them.
The more you interact with people or organizations, the more incoming there is for you. Social media has certainly exacerbated this. It is all signals vying for your attention.
To think independently of other human beings is impossible, and if it were possible it would be undesirable. Thinking is necessarily, thoroughly, and wonderfully social. Everything you think is a response to what someone else has thought and said.
Alan Jacobs, How to think, page 37.
Your thoughts may be influenced by and formed in relation to many other people’s thoughts and it may at times be intricately difficult, if not impossible, to clearly distinguish your own from theirs. By seeking distance, you can reflect on and not just react to those influences.
I do not foresee this inherently changing in the era of AI, either. Perhaps it becomes more relevant, given AI’s tendency of sycophancy as well as its contributions to cognitive debt in its users.
In The AI-Driven Leader, Geoff Woods discusses how leaders can effectively use artificial intelligence to improve their thinking in and make better decisions. There is important nuance here.
As I’ve mentioned, AI is meant to enhance your thinking, not replace it. While I leverage AI daily, I still rely on an old-fashioned pen and paper for strategic thinking. It’s a muscle I want to keep strong. Once I’ve done my initial reflection, I turn to my AI […] to see how it can expand my perspective.
The AI-Driven Leader, by Geoff Woods, page 148.
The order there matters and he deliberately accounts for important thinking time that does not involve AI.
He frames the discussion throughout the book as using AI as a thinking partner, i.e. as a leader you are not giving up responsibility for the thinking, you remain a leading participant.
Distance from the activity of other voices allows you to examine and articulate your own. The more you are “always-on” during your regular day, the more you might benefit from being explicit about this.
There are many ways of going about it. Perhaps it is a run by yourself, or a walk. Quiet meditation or simply sitting in a corner or at your desk, by yourself or with pen and paper close-by. Even brief periods – pauses – can be beneficial.
Solitude means being by yourself, temporarily at least. Distinct from loneliness, solitude need not be a negative experience. Not only can it be tremendously useful, there are occasions when it may be essential.
Disconnecting from others allows you space to connect with yourself. Being connected is the opposite of loneliness. It is where you can reflect and form a deliberate perspective.
That is a valuable part of leading yourself.