Hi Reader!

It is the last.day.of.school here in New York City. 🎉🎉🎉

In my informal data gathering-- this seems like the latest date traditionally-calendared school gets out--and we're here.

Obligatory last day of school pic is here--proud of my crew, and honestly patting myself on the back because I made it through my first round of being the parent of a 7th grader. 💃

As we reflected at dinner last night on the highs and lows of the year--and what we learned--

it reminded me of a conversation I had earlier than day with a client, who remarked:

"We never really take time to reflect at the end of projects. It's just onto the next one, go go go."

It brings up the question:

How are you marking endings as a leader?

So often, they get short shrift--

in mission-driven organizations, there's an urgency for the next thing.

Taking time to reflect seems almost indulgent.

But the value of it is amazing.

As my client and I talked about what taking 15 minutes to reflect would do, she realized:

• It will help the team stamp what to keep doing.
• It would offer those invaluable insights you remember when you are fresh off the work but forget in a few day, weeks or months.
• It would carve out time for celebration and appreciation.
• It would give space for dialogue about what would ideally stay the same and what would differ next time.

Even though a lot of their work differs from each other, there's still plenty of commonalities--not least of all the people who are doing the work.

It's pretty simple--

just block the time and ask something like--"Now that this is over...

• Now that this is over, what are you grateful for?
• What should we keep doing?
• What should we stop doing?
• What should we start doing?

Sometimes our work doesn't have an "end"--in those cases, stepping back a bit and taking time to check in can help everyone zoom out and see the bigger picture.

Chances are that your school year is over already--but

a) it's never too late to reflect, even if it ended a few weeks ago and

b) there is another ending of some kind in your future, in some way, shape or form where this might be useful.

Interested to hear what you think--is this something you already do? Or want to try? Would love to hear what how you think about endings...

Take care,

Beth

ps. We're headed out for a little vacation and I'm so psyched that when we get back I'll have weekly Leadership Lifts, the free 30 minute sessions that boost your skills as a leader. People who've gone call them "a really good use of my time" where "I learned A LOT." Check out the topics here: we're kicking off July 9 with the #1 tool I think is most necessary for a leader...

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