43. Why Clarity, Not Motivation, Determines How a Business Leaders Year Starts (Leadership Podcast)

[00:00:01] January can be a funny time. [00:00:03] Motivation's usually high energy tanks can feel full and people come back saying, alright, this is the year. [00:00:11] But here's what I've learned after years of coaching business owners and leaders. [00:00:15] Most years don't fall apart because people aren't motivated. [00:00:19] They fall apart because people aren't clear. You're listening to why your business isn't growing and how to fix it, the small business podcast that helps owners scale, lift team performance and Sharpen leadership without 60 hour weeks. Welcome back to the podcast. I'm Brendan Rogers. This episode follows on from the last one, which was episode 42. It was about pausing and reflecting. [00:00:44] This episode is about deciding what actually deserves your leadership attention as the year begins. [00:00:50] Because motivation alone won't carry you very far. But clarity will. Now, I see the same pattern every year and I've fallen into it myself. Many times a business owner or leader comes back after a break feeling refreshed. They're energized and they're keen. They say yes to meetings, yes to requests, and yes to helping out. And two or three weeks later they're flat again. Not because they're lazy and not because they lack discipline. But often because no clear decisions were made about what matters most, what doesn't, and where their leadership energy should go. [00:01:28] They didn't start badly, they just didn't decide. [00:01:32] Now here's the uncomfortable truth. Motivation is easy at the start of the year. The harder bit is getting clarity. [00:01:40] Motivation gives you that I'll work harder feeling. And clarity says to you, I know exactly where my leadership should be focused. [00:01:49] Without clarity, I leaders will stay reactive, priorities will blur, and everything will feel important. And that's when overwhelm will creep back in quietly. [00:02:02] Now this is the reframe of the thinking I want to share with you. Before you ask how much can I handle, ask this what actually deserves my attention. [00:02:12] Because leadership isn't about doing more, it's about deciding which what moves the business forward, what builds team performance and what you need to stop carrying yourself. [00:02:24] That decision made early changes everything. [00:02:28] Linking this back to my frameworks. This is where the high impact leader ecosystem really shows its value. [00:02:35] When clarity is missing, systems feel heavy, teams feel dependent, and leaders feel stretched and and inside my people operating system, clarity is built deliberately through the perceived pillar. We look at understanding what's really happening. In the evaluate pillar, we look at deciding what really matters now. [00:02:55] And in the perform pillar, it's about changing behavior, not just intentions. [00:03:00] And this is also why the impact triangle matters. Because when you lack clarity, the business becomes noisy and the team becomes reactive. [00:03:10] Clarity at the leadership level stabilizes absolutely everything. [00:03:14] So what does this actually mean for you right now? Well, if you're listening to this at the start of the year, ask yourself these three things. [00:03:21] What deserves my leadership attention this quarter? [00:03:25] What am I defaulting to out of habit? And what should not be on my plate anymore? Now, you don't need to get all the answers today, but you do need to decide what where your leadership focus starts and where your leadership focus stops. Remember, small improvements every day. That's how serious growth happens. [00:03:45] Now, if you're motivated but not fully clear, and if you feel busy but not properly focused, and if you want this year to feel intentional instead of reactive, then the High Impact Leader Club is designed exactly for you. You can book a call to explore how the Impact Leader Club helps business owners and leaders build the capability that most systems never teach. Go to LeaderByDesign au Bookacall. You can also find a link in the show notes you've been listening to. Why your business isn't growing and how to fix it, the leadership podcast for business owners and leaders who want to scale their business, lift team performance and sharpen leadership without working 60 hour weeks. [00:04:26] If today's episode resonated, follow the show. Share it with someone who's starting the year with energy but needs clarity. [00:04:32] Grow yourself, Grow your team. Grow your business. Now go leap with impact.