Understanding The Cycle As A Leader

All things work best in cycles.

On and Off.

Go and Stop.

Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter.

Idea and Product.

This last one is what I am Focusing on today.

Every great thing starts as an Idea.

Eventually, it will become a Product of some sort.

I use "Product" loosely in this context.

It could also be a "Service".

There are also "Results" that it could be.

In some formats, it would be "Project Completion".

The point is that we start with an Idea, and eventually, that Idea will become something.

Many people try to rush this process though.

Other people try to make this process far too long, or in some cases indefinite.

There is an incredibly important period between.

It's known as a "Gestation Period".

Think about it like a child being born.

There is a period between the "Idea" of the child (pre-conception to the point of conception) and the "Birth".

There is a specific amount of time between these moments that is incredibly important.

If that period is too long or too short, there can be serious complications that can occur.

This is true for all things, including in our Organizations.

We need to create an Idea, that Idea must "Gestate", and we will end up with a final Product.

The Idea could be for a future Product/Service, which then goes through the "Blueprint" phase.

But there are many other ways it can play out.

Say as a Leader, you hire a new Employee.

Before you Hire them, you have an Idea of what they will do.

Once you Hire them, the Gestation Period begins.

You must Train them, Teach them the ropes, Introduce them to other people and Teams, and help them understand the Systems.

At the end, "hopefully" you have an Employee who is ready to do their work on their own.

However, we must also remember that all of these things are a Cycle.

Cycles do not end, they repeat.

Every time we reach a final "Product", we must be working toward a new Idea.

That new Idea then must go through a Gestation Period.

At the end of the Gestation Period, you should have a new Product.

If any one of these periods is too long or too short, it will cause complications.

If you spend too much time trying to come up with an Idea, you will lose ground in the market.

If you don't give your Ideas time to Gestate, they will come out mediocre.

If you take too long to Gestate Ideas, people will become bored and turn to other things.

If you never reach a Product, you will never accomplish anything.

If your Product is believed to be "100% Final" or worse, "Perfect," then you will never Innovate.

As a Leader, it is Necessary to understand this Cycle in your Organization.

It is also Necessary to understand that different parts of your Organization will be at different parts of this Cycle throughout time.

You may have a new Product/Service that is a brand new Idea.

At the same time, you may have added new members to your Team, and that team is going through their own Gestation period.

As this is happening, another Team may have just finished a Project that they have been working on, and so need to begin looking for a New Idea.

Knowing where every part of the Organization is within the Cycle, and making sure they remain in proper Gestation Periods is Essential to Leadership Success.

If a Team takes too long to complete a Project, Leaders need to understand that there will be Complications.

If there are no new Ideas formulating, then Leaders need to figure out how to instill new Creativity and Innovation.

All of this is a part of Proper Cultivation.

If you do not have proper timing in the Cultivation Process, then your Organization will be filled with Problems.

As each aspect ends, it should add Fuel to new Growth and Ideas.

This allows it to become Regenerative.

If you have enough Regenerative Processes going on, then it becomes a Regenerative Legacy.