New Growth

I have long been a fan of the humble Pansy. They are hardy flowers and out in the cold winter blooming their hearts out. But I will tell you what I have learned; like most flower giving beings, they require dedicated deadheading. My father was a Master Gardener and he taught me to be ruthless in the deadheading department, that way the plant could give energy where it needed to go - new growth.

The truth is I love new growth. I need constant deadheading so that I can continue changing and growing. We are all like seeds. We know what we are made of, and we know what we could be, if we believe it so. We are full of potential, that will only get discovered once we are planted.

Taking a gardening approach to our lives shows us the areas that need love and attention to flourish. How do we deadhead our own lives to make room for the new growth?

Choose Growth

Approaching life, love, and leadership with a growth mindset is something we must do. Choosing to see opportunity and possibility requires dedicated effort and tapping into our emotional intelligence to monitor how we think, feel, and act as well as how our thoughts, feelings, and actions impact others. To choose growth, we need to:

• Be self-aware, not mindless.

• Be curious, not indifferent.

• Be willing to fail.

• Be persistent, not unassertive.

• Be resilient, not defeatist.

• Be inspired by others.

• Be vulnerable, not insensitive.

• Own our attitude.

• Be willing to learn and improve.

• Embrace imperfection.

Prune with a Purpose

A gardener does not prune randomly but has a purpose. A gardener knows what a healthy plant should look like and prunes toward that standard. It illustrates the importance of having clear goals and expectations for your organization, your people, and yourself. Without clear goals and standards, you do not have an objective measure by which to prune, and you prevent yourself from reaching your full potential.

• Maybe you planted the seed in the wrong environment.

• Maybe you did not give it the proper nutrition.

• Maybe it is not time yet, so you need patience.

Prune your regular activities

• Set up a process for continual growth and improvement. This could be a regular review process, or it could be as simple as a suggestion box for employees to make observations about systems or policies and procedures that no longer seem to serve a purpose.

• Sometimes we continue attending a meeting because we have “always had that Thursday meeting”. Sometimes we follow a process because we have “always done it that way”. If the meeting or routine is not adding value, ask yourself if it is necessary.

• Some policies or procedures were very appropriate at one time, but they no longer serve well as the organization or environment has changed. Verify that your systems, policies, and procedures serve the purpose of the organization, rather than the organization serving them.

Nurture and Harvest the Fruit

First you will see leaves, which is evidence of the nutrition. Leaves resemble growth. You must go through a growth process. Once the time is right, you will see fruit. The fruit you bear is not for you. Your talent is for other people, to help them, to inspire them. To give others the nutrition so they can develop their own talents.

Just like people, a tree or plant has only so much energy to blossom, bear fruit, make new branches, fight disease, and manage stress. The more places it needs to spread those finite resources, the smaller and less abundant its fruit. If you want healthy growing trees you must limit the number of places those resources need to go. By pruning, you select the strongest branches and cut away the weaker ones.

Trust the process

Pruning takes trust. There is no guarantee that the remaining branches will bear fruit, but it is likely. You are not assured of success if you let go and create new processes, but it is likely. The hard part is not knowing. Every time I cut; I get a little more confident in deciding. If you are not sure, it is okay to let something grow for another season to see what it does.

Life is full of seasons. As we progress through life, different priorities will emerge, and others will fall away. By constantly pruning we, like the Pansy, can engage in the daily practice of hardiness. We may be surprised to find ourselves blooming despite the challenges that come our way.

Until next time....Leigh