Depend on your own self-worth (and not on how your boss treats you)

“Can we reschedule our session for next week? Sorry to cancel, but I’m in the hospital.”

My client sent me this message last week, and in yesterday’s coaching session, I asked him how he was and what had happened.

Turns out, he’d had a panic attack. The doctor told him that he is too stressed out, and his wife suggested that he needs to find a better way to deal with his work pressure.

In our session, the story that he told me was that his boss is too demanding and critical.

As we progressed, what we explored was his tendency toward perfectionism as well as a belief that he is helpful and hardworking and that his managers should see him as such.

With this new insight, my client instantly relaxed. He realized that the pressure wasn’t just coming from his job role or his boss, but from the expectations and emotions that he’s added onto his own shoulders.

Wanting to be recognized for one’s achievements is a basic human need, but if you’re not (or even more likely, not in the way that you want) how can you depend on your own self-worth to still have confidence and maintain inner calm?

This is a challenging question and the answer will look different for each individual. However, as my client recognized, it’s necessary to pay attention to - and not try to run away from it - in order to be a healthy, successful leader who can effectively support one’s global team.

💡 In our international business environment, knowing when to let go and when to hold on is a skill, one that requires experience as well as wisdom gained from developing one’s Emotional and Cultural Intelligence.

Contact me here to set up a Discovery Call on how you can develop your own CulturalEQ for today's VUCA world.