Simplify things to their core, especially you.

It was a one-page cheat sheet that I photocopied onto pink paper, but it felt like Willy Wonka’s golden ticket. We had a very complicated “trying to steal the Declaration of Independence” style process for every single file we worked on at my first insurance job in 1984.

That’s why I decided to boil it all down to a simple one-pager that I could always find. It was printed out, then tucked into a plastic sleeve in a binder to help me remember the company’s rigorous steps and processes.

“Let me see that pink page of yours!” People were always borrowing the document in its blushing hue when they needed to figure anything out. As I look back, I realize I’ve been executive coaching my whole life … and it always starts with simplifying things to their core. I can talk a ton, but when I’m writing and teaching, I am really good at brevity. I want to get the point across without using too many words.

Sometimes you have to pop the hood and figure out what is inside in order to make things work – including you. As a coach, I’m boiling everybody down to their essential self. What are the essential parts of your being that we can emphasize, so you can run the company better? Why write an 85-page document when you only need eight pages? Many CEOs appear confident on the outside, but really are not, and they pile on the data and complicate things to feel they are worthy. When they go home they wonder how they are going to pull this CEO thing off…that is the perfect opportunity to take a breath, simplify and get back to self.

Here are some strategies to tackle your core and live up to your potential as a leader. No abdominal exercise required.

Write your CV. An exercise I love to facilitate with my coaching clients and Vistage members is asking them to distill their career journey in CVformat. Building everything out in the CV helps remind them of their value and all they’ve accomplished. They often struggle with this because it’s hard to write in third person, but it’s incredibly cathartic when it’s done.

Ensure polarization doesn’t get in the way of your progress. We are always dealing in interdependent values. What most leaders don’t know is how to understand, distill, and leverage these polarities. In fact, you cannot attain lofty goals unless you know how to manage individuals and teams, people and bottom lines, stability and change, humility and confidence. First you need to distinguish problems from polarities because when you fail to do so the issues never end. The contradictions that make it seem like you are talking out of both sides of your mouth are simply the two sides of the same coin. For example, change is always needed. Change or die is a hard truth. It’s a problem if you do it wrong, without a plan, or take too long. But the positive, steady approach to change, with adequate planning and communication means more success, more revenue, and happier people! When you can distinguish the fact that you have to balance two sides for nearly everything, your approach changes, conflicts cool off, and innovation emerges because you have mastered the art of balance.

Don’t keep pulling up the flower to check the roots. This story didn’t make it into my book “Taking in Strays: Leadership Lessons From Unexpected Places” because it wasn’t reflected by one of my rescue animals. I wish I could say I coined the phrase, but that credit belongs to Chris Amrhein, of Insuranceisfun.com, a long time friend in the insurance business. However, I say it all the time because in this crazy world of constant change, people forget some things simply take time. If you read the introduction to my book, I talk about how speed and leadership are sometimes at odds. Business may want to go fast, but people change slowly. If you plant well, and allow time for the roots to go deep, you’ll have a much stronger organization.