Catch My (D)Rift?

In Africa, animals take these long exoduses across the continent called The Great Rift. The African Rift Valley is also a great line of geographical fault, equated with the tensional forces on the tectonic plates. It forms crests and troughs, thus beautiful valleys with beautiful flora and fauna.

Exodus also refers to departures of people from an event, place or relationships. When they stop supporting a cause, or the cause diminishes in value or favour it would be time to seek another cause worth supporting.

We can experience rifts in our relationships. A rift is a fracture or split in our relationships. It can manifest itself during conflicts. This may lead us to avoid, compete or be accommodating to others. Sometimes, we choose a ‘time out’ or ‘take a break from each other’ so as to refocus and regain our ‘centre’.

When a staff leaves our company, it can be a bitter-sweet event. What is left behind may be a ‘vacant sense’, or power vacuum. Do you support the person or the cause? Or, is it about discovering inconvenience because you cannot delegate to them anymore? Working with the ‘generation rift’ can create drifts from our intended outcomes. How can we reconcile the differences and create uniqueness out of them?

For endurance athletes reading this blog, there are those of us who are contemplating a drift to non-M-Dot sanctioned events. Too many compromises to races only create disappointment and dismay. IT can only lead to the inevitable conclusion that there will always be a ‘live-with-it’ SNAFU factored into the event. Ironman China 2011 announced recently that its swim leg would be cancelled due to forces beyond their control. This has tossed the plans of many participants into disarray. On the other hand, creating a new location for the 226K-race may entice others to consider a race-vacation format for their precious personal time.

It was reported also that the average income of competitors is US$160,000 annually. Really? Time for me to look for loose change between the fold of my cushioned armchair!

Whenever a commercial race has been compromised, participants may insist on a refund. Unless they have been fully compensated, they will experience ‘Buyer’s Remorse’. Buyer’s Remorse leads to loss of loyalty and distrust for the organization or brand. Few people enjoy a continuous spate of good bargains; we get fleeced, sometimes. Instead, seek ‘gain-gain’ relationships. ‘Win-Win’ is, probably, a myth for ‘win-lose’ is a likely outcome in competition, conflict and ambition.

In wanting to appear smart, sometimes we allow ourselves to be easily swayed or pressured to change. Stick to your plan, strategy and vision. Make the occasional corrections when you deviate, yet do not steer too far away. Keep to the yellow brick road.

We experience highs and lows in our lives; most of these are manageable when we put some time and effort to address it. If we feel emotionally affected, give it some time to release, or do something else to change our physiology. Movement can be very helpful when we experience the dips in energy through emotional responses. It is certainly acceptable to be in an ‘emo’ mood!

Catch my drift?

Leadership Lessons: When was the last time you made an exodus? Under which conditions will you make an exodus? How do you recover when you experience emotional drifts and relationship rifts?