‘Do or die’ – The secret to beating frustration
How often do you feel dissatisfied at work?
Frustration occurs when reality falls short of an expected outcome. Leaders will be familiar with this feeling, as running a functioning company isn’t easy, even for the most experienced businesspeople. Therefore, if we accept that discontent will be present at some point or another, then it’s how we should approach these situations that is worth considering.
A limiting mindset – Don’t become dispirited
A negative reaction to frustration is to feel disheartened. Naturally, if something is not working out the way you had wanted, it can be tempting to simply walk away. As leader of your business, this is not an option for you, as letting dissatisfaction grow, will only increase its negative effects, both organisation and personal. The outlier in this situation is where you are sinking time, money and energy into a lost cause activity that isn’t worth investment.
The challenge here is that you may feel compelled to resolutely continue with frustrating aspects through a bitter sense of duty. However, this mental approach can often lead to further resentment.
‘So, if I can’t give up on them, but continuing with them will annoy me further, what are you suggesting I do about these frustrations?’ I hear you say.
I would argue that best approaching these situations is all about the mindset you have at the time.
A missing element – ‘Do or die’
Beyond solving a challenge, the first thing to do is to recognise its existence. So many leaders will know that there are specific aspects for their businesses that fall short. Often it can feel easier to push this thought to the back of their minds and stimulate other areas in the hope this will either improve the suboptimal element in some way, or distract from the existing shortcomings.
If you want to find solutions, you must take direct action to do this. Answers so rarely appear by chance that if you wait for them, you may well be waiting forever. To adopt a refreshed, productive mindset, you may want to consider things in this way:
The entrepreneur – During the early stages of a company’s life, the entrepreneurial approach of its leader helps the organisation traverse potential threats and optimise opportunities. Stay still for too long and they risk failure. This ‘do or die’ attitude means they throw themselves headlong into each challenge, as the consequences could be drastic.
The experienced leader – Once a business is running profitably and growing, the importance of each decision a leader must make can appear to dwindle. Rather than ‘do or die’ moments, every action can feel like one of a long list of ‘to dos’ that generally have less consequence. Understandably, this can result in some leaders remaining in their comfort zones.
I encourage my clients to get outside their comfort zones, acknowledge those frustrating elements and re-embrace that entrepreneurial spirit that got them where they are.
A different perspective – Catalysts
It is worth recognising that once your business has reached a reasonable level of success, it is less likely (but still possible) that dramatically negative outcomes will happen. However, if you are feeling frustrated, then beyond the overall performance of your company, it’s about attaining fulfilment. Letting discontent grow is unhealthy for your organisation, as your engagement will drop alongside its performance, and unhealthy for you, if your future vision seems impossible.
Talking through your discontentment with someone else can be productive, but it is vital you choose the right person. Whilst speaking to people with no specialist knowledge can offer a perspective you might never have considered, you should remember that this external advice may lack relevant know how. It is often the case that leaders are perfectionists, so the frustrations you experience on a day-to-day basis can seem unimportant to others.
View your problems, challenges and frustrations as catalysts for improvement. Finding their solutions has the likely twin benefits of positively affecting your organisational performance, but also satisfying your personal ambitions. If you can identify what is causing you dissatisfaction then you are already off to a winner. It far easier to address a known problem than something you can’t begin to recognise.
You can’t expect everything to be faultless. Treat frustrations as opportunities to create something better.