Lift Your Head Up. Not to work harder. To see further.
Summary: The demands of work naturally pull our attention towards the immediate. Yet the most valuable leadership insights often emerge when we pause and look up - beyond today’s priorities. This article raises five questions designed to help you do just that.
Summer has arrived, at least in the northern hemisphere. For many of us that means holidays. For others, it simply means the occasional gap in the diary, a slightly quieter inbox, or a little more room to think than we usually have.
Whatever your summer looks like, it may offer something increasingly rare. Space.
When we're busy, our field of vision naturally narrows. We become absorbed by the immediate. The next meeting. The latest request. The deadline that's fast approaching. We solve today's problems, often without noticing the bigger picture.
But leadership isn't only about responding well in the moment. It's also about occasionally zooming out far enough to see the patterns we miss when we're in the midst of the action.
The quieter weeks of summer can provide exactly that opportunity. Not to conduct yet another performance review or create another action plan, but to notice. To reconnect with what matters. To look beyond today's demands and think a little more intentionally about the leader you want to be, the team you want to shape, and the culture you're contributing to.
So, as we release you into the summer, here are five questions that might be worth taking with you. There are no right or wrong answers. Just an invitation to pause, reflect, and perhaps return with a slightly different perspective.
What have I stopped noticing?
The biggest changes rarely happen overnight. They creep in gradually until they become normal. Perhaps it's the meeting that no longer feels productive, a habit that's become unhelpful, or a strength in your team that you've started taking for granted. Sometimes the most valuable insight comes not from looking harder, but from seeing familiar with fresh eyes.
What am I really rewarding with my time and attention?
Our calendars often reveal our priorities more honestly than our intentions do. Where your time goes, sends powerful signals about what matters. Are you investing your attention in the things that will make the biggest difference, or simply responding to whatever feels most urgent?
Who could do more if I gave them a little more space?
Many leaders carry more than they need to. Sometimes because it's quicker to do it themselves. Sometimes because they genuinely want to help. But growth requires space. Is there someone who might surprise you if you stepped back just enough for them to step forward?
What would be a shame to lose?
Leadership is often framed as driving change, but not everything needs changing. Every team has strengths, rituals, relationships, and ways of working that deserve protecting. As organisations continue to evolve, what would you want to make sure isn't left behind?
What are we becoming together?
Every conversation, every decision, and every behaviour nudges a culture in one direction or another. We rarely shape organisations through grand gestures. More often, it's the small choices, repeated consistently, that define who we become. If you lifted your head up and looked a little further ahead, what direction are you travelling in? And is it the one you want?
Whatever this summer holds for you, we hope it includes a little time to pause, think, and return with renewed clarity.
Sometimes the most valuable leadership work isn't found in doing more. It's found in noticing more.
If you want a fillable pdf with these questions,
please download this from the LeapSheet Library.
July 2026
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