No, that’s not a military cadence, it’s the order in which we should look before turning at an intersection to avoid a collision.
The idea behind the "left-right-left" rule is that since the first potential threat typically comes from vehicles approaching from the left side, you look there first. After checking right for oncoming vehicles, you look left again to ensure that no fast-approaching vehicles are coming before you make a move.
The analogy holds true for CEO Mental Fitness as well. High-performing CEOs not only see what is in front of them, they are perceptive of the unexpected. They have the ability to see around corners or to read the proverbial tea leaves.
That ability to see constellations in the sky where others see only stars is a hallmark of mentally fit CEOs. To see what isn't there. Sometimes it feels like a hunch. Other times it’s a “gut feeling” or “the hair on the back of your neck.” These colloquial expressions are actually known as interoception, or the ability to listen to our bodies. This is where phrases such as
I had a gut feeling about this
My heart just wasn't in it
It made me sick to my stomach to hear the news
My heart goes out to them.
These expressions illustrate the active and incessant communication between our brain, our gut and our heart. The body is a complete, interconnected system.
Mentally-fit CEOs listen and pay attention to their bodies for additional clues. These subconscious feelings or hunches provide insights or prompt further thought before making a decision. In fact, there is an entire area of the brain known as the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) that is primarily responsible for giving us pause or to think twice before going down a dark alley.
For CEOs, the ACC helps to detect and resolve conflict. And when isn’t there conflict? Ever find yourself feeling a bit edgy or there is a certain angst that you're feeling and you don’t quite know why? That’s your ACC firing full on and putting you on a low-grade alert. It’s not enough of a concern to fire up the amygdala and ring the alarm. But, there is unresolved conflict and your attention is heightened.
Consider a scenario where a CEO must decide whether to lay off a portion of their workforce to cut costs. The ACC assists in managing the emotional weight of such decisions while evaluating the economic necessity from a business standpoint. The ACC helps the CEO to remain focused on long-term goals without being overwhelmed by immediate emotional distress.
In other cases, the CEO may be evaluating a deal or business arrangement that has merits on the surface but there is something about it that’s just not quite right. Pay attention to that feeling, to the intuition. It’s your ACC digging into your memory, making connections through your hippocampus and tapping your subconscious looking for clues as to what’s not right. It is the unresolved struggle that keeps the ACC firing until you find resolution.
Enhancing the function of the ACC can strengthen your CEO Mental Fitness and enhance your performance. It is calling your attention to an unresolved issue. By not sweeping your feelings and angst under the rug you become more responsive thereby dealing with conflicts sooner and potentially averting bigger problems down the road.
Now, don’t forget to look both ways. And then check left again. Otherwise your ACC may SOL.
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