The 3 on a Post It Note

Who doesn’t love Post It notes? The best thing since whiteboards, right? We seem to always have a pad of the sticky notes laying around, some of us more than others, but I’m not judging. They bring a focus and attention to things we really don’t want to forget.

I’ll admit it here, I have an office supply problem…no..addiction. I love notebooks, pens, and yes….post it notes. I use them for reminders and to ‘whiteboard’ ideas. That’s what they were made for right?

I have one bright neon green post it note that stays on the bottom right corner of my monitor. It only has 3 things on it, in numerical order. They are:

1. Self

2. Team

3. Mission

I got the idea from former Assistant Secretary of the Navy Jim ‘Hondo’ Guerts. He mentioned it during a live chat event. He explains it as follows:

“ The 3 things a good leader needs to take care of everyday, in that order. Take care of yourself first. Sure, it sounds selfish, but you have to take of yourself to be ready to take care of your team. Your team needs to be ready to take care of the mission. You’re the leader, you’re charged with taking care of the mission…this is how.”

Self-care for a leader is important. Stress is a killer, killer of productivity, and a killer of you if you’re not careful. Find ways to take care of you, so you can take care of your top 3 daily.

Are you ready to lead? Get that post it note out and remind yourself.

Lead forward!

Semper Fortis,

Chief Chuck