5 minutes
Creating Space to Think
A few weeks ago, my daughter and I were driving through town after several severe storms had moved through Maryland. As we passed one neighborhood, we noticed a large tree had fallen into someone's front yard. A tree company was there cutting it up to remove it.
Next door, an older gentleman had brought out a lawn chair and was sitting in his yard watching the process.
My fifteen-year-old daughter's immediate reaction was, "Aww, Mom. That poor man. He has nothing better to do."
But I saw something different. Here was someone who had the space, the time, and the luxury to simply be—to watch what was happening around him, take it in, and enjoy the experience. He had the freedom to sit outside on a beautiful afternoon without feeling like he should be somewhere else. The freedom to experience life instead of rushing to the next thing.
It made me think about a reset exercise I do twice a year where I ask myself a series of questions. One of them is:
What do I want more of in my life?
My answer is almost always the same: more peace, more margin in my calendar, more time to think, and more moments where I can simply be instead of constantly doing.
Seeing that older gentleman reminded me of something I think many of us are craving, especially during busy seasons of life. There's something appealing about having the freedom to simply pause and notice what's happening around us. To truly enjoy nature, watch a butterfly, or listen to the birds.
I think that's what so many high achievers are really longing for. We still want to grow, achieve, and get results. But we’re also longing for the freedom to pursue those things without feeling like every minute must be filled. We want enough space to think, recharge, and enjoy the life we're working so hard to create.
As leaders, that kind of space isn't just good for us personally, it's good for our leadership. Some of our best thinking doesn't happen when we're rushing from meeting to meeting. It happens when our minds finally have enough room to process, reflect, and connect ideas. That's when we gain perspective and see solutions we couldn't see before.
This is hard for high achievers. We're wired to improve. We read books, listen to podcasts, attend conferences, invest in leadership programs, and look for ways to become more productive, build stronger teams, communicate more effectively, and achieve better results. Growth matters, and I believe lifelong learning is one of the greatest investments we can make. But somewhere along the way, many of us begin to equate constant activity with effectiveness.
We fill every open space on our calendars because it feels productive. We move from meeting to meeting, email to email, project to project, believing that staying busy is what exceptional leaders do. The problem is that constant activity leaves very little room for what leaders actually need most: clear thinking.
Instead of leading proactively, we spend our days responding. We have less capacity to think strategically, anticipate challenges, connect ideas, or see the bigger picture because we're consumed by what's directly in front of us. I've also found that leaders who never slow down don't just burn themselves out, they often burn out their teams as well. When everything feels urgent to the leader, it eventually feels urgent to everyone else. Teams begin operating in a constant state of reaction, with little opportunity to pause, improve, or think beyond today's demands. Before long, everyone is exhausted.
I believe one of the most undervalued leadership practices is creating space to think.
The most important work of leadership isn't always about doing more or executing faster. It often happens when we have enough mental space to step back, reflect, ask better questions, and think strategically about what's ahead. The strongest leaders aren't necessarily the busiest. They're the ones who intentionally create enough margin to gain perspective and make thoughtful decisions. They understand that reflection isn't a luxury—it's an essential leadership skill that leads to better decisions and, ultimately, better results.
Creating space isn't about being less ambitious. It's about recognizing that some of our most important leadership work doesn't happen while we're doing, it happens while we're thinking.
Some of my best ideas have come while I'm on a walk, on vacation, or even in the shower. Those ideas rarely come while I'm answering emails or sitting in back-to-back meetings. Our minds need time to process what we've experienced, and during the normal rhythm of meetings, emails, decisions, and projects, we're in execution mode. It's only when we create a little breathing room that we're able to connect ideas, gain perspective, and see possibilities we couldn't see before.
Maybe that's part of what I admired about the older gentleman sitting in his lawn chair that afternoon. Not because he had nothing to do, but because, in that moment, he seemed to have something many of us are craving: the freedom to pause.
As high achievers, we still want to grow, make an impact, and do meaningful work. But I also think we're longing for a little more margin. To think, to recharge, and to enjoy the life we're working so hard to build.
That's the real value of creating margin. It helps us become more thoughtful leaders. But it also reminds us that life isn't measured only by what we accomplish. It's also measured by enjoying the journey along the way.
Laurie Maddalena, MBA, CSP, CPCC, is a professional speaker, leadership consultant and founder of CUES Supplier member Envision Excellence LLC in the Washington, D.C., area. She is the bestselling author of the book, The Elevated Leader. Her mission is to rid the world of bad management practices and help organizations create cultures where people love to come to work. Maddalena facilitates management and executive training programs and team-building sessions and speaks at leadership events. Prior to starting her business, she was a human resources and organizational development executive at a credit union in Maryland. Contact her at 240.605.7940 or laurie@lauriemaddalena.com.
