If you are a leader, you are going to have some tough days. Leadership can be draining and challenging for the best leaders.
We all know that we will have some tough days, but I rarely hear people talking about how these days affect families.
For a few years, I would take my bad day home with me and make my family deal with it. I would be:
- Short with the kids
- Not talk much at the dinner table
- Depressed
- Emotionally disconnected
- Slightly on edge
I would blame my bad night on my bad day and expect my family to understand. Then one day, I started thinking about my kids as adults and I asked myself these questions:
Do I want my son to grow up emotionally unstable because he never knew which dad was coming home?
Do I want my daughter to accept this kind of behavior from her future husband?
Does my wife deserve to get my leftovers emotionally because I lost a deal that day?
I was sick to my stomach and felt like I had to make a major change. I am NOT perfect, but I work hard on not letting my bad day become my family’s bad night.
Here are a couple of things I do to help …
1. I listen to music on the way home.
This sounds stupid, but it helps me. I used to schedule phone calls for the drive home and would literally hang up the phone right before I came in the door.
This left me zero time to transition into dad.
Recently, I’ve been rolling the windows down and listening to my favorite bands. I love music and it’s a great way to chill before coming in the door!
