When I was project manager for a company producing 4 monthly comic books, going through review process with clients, with a small staff and several outsourcing resources. All the little things would add up to really big things. My boss trained me in the “weight of leadership.” Now I will train you.

There is a heavy weight that comes with leadership. You can probably recognize it as more responsibility. But it goes beyond that. There is a physical heaviness that can creep up on you sometimes–sometimes when you least expect it. The duties you are supposed to do, the people you are supposed to please, the conflicts you are supposed to resolve, the deadlines you have to meet–all these things play a pivotal role in how heavy the “heaviness” can be.

One day, things had become so overwhelming, I got up from my desk, walked outside and took about a 20 minute walk around the parking lot to breathe, let the wind caress my face, let the sun put its warmth around me, and let all that was troubling me float out into the wide open air. I came back refreshed, ready to tackle the next projects for the day.

If you are going to choose this path of leadership, know that you are blazing the trail. Know that the journey will be difficult, and you will have to continue to grow yourself as a person to handle things you don’t even know exist right now.

And when things start getting too heavy for you, go outside, take a walk around, let the wind caress your face, let the sun put its warmth around you, and let all that is troubling you float out into the wide open air.