John Donahoe, at this time CEO & President at eBay, published a great post on his way to clear his mind, step back and rethink what’s important. He described three ways to focus and rethink. I found the most impressive one being “The Thinking Day”.

The Thinking Day

The thinking days are pre-scheduled, non-interrupted times with the intention to step away from daily business with the pure purpose of focus and rethink what’s most important right now.

Move away from your office, book a meeting room just for yourself and some paper. Start mapping out what’s going on around your company and identify the most pressing topics and issues in your organization. Think about what you need to focus on, where you need to put your attention, what you need to change.

Write your findings onto the papers and keep them as guiding principles for the coming period. Allign your daily calendar to focus on these principles.

To allow your direct reports to be able to follow your re-allignment, it’s worthwile sharing your findings with your mates. That’s the only way to work efficiently and effectively into the right direction – with a clear and shared goal.