Moshe’s Blog

Awakening Your Leadership: How to Find Purpose in Life’s Inevitable Surprises

Wake-Up Calls to Be a Better Leader

I was already thinking about life’s big questions on my milestone birthday this week, when a colleague shared this shocking news about his friend: “He was so young and vital, I can’t believe he suddenly died out there surfing.”

Things like big birthdays and holidays on one hand, and serious illness, sudden death, and natural disasters on the other, wake us up to what really matters in business and life. As leaders, these events interrupt our usual and often unconscious flow and inspire us–or shock us–into gaining some altitude as we review our lives and priorities. This is the gift of wake-up calls, whether we consider them good or bad.

Wake-up calls are inevitable. Here are three ways to use them to improve yourself as a leader and to sustain the bigger perspective they bring. First, a couple questions:

What kinds of surprises wake you up most effectively?

What do you do with the new perspective you gain?

How long are you able to sustain that new perspective before slipping back into old ways and old habits?

3 Amare Steps to Shift Your Perspective

1. Go inward. Allow yourself time to process the event, Notice the shift in your perspective and how it feels. Pay attention to what priorities and values come up, and what you feel inclined to change.

2. Choose love over fear. As you think about making changes, tap into the uplifting and connecting energy of love (what I call “Amare”) rather than the diminishing and restrictive energy of fear.

3. Take charge of your future. Rather than wait for external events, commit to simpler ways of gaining altitude and shifting your perspective. Consider music, nature, meditation–whatever helps you make the shift.

Moments of surprise and even shock can be powerful catalysts for leadership growth. You get to pause, reflect, and realign your priorities with what truly matters—both in business and in life.

By embracing the lessons these moments teach us, you will emerge as a more empathetic, focused, and visionary leader, capable of guiding your teams through the unpredictability of life with grace and wisdom. Take these events not just as challenges, but as gifts to help you grow and lead with greater impact.

Lead with the Most Effective Version of You

I coach and advise executives and leadership teams on identifying and being the best version of themselves, through the Amare Way of love-powered leadership. For more information, contact me here.