Whether it’s a business relationship, a contract, a job or even a standard operating procedure, things can and will come to an end.

However, the responsibility to recognize and initiate an ending can fall upon senior leaders and executives — and it takes courage to move forward from an ending because of the discomfort change brings.

Endings leaders are faced with

When we think of necessary endings, the most relatable example for many is likely around dating. You might be seeing a person who, despite your positive romantic feelings for them, you don’t see a future with.

It may not be either party’s fault, but hurting them is the last thing that you want to do, so you might delay having “the talk.” At work, these necessary endings can be big decisions with massive implications, or they could be relatively small.

Some examples of endings at work include relational situations like letting go of an employee that isn’t the right fit for your team. An executive may decide to leave an organization because they’ve outgrown it or the business has gone in a direction that isn’t right for them anymore. Other endings might be around business outcomes.

Acid Test For Leaders

You may need to end projects that you had high hopes for but are no longer connected to the strategic direction of the organization or aren’t producing the desired results. It may involve closing a failing business or wrapping up product lines that are unprofitable. It could even be doing away with services or products that suck the life out of your team members who deliver them. Endings could also come in the form of transforming how you and your teamwork.

You may change organisational structures that are creating confusion. You may scrap processes that are no longer effective for the current stage of the organization. You might decide to stop having meetings that provide little value, like status update meetings where everyone takes their turn but there is no discussion. It could even be as simple as giving yourself permission to cut down your own workload, saying “no” to a list of 30 strategic priorities to say “yes” to your top one to three.

Deciding when something ends

Even when we start to recognise that something needs to end, we delay decisions and hope that time will reveal the path forward. It takes tremendous courage for a leader to assess a situation and recognize that they need to initiate an ending and make some tough decisions.

There are Es that you can check to help:

Emotions. Pay attention to your frustration levels, feelings of helplessness, dread, avoidance, overwhelm or heaviness.
Energy. How much time, energy, resources and attention is something taking? Is it costing too much? Are you spread too thin, sacrificing greatly to ensure resources for the good? Do you have a lack of energy around something that used to create great energy?

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Oudney Patsika is a Zimbabwean entrepreneur, award-winning Business Growth Architect, and renewable energy leader. He plays a strategic role in shaping editorial direction, digital growth, and brand architecture across leading business, media, and renewable energy platforms in Zimbabwe, including Brand Digest Zimbabwe (Trusted Brands in Zimbabwe) and Polaris SuperBrands Zimbabwe (Top Brands) and many more.

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