Most of us who spent our formative years in the 1980’s wanted and coveted the Nintendo Entertainment System or NES. It was a game changer. As Atari was looking stale with a lack of new and innovative games, the NES livened up the game system playing field with a new 16-bit look and exciting, engaging gaming storylines. I saved my money and purchased my own NES. From there, I burned away hours in front of the television, wearing down my thumbprint from excessive game controller use. For those of us who were serious players, we had our approaches to games and special techniques to advance, but the strategy I relied on most was hitting the reset button.

I am not a perfectionist per se, but I do have perfectionist tendencies, so hitting the reset button makes sense to someone like me. Here’s how it worked. I would play a game and if the conditions were not leading me to ample lives or ample coins or ample whatever, I would reset the game and start over. I wanted to walk into every difficult situation or boss level feeling the most prepared. It was part game strategy, but also part psychology on my part.

I’ve been thinking about this concept of hitting the reset button lately. The year 2018 was a great year in so many ways both personally and professionally. It was a great year for our department, as well. But, when I left my office for the last time before my break and vacation time, I felt some degree of burn out. My lives were down, my coins were low, and I wasn’t ready for the next level. I needed to step away from work and hit the reset button.

The new year time frame is usually a good time to think about a hitting the reset button. It’s a time frame usually accompanied by an embrace of what’s new. Many of us hit some sort of reset button during this time frame: a new focus word for the year, new goals that move us in a different direction, a new mantra to live by, or a new pledge to uphold where we have failed in the past. Managing weight and a new diet is of course a popular area of reset. Managing time, being present and in the moment and doing more with family are on some reset lists, as well. My recent reset button was to take time away from work and to clear my mind. And, if I’m being direct, it’s a strategy we need to do more often, even under the best of job situations. Now, I’m about to walk into a new year with a renewed energy and a focus that had been lacking the last few weeks of the year.

It’s important to distinguish between hitting the reset button and turning off the game altogether. These game off or avoidance strategies are different than reset strategies. For me, my iPhone is an easy gateway to engage in avoidance strategies, where I fail to connect, where I fail to deal with real issues, where I fail to get what I really need. Avoidance strategies leave us feeling isolated and unresolved. A good reset jumps us back into the game, renewed, refreshed and full of life. So, make sure you’re hitting the reset button and not the power button.

Hitting the reset button just isn’t a beginning of the year strategy. And, it’s doesn’t just apply to your personal and professional wellness. Hitting the reset button can be about a process or a project. For example, when I stepped into my role as department chair, efforts around our department’s centennial celebration had just been occurring through two previous department chairs. I could tell quickly that we were struggling to progress, not because the other chairs’ strategies were not good. It wasn’t working because the project had been handed through three different people. At the time, it was a scary decision but I hit the reset button. I changed our committee’s organization and processes moving forward. I believe that decision made all the difference in the world as it relates to the final product that was our centennial celebration. I was concerned about losing committee members in the process, about losing valuable time and about taking us in the wrong direction. Instead, the committee members not only stayed, but found renewed interest in our work. Our progress did not halt; instead it accelerated.

The cautionary tale in this strategy is a tale that aligns with every good strategy, in that there can be too much of a good thing. Hitting the reset button too much or even too early could mean a missed opportunity, halted progress on a project, frustration by your team for lost progress, a lack of momentum toward your goals and/or a lack of consistency in your focus or message. Be strategic about how or when you hit the reset button. Be thoughtful about how it affects not only you, but the people around you, especially if you’re in a leadership role. It’s not a fail-safe strategy, but if used in the right way, it can be a powerful one for you and your organization.