Logging Off to Renew—A Leadership Lesson from Germany

The Moment I Logged Off

On Friday, July 11, I did something I’ve never done in my entire working life.

I shut my laptop. And for ten days, I didn’t open it again.

No catching up during early mornings. No “just five minutes” before bed. No Zoom calls, no grading papers or student projects, no email, no calendar. Just me, my husband Brian, our daughter Madi, my brother Anthony, my nephew Will, and the beautiful stretch of summer days we spent together in Germany, hosted by my sister Cyndi and roommate Diana.

This was more than just a family vacation. It was a deliberate and radical act of energy-powered resilience.

Resilience Is Not Grit. It’s Energy Renewal.

In 9 Leader Touchstones, I attempt to redefine resilience, going beyond the simple dictionary definition—“the ability to overcome adversity.” The dictionary definition is a slippery slope for leaders. It leaves us pushing to overcome the adversity inherent in every leadership role, but most of the time, at a significant personal cost. Instead, I challenge leaders to look at resilience through the lens of energy renewal. Specifically, “Resilience is your capacity to overcome adversity through the systematic renewal of the body's four energy wellsprings—physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual” (9 Leader Touchstones).

Most leaders are intimately familiar with adversity. We know what it means to push through, show up, and survive. What we rarely make space for is the kind of deep replenishment that actually builds our capacity to lead well over time, not just in moments of crisis. This trip to Germany, and the choices we made along the way, became a living example of what it looks like to renew all four energy wellsprings. Here’s how.

Physical Energy—Movement, Rest, and Presence

We started and sometimes ended our days walking or running through the fields and trails near Schwanstetten, a small town outside Nürnberg. The quiet rhythm of my feet on the path, the fresh air of the Bavarian countryside, and the simple pleasure of moving without an agenda reminded me that physical energy isn’t something we should need to force. It is something we should renew with intention. While in Germany, we slept well. “Sleep is a commanding energy renewal source” (9 Leader Touchstones). I woke to the sounds of roosters and sunlight streaming into our room each morning. We lingered over brunch in the Wintergärten. We didn’t race from one moment to the next. And for once, I didn’t jolt awake thinking about my inbox. Without constant alerts and demands, I could feel my body exhale. I moved more and rested more, and in doing both, I created space for physical vitality to return.

Mental Energy—Focus Through Disconnection

There’s no greater thief of mental energy than multitasking. The research I brought to you in 9 Leader Touchstones makes it clear. Multitasking can slow you down and even damage your brain. By putting away my devices, I gave my mind a break from the fractured attention of modern leadership life and the many challenges facing us back home. Whether we were wandering through Rothenburg ob der Tauber’s medieval walls, seeing the stone bridge into Regensburg, or standing in awe of the neoclassical Valhalla monument, I wasn’t thinking about deadlines. I was fully present. My attention belonged entirely to the moment.

That kind of mental stillness is more than rest. It’s a form of cognitive recovery. It sharpens your mind, strengthens your focus, and generates new neural connections. It creates a breeding ground for cultivating the Curiosity Touchstone. When we quiet the noise, our minds can begin to make new meaning.

Emotional Energy—Laughter, Connection, and History

Some of our best moments were unscripted… a marathon game of dominoes in the party cellar, playing with Maggie (my sister’s dog) and Willow (her very frisky cat), or tasting wine at the Nürnberg Wine Festival. Other moments held emotional depth. Visiting sites that reminded us of Germany’s Holocaust history brought a quiet gravity to our trip. We didn’t visit a concentration camp, but the echoes of history are everywhere. The emotional resonance of those experiences was profound.

Emotional renewal doesn’t mean avoiding challenging feelings. It means having the capacity and emotional intelligence to process them without becoming depleted. Joy and reflection both flowed through this trip, and in the presence of loved ones, I had the opportunity to experience both.

Spiritual Energy—Reclaiming What Matters Most

If I had to choose one word to describe what I took away from this experience, it would be 'connection.' Not just connection to others, but to purpose, to stillness, to a world beyond my daily comfort zone. In the Resilience chapter of 9 Leader Touchstones, I write, “Life is not about balance with work, and work is not life. Life is just life.” This trip reminded me what it feels like to reclaim the space to live fully. To be present with my family. To experience wonder. To stretch beyond the familiar. It reminded me that leadership isn’t just what I do when I’m working. It’s how I show up in every part of my life, grounded in connection to who and what matters most.

Resilience is an Act of Renewal

Leadership doesn’t reward depletion. It demands sustainability.

When we think about “resilient leaders,” we often picture heroic endurance. We’ve created a martyrdom mentality that frequently accompanies burnout. But real resilience is not burnout. It is an intentional ebb and flow that comes with the demands of work and leadership, rhythmed with appropriate energy renewal. This requires building habits of rest, movement, connection, and care into our daily lives.

This trip was a reset. I came back energized—but more importantly, I came back recalibrated. If we want to lead enduring organizations, we must become leaders who have the ability to overcome adversity, yes. But more so, we must learn to build sustainable resilience through energy renewal.

That starts with summoning the courage to simply log off and shut the laptop lid.