… For astute leaders looking to grow, treat every day like election day — a new opportunity to learn, to build trust, to forge commitment, and to get out the vote in support of your organization’s better tomorrows. It’s not easy, but over time it’s a leadership journey many will sign on to.

Yesterday, I linked to this On Leadership page from the Post website. Just to re-cap, the Post asked its panel what the first thing that President Obama, or any “military or non-profit leader,” should do when confronted with an “unambiguously negative evaluation” of their performance or their organization. And I am seriously digging this brief, yet incisive answer from Susan Peters, VP of executive development and chief learning officer of GE.

Is an election equivalent to an evaluation? I’m not so sure. And can we say definitively that the radical re-shuffling of Congress was an “evaluation” of the President and not, say, Congress? I’m not sure about that one either. But I think that Peters’ point still stands. A good “leadership journey” does not (and should not) entail a biannual self-assessment, but a daily one. Maybe even an hourly one. A constant one.

Perhaps too often, we wait for decisive moments, benchmarks, well-publicized events to herald our moments of self-reflection. Perhaps Peters is hinting, don’t wait for the election. In fact, don’t wait for anything. Ask yourself today, tomorrow, every day, what can we do better now? If this moment were an election, how would we fare? What have we done and what remains? Moreover, do not let an outside event, no mater how major, guide your process of evaluation. Take it into your own hands. Ask the questions now that might have painful, dizzying answers. Be clear now about what you have accomplished and what you need to do.

Was the election a disappointment for the President and his administration? Certainly. Are similar overhauls stressful and frustrating in our organizations? Of course. And we’re likely still processing yesterday’s results and what they might mean for non-profits in DC and around the country. So for now, let’s consider this: “Good leaders headed to greatness are those who brush off the dust, check their egos, listen, learn and grow. Who ask questions in service of knowing more. Who seek new answers.”

Let’s be those leaders. Let’s not wait.