Is Mindful Leadership just another fad? Or is there both a commercial and personal benefit to it?
Mindful leadership is becoming increasing valued by businesses… companies such as Google, Facebook, Starbucks, and Apple all support it, and some have even developed their own programs to help develop this quality.
Why Bother?
Mindfulness is an important leadership trait. If you are mindful, you tend to have greater focus and creativity – and you become better placed to handle anything life or work throws your way. You make everyone in your team feel valued and recognised, producing a more positive and productive work environment. Better you = Happy Staff = Higher profits – it’s not a complication equation!
If leaders don’t take the time to develop this self-awareness, they are more likely to be focussing on the wrong areas, find it difficult to make effective decisions and more likely to lose their composure when faced with difficult circumstances.
So what is mindfulness?
- Awareness of the present moment.
- An understanding of your feelings and emotions.
- Consciousness of how your actions can impact other people.
All important aspect of leadership and how to get the best out of yourself and your team!
Some of the following tips may sound soppy to you - research is beginning to demonstrate the connection between mindfulness, wellbeing and productivity so it's probably worth giving them a go:
Step back: Take the time to stop and breathe, this will help you to remove yourself from the chaos of everyday life.
Find the present moment: Appreciate the present by closing your eyes and becoming aware of simple things such as your breath or background noises. When you do this, try to clear your mind of distractions like past experiences and future deadlines. Practising meditation can be helpful for this because it can help you focus with more clarity on important issues, and forget those which are less important.
Understand what drives you: Work out how your life experiences have contributed to your motivations and behaviours. When you understand this, you can recognise how these experiences can sometimes interfere with your decisions and viewpoint. When you become aware of your unconscious biases you are likely to make more sound and fair decisions.
Be present: Try to be fully present at all times. Give whatever you are doing your full attention, whether you are talking to a staff member or preparing a presentation.
Be aware of your environment: Consider how it affects you and others; observe and listen to what is happening around you. Work out the dynamics in your environment to discover underlying relationships you may not have been aware of.
Pay attention to your personal wellbeing: Be aware of your emotions, and recognise when you are feeling tired or overworked, or controlled by negative feelings such as anger. Understand when it is time to take a break and relax, and be kind to yourself when you are feeling disheartened or sad.
Be compassionate: Genuinely care for others, and encourage them to pay attention to their personal wellbeing – help to calm them down when they are agitated, and encourage them to take breaks when they need them.
Reflect on other people’s behaviour: Understand other people’s intentions and what drives their actions… this can give you a wider scope for problem solving.
Recognise positive actions: Whenever you catch yourself doing the right thing, acknowledge it. Also compliment other people when they do something well.
Accept responsibility: Understand that you are in control of your own success, and you are responsible for your own actions. Be honest and own up to your mistakes.
Mindfulness may be a ‘soft skill’ but it is important for leaders to practice it – understanding yourself and your employees helps you to have greater self-control, and enables you to motivate and inspire others even in difficult circumstances and benefits the bottom line.
To learn more about how you can become an effective leader, attend our next 13-14th October Power2Lead course.