Mindfulness is a practice that all leaders should seriously consider learning. For readers who haven't been exposed to mindfulness before or don't have a clear understanding of it, mindfulness in its most basic sense is awareness - awareness of your surroundings and awareness of your thoughts and feelings, both emotional and physical. It's about being conscious; about being switched-on; about not judging yourself and instead seeking to understand.
The practice of mindfulness has its roots in Buddhism, but before you start thinking you're going to have to shave your head and wear a colourful monastic robe to "do this mindful thing" let me assure you that you don't. Buddhism is a religion, mindfulness is not. You can be Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu or Atheist and practice mindfulness. It doesn't care what your beliefs are. It's also not some pseudo-science or cult. Its been practiced for centuries and continues to be widely used in the fields of psychology and psychiatry today.
How can mindfulness help me be a better leader?
As a leader you want to always be on top of your game, right? You want to be in-tune with yourself, right? You want to be an open person that's also a good listener? You want to have poise and calmness in tough situations? You want to have energy and longevity? You want to be able to analyse and interpret information quickly and accurately? Mindfulness can help you achieve all this and much more. Remember, mindfulness is all about awareness and awareness can lead you down so many positive pathways to developing as a leader.
I've personally found that mindfulness has not only made me a better leader, but it has also made me a better person. Those who know me, know that I have plenty of good qualities, but historically patience hasn't been one of them - call it collateral damage from a career in marketing communications. That changed when I started practicing yoga and mindful meditation. Now I can wait in supermarket lines without thinking to myself "C'mon! c'mon! what's the hold up!" and I'm able to take my mind to more interesting, more meaningful, places when I'm stuck in a traffic jam. Now I use time, I don't let it use me. In a work environment I'm also much more able to focus on the macro issues rather than the micro ones and I get over hurdles far better than I did early in my career. I'm a better listener, a better speaker and a better leader.
Above all else, what I've learned from mindfulness is to be non-judgmental. What the practice teaches you is that although you may enhance self-awareness (and in turn this may lead to self-improvement), you do not need to judge your emotions and actions. The goal is simply to observe. It's a beautiful thing to learn to accept who you are . . . warts and all. And it's incredible how this acceptance can make you a better you.
What can I do to become mindful?
The good news is there's lots you can do become a mindful person and there's plenty of literature around to help.
For those who think they might like a bit more physical activity in their quest for mindfulness, yoga is a great start. I practice Ashtanga Yoga which is my way of combining fitness with mind/body awareness, but any form of yoga will do the trick.
As far as reading material is concerned I can highly recommend the author Jon Kabat-Zinn who is one of the modern day gurus of mindfulness and established the Stress Reduction Clinic (now the Centre for Mindfulness in Medicine) at UMASS Medical School. He's got a great down-to-earth style that isn't ever highbrow or finger-in-mouth new age. He just tells it like it is. If you can track down his audio book Mindfulness for Beginners you'll be in good hands. But the hard work will have only just begun. You didn't think this would be easy did you?
Mindfulness is a lifelong practice that requires action. It's something you need to do, not just read about. It's something you need to make time for if you want to be a better leader and a better person. So do the reading, then do the doing and do it often.
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