My response has taken me a while to complete. Whenever I watch That Nhat Hahn, I am calmed by his words but they always seem so simple. I say to myself, “Well if all I had to do was take time to meditate and wash dishes, I could be that mindful too!” Instead, I find myself making lists of lists for all the day-to-day occurrences of life…work, home, people to follow-up up with. I even have a list of people to hold and send energy to because of what they are dealing with. I try to program in all the world demands…as well as my mindfulness. I know this is not the answer.
I appreciate Kim’s comments about the sermon on washing dishes. My grandmother was a home economics teacher prior to becoming a mother of six girls. She would always say that lots of dirty dishes are sign of a good gathering so enjoy the memories of it while doing the dishes. Ironically, I don’t remember her washing many dishes but I agree with the point. How many of us choose to wash dishes? I know mine go straight into the dishwasher. I think part of our challenge is to be intentional about when and how we choose to be mindful because society has given us all the options and excuses to skip that time. For some it might be washing dishes or filing paperwork, for others it might be folding laundry or drinking a cup of coffee and watching the sun rise. How do we give people the permission to choose their time for mindfulness?
Over seven years ago while writing curriculum for National FFA, they offered an intense facilitation workshop for those of us going out to train teachers on the curriculum. Each of us presented and were coached on our presentation style. The tip I have held onto the most was on how to close a session. The coach said, “Stop, take three breaths, think about the experience and then speak from your heart about what has occurred and what you hope for the participants.” Essentially, ensure you are present in the moment and allow mindfulness to take over and support the process. I know the power this holds. Anytime I am not present in my work and rush, I am doing a disservice to those whom I am entrusted. I think our workplaces would be transformed if mindfulness towards those each employee holds in trust (other employees, customers, etc) were honored. This is the role of a leader.
PROMPT
An area of personal and academic interest is mindfulness. I am interested in how mindfulness can generate clear thinking, intentional action, and connectedness. What I have increasingly found, particularly in corporate America, is that there is little “room” and hence value, for reflection. Action equals results. Inquiry can be threatening. But how can we grow and be content without robust refection?
I invite you to watch a 6-minute video clip from That Nhat Hahn, a Buddhist monk and respected authority, in mindfulness. Click or Copy/Paste to play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aubF7v-MlMM
I am curious how you see mindfulness influencing the leadership process; in general, and how the practice of mindfulness can enable change in our organizations, at home, and in life? If you have critique or questions that linger, I invite these as well.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Identifying and Hiring Leaders
This past week I had the chance to attend the Randall L. Tobias Center for Leadership Excellence’s Multi-sector Leadership Forum in Indianapolis. While there, I read this prompt and thought I would use it as my lens for this learning opportunity. Vickie Cook, Dean of the School of Education at Greenville College, discussed leadership needed for schools of education. She commented that it is hard to identify and hire the leaders needed for the future. When I asked why this is the case, she responded that it has to do with the culture of the educational institution hiring process. After being a part of a hiring process myself earlier this year for a tenure-track position at a research university, I have an appreciation for her point. But I think it also boils down to the fact that in academia (and most fields) people are hired, first and foremost, for his or her expertise followed by their teaching or research (if applicable). These elements have a tendency to build egos and not value the ‘soft skills’ of adaptive leaders.
Juana Bordas of Mestiza Leadership International discussed the need for multi-cultural leaders who learn from the past; look for and appreciate a collective identity; and have a spirit of generosity. These leadership attributes are closely aligned with adaptive leadership principles. From Juana’s remarks I could imagine some signs of these leaders are the way they talk about their experiences…who they learned from, how they honor their culture and background, the respect they show for equality and diversity, and how they share successes and show gratitude with others.
Jean Lipman-Blumen of the Drucker School of Management discussed the need for ‘connective leaders’ who understand that "the world has changed, and we must change with it." These leaders know themselves and others and recognize the interconnections that bind us all together. “They see leadership not as personal privilege, but as communal responsibility. They balance the needs of themselves and others through collaboration, mutual respect, and encourage all to assume responsibility at every level.”
In summarizing these remarks, it has affirmed for me the critical need for ‘adaptive leaders,’ especially as Stephen points out the Level 5 leaders attempt to mitigate ambiguity, while adaptive leaders cultivate it. I do agree with Mark that, “ironically, the strongest ‘adaptive leaders’ are often marginalized in the selection process.” My experience says that Kim is right about cultivating a culture of adaptive leadership and identifying the attributes that support it…and then hiring to those. Regardless of the title (connective, adaptive, etc), there are attributes of these leaders we can see and identify. Those who are known for selflessly making connections that raise the whole ship and support others. In the end, my gut can usually tell who ‘gets it’ and anytime I have not trusted it, I’ve been sorely disappointed.
STIMULUS
I believe that the weakness of Adaptive Leadership principles are in the identification and selection of what Jim Collins (2005) describes in Good to Great as ‘Level 5’ leaders. Leaders who have a rare combination of fierce professional determination coupled with a personal humility. Clearly, while their professional perspective is relentlessly driving results, their approach is more like a world-view, a form of being that recognizes the collective success of their organization to be much greater than their own. Ironically, the strongest ‘adaptive leaders’ are often marginalized in the selection process.
So how does a company find such folks? To me they are virtually unidentifiable.
Juana Bordas of Mestiza Leadership International discussed the need for multi-cultural leaders who learn from the past; look for and appreciate a collective identity; and have a spirit of generosity. These leadership attributes are closely aligned with adaptive leadership principles. From Juana’s remarks I could imagine some signs of these leaders are the way they talk about their experiences…who they learned from, how they honor their culture and background, the respect they show for equality and diversity, and how they share successes and show gratitude with others.
Jean Lipman-Blumen of the Drucker School of Management discussed the need for ‘connective leaders’ who understand that "the world has changed, and we must change with it." These leaders know themselves and others and recognize the interconnections that bind us all together. “They see leadership not as personal privilege, but as communal responsibility. They balance the needs of themselves and others through collaboration, mutual respect, and encourage all to assume responsibility at every level.”
In summarizing these remarks, it has affirmed for me the critical need for ‘adaptive leaders,’ especially as Stephen points out the Level 5 leaders attempt to mitigate ambiguity, while adaptive leaders cultivate it. I do agree with Mark that, “ironically, the strongest ‘adaptive leaders’ are often marginalized in the selection process.” My experience says that Kim is right about cultivating a culture of adaptive leadership and identifying the attributes that support it…and then hiring to those. Regardless of the title (connective, adaptive, etc), there are attributes of these leaders we can see and identify. Those who are known for selflessly making connections that raise the whole ship and support others. In the end, my gut can usually tell who ‘gets it’ and anytime I have not trusted it, I’ve been sorely disappointed.
STIMULUS
I believe that the weakness of Adaptive Leadership principles are in the identification and selection of what Jim Collins (2005) describes in Good to Great as ‘Level 5’ leaders. Leaders who have a rare combination of fierce professional determination coupled with a personal humility. Clearly, while their professional perspective is relentlessly driving results, their approach is more like a world-view, a form of being that recognizes the collective success of their organization to be much greater than their own. Ironically, the strongest ‘adaptive leaders’ are often marginalized in the selection process.
So how does a company find such folks? To me they are virtually unidentifiable.
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