By Teresa Lowry

Mindfulness. The state of being fully present, letting go of the past and not worrying about the future. Leadership requires you to be fully present. Strong leaders are mindful.

A lack of mindfulness costs U.S. businesses up to 9 billion dollars a year. There is also the loss of connection with team members. Think of the missed opportunities for empathy with customers and our team because we are not fully present. Consider the stress to mind and body when we live in a state of regret for the past or anxiety about the future. Eckhart Tolle, in his book “The Power of Now,” says that we are addicted to time, always looking at the past or toward the future. Seldom do we find ourselves constantly in the now.

With mindfulness we have less stress and better focus. We enhance our ability to listen and respond in a meaningful and connected way. Our improved focus means fewer mistakes, greater productivity. This is the quality of living we desire for ourselves and others. One of the ways to cultivate mindfulness is to engage in a regular meditation practice.

Leadership of Self

Transcendental Meditation was part of my childhood experience, fostered by a mother who was ahead of her time. Sadly, I did not carry the practice into my adulthood. I had the foundation and believed in the benefits from both philosophical and scientific perspectives. I read all the books and articles. Intellectually I agreed with the benefits of meditation: stress reduction, clarity, peace, yet a daily practice eluded me.

Then it dawned on me. Could it be that my ego was addicted to stress? Had my intensity and multitasking become a way of proving to others that I was important, a hard worker? I wore my stress like a badge of honor. Proof if you will, of my commitment to my organization. What was the result? Predictably my frenetic way of operating did not give confidence to my team or customers. It often unnecessarily ratcheted up the intensity of a crisis. With an overly assertive tense tone and rapid pacing I created a toxic environment. The faulty logic was as follows: if I am calm, centered, peaceful, the organization will think I am not working hard enough, lack passion and commitment.

Most team members report that the stress level in the work environment is influenced by the leader. When the leader is stressed the team feels it and embodies this stress. When the leader is calm, positive and centered the stress levels in the workplace are reduced. Our response to stress has become a habit. Like all habits it can be modified or eliminated.

Meditation

Meditation is a practice where you focus your mind on a particular object, thought, or activity to achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm state. It is an excellent way to strengthen our focus and gain mindfulness. Start small. Really small. Commit to a few minutes each morning. Identify a location that is comfortable where you will not be interrupted. Sit, close your eyes and take deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth. Note that we tend to become shallow breathers as we power through our days. Deeper breathing helps us both mentally and physically.

Resist the siren song to do something else. Ignore the washing machine buzzer, that the baseboards need to be cleaned, never mind the dog hair accumulated on the sofa cushion. Leave electronic devices in another room. Forgive yourself the relentless mind chatter and to do lists. Clear your mind, always returning to your breath and positive affirmation for the day. A few minutes each morning as you fortify this practice into habit is a great beginning.

The 2017 Nevada State Bar convention included a session on mindfulness meditation for attorneys. There we were in a room filled with calm, deep breathing recognizing that unless we find alternative ways to manage stress the legal profession (like most others) will continue to be challenged by members who turn to self-defeating, unhealthy even dangerous behaviors to cope.

I am pleased to report that I have come full circle. The meditation practice that began in childhood, lost during the ego driven years, is now back. This enables me to start each day from a place of mindfulness, calm and peace. Thanks Mom!