Will Meditation Make You a Better Leader?
It will.
Meditation has made me a better leader. Better leadership isn’t the only reason I meditate but it’s right up there. Although it is rarely seen on the top ten list of leadership skills, it should be a contender. Some people may immediately associate meditation with prayer and others will think it’s more like weird chanting. Some think yoga. Some will think Buddhism and a small round sitting pillow in a quiet room with a big mellow gong. It can be any of those or none of those. I’m not going to tell you what meditation should mean to you. I’m going to tell you if you meditate, you can be a better leader.
My mind swirls. If I’m awake, my brain’s default position is swirl. A lot of the time I’m on top of the swirl. It’s energizing and productive. It’s a mad…meaning happy…conglomeration of ideas, projects, lists and dreams. I’m reasonably good at staying mentally organized and evaluating what to keep and what to let go. This busy thinking feeds my creativity. It’s also good for problem-solving. I can quickly consider and sort possible solutions.
There’s a flip side. A swirling brain wreaks havoc on focus. Working through a detailed project of any kind is one of my least favorite things. I will often wait until I’m up on a deadline to inspire a little mental chaos. It’s oddly calming to my brain, satisfying the need to juggle the details and create order under pressure. Swirling also inhibits attentive listening. I’ve developed strategies for better listening, like taking notes, maintaining eye contact and breathing. OK, I breathe anyway, but being conscious of breathing helps me slow down and listen. Focusing on the breath is a meditation thing.
Meditation is new-ish for me. One of my sons practices Buddhism. He would talk about meditation. Several years ago I went with him to a weekend of instruction and meditation practice. I wasn’t good at it. Not that anyone cared. Buddhists are low pressure, low judgment kind of people on the whole. Still, a very crowded room full of experienced meditators wasn’t the easiest setting for me. I let it go for a time.
For me, meditation isn’t necessarily spiritual. I see it as a tool to become more engaged in the moment instead of the million other things vying for my attention. Despite understanding its value, it took a while to bring it into my collection of self awareness tools. It happened when I started doing yoga.
I practice yoga at the YMCA. There’s no specific period of meditation built into the yoga practice, but to me, the practice itself feels meditative. Something about strength, flexibility and balance training calms and focuses my mind. My mind is rarely as calm outside of yoga as it is at the end of an hour’s practice. Sadly, the calm at the end of yoga doesn’t hold over through the next day at the office. I needed a daily morning meditation practice.
I spent some time thinking about how I wanted to build a practice. There are many opportunities in Nashville for group meditation. I know myself well enough to know I was unlikely to seek out that kind of experience. I ended up looking at guided meditation apps. After trying a handful, I settled on Headspace. (I’m not marketing for Headspace. The paid version has a huge library of meditations in a format I like.)
What does any of this have to do with leadership? For me, the queen of the swirling brain, it’s a small exaggeration to say it has almost everything to do with leadership. On days when the day is going like it’s been planned, I do well. How many days play out as planned? A few, but not most. On whack-a-mole days, maintaining calm and focus can be the biggest challenge of the day. I can get anxious and excitable. I get things accomplished but too often look — or at least feel — like the Tasmanian devil in the process.
Full disclosure: I will never be the epitome of calm and focus on a full-time basis. That said, I am infinitely calmer and organized throughout a day of chaos than I used to be. Part of the calming effect is likely due to experience and maturity. Our edges can soften over time. Mine have. My edges wouldn’t have softened enough on their own. Under pressure, I have always been inclined to overreact, repeat myself and fail to consider all sides of a situation. These are not strong and powerful leadership attributes. They don’t inspire security and trust in people around me.
Meditation isn’t magic. It isn’t weird and mystical. It’s learning to be present and observe yourself and the world without judgment. I’ve learned it isn’t about sitting forever in a cross legged position and chanting either. It is about a consistent practice, even if only 3–5 minutes every day.
The key is meditating consistently enough to default to ‘meditation brain’ under stress. It’s well worth the discipline it takes. Meditation has taught me to breathe consciously. It’s taught me to consider my thoughts to determine which are helpful and which are not. I’ve learned 98% of the time, taking a minute to calm the swirling thoughts leads directly to better decision making.
I know I lead better with meditation brain than with regular brain. Meditation brain is the brain that remembers to pause, breathe and consider. Am I listening? What response would be helpful, not reactive? Is what I’m about to say responsive to the situation? Do I need to say or do anything at all right now? Regular brain wanders sometimes, reacts without consideration sometimes, and sometimes simply fails to remain silent and observant. Meditation brain makes better decisions. It reminds me to leave silent space for others to make their own decisions too.
I’m not advocating any specific practice of meditation for leaders. My practice won’t look like everyone else’s. A good meditation practice, whatever it is, triggers a pause, opens space to be present in the moment. It may be sitting through a guided meditation. It may be a silent prayer or short breathing exercise. It may be standing in yoga’s mountain pose or quietly moving through a string of meditation beads. Whatever it is, it will allow a moment for our best leadership self to emerge.
