Building a Thriving Team through Mindful Leadership

Building a Thriving Team through Mindful Leadership Kanesha Lee Baynard University of Colorado at Boulder

Goals of this talk • Overview ofmindful leadership • Authentic leadership vs. charismatic leadership • Initial ideas and tools for: • developing your mindful leadership skills • creating a productive and satisfying relationship with your team (or potential team) • Expand your thinking about colleagues and staff as important members of your team • Share thoughts and ideas

Charismatic leadership Authentic leadership Genuine intentions Understanding of the purpose of leadership Building trustworthy relationships Operating with high levels of personal discipline Intelligence and a high level of emotional intelligence Self-awareness • High intelligence (IQ) and low emotional intelligence (EQ) • Lacks an awareness of self and this feeds into actions • No deep understanding of motivations • Past fears and failures have not been examined • Distracted by the desire to achieve success and recognition – in the eyes of others -Bill George

What comes to mind when you hearMindful Leadership?

Developing mindfulness Mindfulness enables leaders to be fully present, aware of themselves and their impact on other people, and sensitive to their reactions to stressful situations. -Bill George

Mindfulness Leadership doing the right thing (management is doing things right) guide a team through change and applies emotional intelligence in a way that attains the best work out of the team inspires and motivates a team to drive themselves • practice of living in the present moment • bringing one’s complete attention to the present experience on a moment-to-moment basis • paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally -Jon Kabat-Zinn -Coach4Growth Leaders who are mindful tend to be more effective in understanding and relating to others, and motivating them toward shared goals. Hence, they become more effective in leadership roles. –Bill George

How is your team organized? How often do you think aboutthis?

Do you think about an org chart? Do you think about a team web? Today, each time you speak, check to see if your words match your best self. If not, rephrase-or be silent. -Martha Beck

-Ellen Langer People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision. –John C. Maxwell

How do you…at work? • Manage stress • Remain objective and less reactive • Show compassion to yourself and others • Build trust The manager asks how and when; the leader asks what and why.  - Warren G. Bennis

Mindfulness and Self-awareness Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet. -Theodore M. Hesburgh

Think about the current climate in your work place Mindful leadership would fit because: Mindful leadership could be a challenge because: Once you truly intend to accomplish something, the success you can achieve is greater than you can imagine. -Martha Beck

Harvard Business School Press, from Resonant Leadership: Renewing Yourself and Connecting with Others Through Mindfulness, Hope and Compassion. Any advice that doesn't feel liberating is wrong. Ignore it. -Martha Beck

What leadership resources are currently available to you? Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. -John F. Kennedy

Conflict management style Leadership styles Real colors Social styles/inventories Work/life balance Emotional intelligence Mindfulness Strength quest Myers Briggs Coaching A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better. -Jim Rohn

-Dan Sontag Any moment you spend attacking yourself is a moment away from your higher purpose and your power to love. Don't go there. -Martha Beck

Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee You don't owe anyone time or energy simply because they want it. Doing out of obligation isn't kindness; it's self-betrayal. -Martha Beck

Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee Leaders should be collaborative, modest, and generous – Bill Bradley

Why expect comfort when you step outside your comfort zone? Expect fear and keep moving! Have courage! Soon, what was once out of your comfort zone will be INSIDE of it. -Valorie Burton

What are two steps you could take towards mindful leadership by Monday? The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority. Ken Blanchard

The Coaching Session -Valorie Burton If you want real control, drop the illusion of control. Let life live you. It does anyway. -Byron Katie

See the big picture. Influence is knowing what you want. It’s more important to know what others want. If you know what others want and focus on helping them get it, they are far more likely to help you towards your goals. Understand your institutions goals - not just your department's goals. See the big picture and where you fit into it. Rise above the fray. Being aware of of the big picture, will most likely keep you from getting get pulled into workplace negativity. Choose your battles wisely. Ask yourself, "Will this situation matter a month or year from now?" If the answer is "no," let it go. You can transform any situation by bombarding it with compassion. Make sure you include yourself, and you can always do this. -Martha Beck

Stay focused on solutions. Many people focus on problems. You want to focus on solutions. Every problem presents an opportunity for you to demonstrate your problem-solving skills. When problems arise, don't go to your team until you've answered the question, "What are three potential solutions?" Tap into unofficial networks. Every institution has unofficial circles of influence. Tune in and notice who the influencers are. Build trust and reciprocal relationships with them. Be interested in what matters to them. Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. -Peter F. Drucker

Start small. • Make it easy to say "yes" by finding small things you want to influence. • Getting a decision maker to say "yes" once makes it easier for them to say "yes" again. • Build trust by starting small. Expand your influence from there. • Plan what you say. • Influencers are strategic. • When it's time to ask for something, spend some time - even if just have a minute or two - planning how to ask. • When is a good time? • What groundwork do I need to lay? • What is the best way to phrase what I have to say so the other person will feel positive about saying "yes"? Everything is happening in new ways. The only preparation is being open and relaxed. Do that, and all will be well. -Martha Beck

What are two additional steps you could take towards mindful leadership by Monday? Without initiative, leaders are simply workers in leadership positions. -Bo Bennett

Key questions • Do I know what is expected of me at work? • Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right? • At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day? • In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for good work? • Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person? • Is there someone at work who encourages my development? Your next step is always apparent: It's the most obvious thing that will bring you joy, always some sort of rest or play. -Martha Beck

Additional questions • At work, do my opinions seem to count? • Does the mission of my company make me feel like my work is important? • Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work? • In the last six months, have I talked with someone about my progress? • At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow? Competence goes beyond words. It's the leader's ability to say it, plan it, and do it in such a way that others know that you know how - and know that they want to follow you. – John C. Maxwell

If organizations were mindful — referring to the simple act of noticing new things — leadership would be quite a different matter. They would not only be mindful themselves; their most important responsibility would be to enable their followers to be mindful as well. One might argue that in an increasingly complex world — where work cuts across all types of institutional boundaries — the leader's only task may be to promote and harness "distributed" mindfulness.-Ellen Langer

Sources and Resources • Why Not You? 28-Days to Authentic Confidence • Valorie Burton • Finding Your Own North Star: Claiming the Life You Were Meant to Live • Martha Beck • How Did I Get So Busy? General Edition • Valorie Burton • “Leadership’s Lost Decade” (appeared in wallstreetjournal.com, February 3, 2010) • Bill George • Emotional Intelligence • Daniel Goleman • Mindful Leadership: A Brain-Based Framework • Michael H. Dickmann

Sources and Resources • ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership • http://www.asaecenter.org/main/ • Coping with Toxic Managers, Subordinates ... and Other Difficult People: Using Emotional Intelligence to Survive and Prosper • Roy H. Lubit • First, Break All The Rules: What The World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently • Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman • The Girl's Guide to Being a Boss (Without Being a Bitch): Valuable Lessons, Smart Suggestions, and True Stories for Succeeding as the Chick-in-Charge • Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio • Harvard Business Review Magazine • How to Say It For Women: Communicating with Confidence and Power Using the Language of Success • Phyllis Mindell • International Association of Administrative Professionals • http://www.iaap-hq.org • Now, Discover Your Strengths • Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton • Strengths-Based Leadership • Tom Rath and Barry Conchie • StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup's Now, Discover Your Strengths • Tom Rath • Working With You is Killing Me: Freeing Yourself from Emotional Traps at Work • Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster

Kanesha Lee Baynard Kanesha.Baynard@colorado.edu 303.492.2590 Educator  Blogger  Life and Leadership Coach www.itsafullnest.com MultigenerationalNests

Building a Thriving Team through Mindful Leadership