The Mark Of A 'New' Leader

Mindfulness helps leaders boost levels of attention, and create high engagement by being present.

- Rasmus Hougaard

Jacob was a senior leader in a European financial services company. Like most of his counterparts, he was always ‘on’—connected to the office in one way or another, all day, every day. With his smartphone and tablet, he was permanently tethered to the office. Day in, day out, he dealt with a steady stream of emails and an overloaded calendar of meetings. When he did have a free moment, he would often be interrupted by someone phoning with yet another urgent matter that needed his immediate attention. When I first met Jacob, he told me that he did not feel in control of his life. He felt like he was always trying to catch up, always overloaded with external forces—people and tasks—dictating his day-to-day reality. He felt he was living on autopilot without a clear sense of purpose and direction. Sounds familiar?

The reality Jacob told me about is the new normal. Leaders across the globe, and in most industries, are facing a work reality where they are under ‘pressure’, ‘always on’, ‘information overloaded’ and ‘distracted’. I call it the ‘paid’ reality.

Like many of us, Jacob longed for a greater sense of control. In our first meeting, he committed to undertake a four-month training programme of ten minutes daily mindfulness training and a series of meetings to alter his working habits. It was a significant investment of time considering his already busy work schedule. After the four months had gone by, I asked Jacob what he had gained from the programme. His answer: “one second.”