The secret sauce of effective leadership
If we had to distil the essence of our approach to leadership development into one word it would be “presence”.
Presence is the secret sauce that empowers leaders to overcome adversity, unite their teams, and achieve their goals. In the realm of leadership, presence is power.
It’s about embodying the qualities and behaviours that enable us to connect authentically, build confidence in others, and inspire and motivate people into action.
It can be the difference between feeling stressed and overwhelmed or calm and in control.
One leader we worked with was feeling exhausted and easily distracted. He was under a lot of pressure to deliver a £25m project in three months' time and on top of that the annual engagement report for his team told him they were not feeling very engaged, which was only compounding his stress.
It was challenging to find a slot when we first tried to get some time in the diary to work together, and he then postponed our meeting twice.
When we did get to sit down I shared some of the feedback from his team. They’d said that team meetings were often cancelled at the last minute and when they did happen he had a tendency to get lost in his thoughts, distracted by his own goals and personal concerns. The meetings were disjointed, decisions were delayed, and communication was fragmented which had left his team feeling neglected and unsupported.
His team of hardworking individuals had begun to feel the effects of his absence. Without a strong leader, present mentally and emotionally, the team struggled to collaborate effectively and people were feeling frustrated and shut out.
We discussed the importance of presence and what it looked and felt like. But while he understood the value of really showing up for people and how it fed their need for recognition and support, he didn’t feel like he had enough time to offer it to the team.
I asked about how present he felt he was able to be for himself. The overwhelmed look that came over his face gave me the answer. I explained that it was only through being present for his own feelings and needs that he would be able to become present for those of his team. Something clicked.
While initially sceptical he agreed to embark on a daily meditation practice for a month, to allow space for him to check in with himself each day. He struggled at first - there was too much noise in his head he said - but I encouraged him to persevere and after a couple of weeks he started to notice a difference. He began to feel calmer, and clearer in his thinking. This helped him to plan better and then to communicate that plan with the team.
We then turned our attention to team meetings and looked at ways he could demonstrate his increased levels of presence to the team. Previous meetings, when they happened, had been very agenda-driven, didactic affairs where he did most of the talking. I encouraged him to try to invert this, and create space for the team to talk about their issues and the impact this was having for them. Asking open questions and listening to the responses was one idea that emerged.
The simple but profound shift of being present for himself and for his team meant everyone felt greater levels of trust. This enabled him to delegate more, reducing the pressure on him to deliver everything, and the team felt much more engaged and focused on a shared goal.
How has being present helped you to become a better leader?
Interested in exploring how to lead more mindfully? Join our free webinar for leaders on September 20th. Register here to secure your spot.
