Mindfulness in the Age of Complexity

Mindfulness in the Age of Complexity

Written by: Simon Robinson

On May 29th, Harvard Business Review Brasil held its second annual leadership summit, this year focusing on the mindfulness theme, which, in Portuguese, translates as mindfulness. As keynote speaker of the event, the professor of Psychology at Harvard University, Ellen Langer, participated, who presented the results of her more than 30 years of research on the subject. His speech, starting the day, covered issues such as the illusion of control, the conscious aging process, stress, the decision process and health.

She started by pointing out that in general people are unaware of their own conscience and thus "do not know that at the present moment they are not really there". In that sense, I believe that one of the most powerful steps a leader can take is to understand exactly what awareness and mindfulness mean, however, this is an act of courage, as it requires looking in the mirror to really know yourself, something that people in leadership position they are rarely willing to do.

The role of the leader, in this context, therefore, changes from the traditional command and control to one that is based on the development of awareness in teams, work teams and people in the organization. Since he works in a more present and self-conscious way, the leader also has the added benefit of increasing his charisma, empathizing with others, and, consequently, becoming more influential, inspiring the people around him. After Ellen's presentation, there was a very interesting debate, with questions from the participants. One of them referred to the capacity for innovation, which requires concentration, in a world in which one has to deal with the avalanche of daily information. For Ellen, the solution is to filter what really matters and dedicate time to the activity of innovating.

One of the interesting moments of the dialogue was when Maria asked him about the ego and how it relates to mindfulness. As Ellen has already commented, we are not clear that we are not paying full attention right now, so we have to constantly ask ourselves what the role of the ego is in our lives, and how much we are centered on ourselves, in what is best for us and for others, without the feeling of separation and fear. Developing mindfulness is a way to monitor the ego and realize when actions towards others and the surrounding environment are motivated by it or by the present inner self.

Mindfulness is not meditation, although meditation is a practice that helps in this personal walk, since it brings the mind to the present moment. The state of mindfulness brings many health, psychological, relationship with people and surroundings benefits, as it expands our consciousness beyond the ego and its restrictions on attachment, desires and, therefore, dissatisfaction. . It is excellent to see that Harvard Business Review Brasil really embraced this very current and fundamental theme, relating various aspects of life such as the spiritual and the professional, demonstrating that a person's journey, regardless of his position in a corporation, will be more successful if you are more aware of your role in the world and have a clear purpose in your life. So, therefore, leaders need, in an increasingly complex and dynamic world, to be more aware of their role and their purpose of existence.

 

Full text at Harvard Business Review: www.hbrbr.com.br/post-de-blog/mindfulness-na-era-da-complexidade#sthash.SEYlH1xI.dpuf