An Act of Mindfulness, An Act of Will

Management Associates Choice, Human Side of Leadership

Leaders often feel handcuffed by circumstances beyond their control. And in many ways they are powerless to prevent or alter such externalities.

But while leaders may have limited choice over what happens to them, they have almost unlimited control over how they respond. We all, whatever our role or title, live in a world filled to bursting with choice.

To illustrate this reality in our consulting work we often ask clients to picture a sumptuous buffet filled with dishes and platters of every size and description. We then ask them to imagine that, instead of being covered with food, this buffet is overflowing with countless responses to any imaginable situation, be it verbal, emotional, or physical.

This “buffet of choice” illustrates the vast array of reactions from which we choose at every moment of every day.  It is our constant companion, and not only can we draw from it at any time, we do pick something every time we receive external stimulus of any kind. Whether we realize it or not, we always take something from the table.

Maybe we grab a handful of “smile politely and tune out.”

Maybe we pour a glassful of “lend a hand where I can.”

Maybe we take a bite of “ignore it and hope it goes away.”

Maybe, as an associate of ours said she did during one strained exchange, we reach out and, from every possible reaction, choose helping heaping of “get really pissed off.”

The metaphor is simple, but highlights two elements central to productive and knowledge-based choices.

The first is mindfulness. Leaders must first become mindful of the countless opportunities for choice afforded by their daily interactions. They must remain aware of the options facing them, the vast spread waiting on the buffet, and reflect on their power to choose from among them.

But they must also exercise the volition to actually make the productive choices available to them. They must act on what they know. They must exercise will.

Making consistently productive choices is a deceptively challenging form of self-mastery. Choosing to advance the greater good even when one is upset or distracted, choosing to remain constructive when one is frustrated, tired, or indignant takes attention and commitment. It is work in the truest sense of the word.

But organizations are only as good as the choices of their leaders, and the thousands of routine choices we make throughout a day have large, even transformational, consequences.

Just as mountains are ground down by the steady trickle of unassuming streams, the many small choices leaders make day in and day out are what ultimately define an organization and its culture.