We now face global challenges such as inequality, climate change, increasing reliability on technology, and streams of refugees – to name a few. A look at the people responsible for creating situations leading to these problems shows that there is a lack of transparency and a lack of listening to the needs of others. Their focus is more on what is beneficial for themselves or their groups, rather than what would be beneficial for all or for the environment. Typical characteristics of such leaders can include egocentricity, competitiveness or authoritarianism. With such qualities, they often control everything in the direction they favour. But there comes a time when people stand up for their rights (or at least do not ‘function’ as is wished of them anymore). On the opposite spectrum are the leaders who act consciously and with a higher purpose in mind, they derive wanted results by involving others, and by adopting more holistic approaches to their decision-making processes.
The Conscious Leadership Style
Such conscious-oriented leaders ask themselves whether they want to create a future that focuses mainly on making profit, or one that makes money while primarily serving the needs of (all) people and taking into consideration the environmental impact.
Albert Einstein once said: ‘We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them’. The current challenges we face call for a transformation in our business leaders. So, I like to interpret Einstein’s quote as: in order to change the world, we need to change ourselves first. In recent years, many initiatives arose in order to facilitate more positive interactions and to focus on creating responsible results. Because leaders have a positive influence on the performance of an organization and their employees, more people are focusing on responsible leadership styles. And one of these leadership styles is the ‘conscious’ one.
Conscious leadership means leading from a conscious and positive position, in order to create responsible results. Therefore, one needs to become more aware about oneself and about others; to be open to the deeper needs of oneself and others; and to be willing to start changing oneself.
Other than being aware of our way of thinking and acting, and the pattern on which they are based, a conscious leader commits to the following attributes (according to the Conscious Leadership Group):
- Responsibility
- Curiosity
- Feelings
- Candour
- End of gossip
- Integrity
- Appreciation
- Genius
- Play
- Opposite of my story
- Approval
- Having enough
- Allies
- Win for All
- Being the Resolution
A conscious leader is a person that knows oneself and his or her values very well, and takes full responsibility for his or her thoughts, actions and interactions. While destructive leaders try to control their employees and create an atmosphere of fear and negative experiences, the conscious leader tries to focus first on the context and then the content. He or she empowers employees through creating an atmosphere of trust and creativity. Conscious leaders set a higher focus on listening. Thus, employees get the chance to speak out and to contribute more often.
A conscious leader is aware of the interdependences between people and therefore, he or she sets an example by being a role model for the employees. Instead of working permanently overtime and exhausting the needs of the body, a conscious leader will pay attention to the body’s needs and strike a balance between strain and relaxation. This has positive effects on the motivation and satisfaction of employees, and on their health.
Conscious Leadership in Practice
In Bojonegro, a part of Indonesia, the regent Bupati Suyoto came to power without any campaigning. This is in stark contrast to American presidential candidates, where a significant amount of time and resources are spent campaigning and fundraising, and as a result, there are expectations to listen to lobbyists and organized interest groups. What Bupati Suyoto did was to listen to the citizens. After starting to govern, he set up some simple and clear rules that forbade anyone to be corrupt, to complain about their job, or to say they were not responsible. Furthermore, he offered several services where he or his government listened to the people; they had a meeting in the town hall where everybody was invited to share their problems. Together they tried to solve these problems. With such strategies, the corruption level in Bojonegro reduced dramatically. This is another form of democracy where everybody has a voice, and not just those that have money and power. It also shows how conscious leadership can create a fairer society.
Another example is the company Patagonia, which leads consciously. The CEO Rose Marcario places significant importance in knowing their own values and viewing the world as interconnected. Patagonia is an outdoor clothing and utensils producer, and they pay much attention to environmental issues. At the same time, they are highly successful and they have profits. This proves that doing good and acting from a conscious basis can go hand in hand with making profit. One should not forget that conscious leaders have to make decisions, fire people or talk about problems as well – the difference is just the way they do it. Instead of purely focusing on the what – i.e. the content, a conscious leader chooses the how ¬– i.e. the context.
Conclusion
The conscious leadership style is an alternative to more traditional, controlling leadership styles that focus on single or smaller groups of interest. A conscious leader sets a high relevance on others and on the satisfaction of their needs. The creation of a trustful environment that creates win-win situations for all is the goal of a conscious leader. These are not idealistic ideas, but a proven method of leadership that can succeed. The main question that decision makers should ask themselves when making a choice about their own leadership style is: ‘What type of future do they want to create?’
Hannah Brack
Sources:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2016/11/10/four-steps-to-developing-conscious-leadership-skills/#40f29d0c2ac9
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