Who is this blog for?
Business and technology leaders gathered on 16th April 2024, at the Babble-hosted Fit to Lead Executive Lunch and Forum. Held at the prestigious Buffini Chao Deck in London’s National Theatre, the event featured a lineup of prominent speakers with the Director of Quirk Solutions and longtime friend to Babble, Chris Paton, hosting both panel sessions. The esteemed panellists shared many insights about leading in the face of adversity and deeply explored the first two pillars of the Fit to Lead framework. This framework equips modern leaders with the mental, physical, and ethical edge to thrive in today’s demanding landscape.
Reading Time: 8 minutes
What This Blog Covers:
- Mindfulness Tools and Techniques
- Distress Tolerance
- Memento Mori
- Zooming Out
- Breathwork
- The One-Song Reset
- Pressure Training
In the previous blog, we introduced you to panel host, Chris Paton and the esteemed Room to Breathe panellists: Dr. Steve Ingham, Orla Chennaoui, Sarah Furness and Mike Bates. Drawing from the mental and physical fitness pillars of the Fit to Lead framework, they unpacked the mind-body connection in relation to effectively leading in the face of adversity. Beyond leadership, the speakers spoke at length about harnessing resilience, working to find the quiet and establishing balance in light of the ‘always-on’ culture we live in. They also shared many insights and tools about managing stress and anxiety to be an effective leader – let’s explore these further.
Mindfulness Tools and Techniques
When it comes to using techniques to navigate stress and become a resilient leader, meditation is always the first one to come to mind. As popular as this tool is, many of us struggle with it because we can’t turn our brains off. However, unlocking the power of mindfulness first requires an understanding of how the mind works.
“We need to sort of give ourselves permission to acknowledge that you’ll never turn your brain off, but you can learn how to engage differently with your brain. And that’s something that I really learned through mindfulness.” – Sarah Furness
Here are some more mindfulness tools that the panel shared to help you befriend your brain and harness your leadership skills in the face of adversity:
Distress Tolerance
This technique can be done through meditation and involves sitting with difficult thoughts and processing your emotions. Doing so trains your brain to tolerate difficulty, allowing you to embrace fear and anxiety instead of trying to avoid, change or fuel these intrusive thoughts. Sarah affirmed that learning to sit with difficulty strengthened her resilience by giving her the confidence that her brain can deal with difficulty.
Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable and accepting the things we would ordinarily avoid thinking about leads to an acceptance of what lies out of our control. It is that acceptance that allows us to engage with those emotions and limit their power over us. Put differently, accepting sources of anxiety will make you feel less anxious and remain a confident leader because you will have a deeper understanding of why you are triggered and manage it accordingly.
Memento Mori
Memento mori is a Latin phrase that means “remember you must die”, and is an exercise that Orla uses to manage her anxiety. This tool also involves doing something we all find uncomfortable: using meditation and visualisation to embrace the awareness that one day we will all die. This is also referenced in old stoic philosophy, where they encourage us to frequently sit with the inescapable fact that one day our lives will come to an end.
Zooming Out
On its own, memento mori is a morbid practice but Orla lightens things up by simultaneously using another tool while she reflects on her mortality. Zooming out entails briefly stepping away from a stressful situation and visualising where you are – with eyes either open or closed. So, from the room you are currently in, you will zoom your mental lens out until you are looking at yourself in relation to the city, province, country, continent and then the world.
Before you know it, you – and all the problems that may seem larger than life to you and your team – are just a tiny speck on the planet. Not only does this give you perspective, but it also comes with an acceptance that whatever it is you are dealing with, will pass. Doing this in conjunction with memento mori, allows you to realize how insignificant your problems are in the greater scheme of things.
Breathwork
As a qualified breath instructor, Orla appreciates the power of breath and uses it to manage her panic attacks. Breathwork is more than filling your lungs with air, it’s a powerful tool for managing anxiety. By controlling your breath and slowing it down, you slow your heart rate, activate your body’s relaxation response and lower your stress hormones. She came to learn that just like our breath can calm us down, it can also instigate panic. The trick is in the timing – and this is where music comes in.
The One-Song Reset
Orla developed this exercise to help her control her breathing without having to time herself, and is a tool she uses for a quick reset in the middle of the day. This simply entails putting on a song that matches the mood that you want to get into – regulating either up or down. For example, if you’re feeling tired and unmotivated, this exercise energizes you before a meeting. Conversely, this technique is also a great way to take a break from the ‘always on’ connectivity of leadership by allowing you to focus on your breath instead of the endless emails, Zoom meetings, team messages and the like.
You’ll notice that your breath is shallower when in these states, so this tool helps you gain control of your breathing by timing it to the rhythm of the song. The general idea is to breath in for a count of four and out for another count of four both through your nose until the song is over. If you are feeling more stressed than usual, Orla suggests breathing in for four and out for eight. The slower and the longer the outbreath, the more you will relax.
Tip: Consider making a breathwork playlist that houses your favourite songs to breathe to.
Pressure Training
What sets leaders apart is their ability to thrive under pressure – and this technique helps you do just that by emphasising the importance of having the right mindset. Using elite athletes as an example, Steve spoke about how providing science-backed psychological support improved their performance. Whether training for the Olympics or gearing up for a board meeting, it all begins with changing your outlook on challenges. Doing so will allow you to focus on preparing for them instead of worrying about them.
Again, this involves embracing discomfort by replicating the stressful environment and purposefully putting yourself under pressure. As an example, Steve mentioned how they prepared Jessica Ennis Hill for performance in London by having significant people watch her key training sessions. This was used in place of simulating the intensity of having 80,000 people watching in the Olympic Stadium. The point of this practice is to give you the authentic confidence to deal with whatever obstacles you may face.
“The notion of ‘believe it and you can achieve it’ is kind of just cheesy, cliched nonsense to be honest. You want them there thinking, I’m [going to] perform because of all the evidence and I back myself because I’ve observed it, I know it. – Dr. Steve Ingham
However, this is often easier said than done because as pressure increases, your brain begins to switch to a more native emotional state and doesn’t think as clearly. Steve noted that breathwork is a great way to ground yourself and implement more logical thinking. Connecting this to the body, he added that fitness training can also help modify your stress-based response. But most important is the narrative and the mindset we choose to embrace.
This very simple yet effective shift in terminology rooted in an appreciative gratitude-based system will allow you to tap into your cognitive thinking brain and be more likely to empower your team strategically.
While stress and anxiety are inescapable emotions that play an integral role in our lives, we can manage them simply by changing our perspective. From memento mori mortality meditations to breathwork exercises synced to your favourite songs, the Room to Breathe panellists shared a range of powerful mindfulness tools and techniques to become a resilient leader and conquer stress. Remember, being Fit to Lead entails being a leader who prioritises the physical and mental wellbeing of themselves and their employees. Take a deep breath, embrace discomfort, and find calm amidst the chaos.
