Mindfulness meditation helps leaders develop emotional self-control: but what is this and how does it contribute to a better leadership style?

 

Besides reducing one’s levels of stress, anxiety, depression, mindfulness meditation increases self-awareness. As you develop and deepen your own practice of self-awareness, your level of consciousness will grow, and allow you to experience more joy and purpose beyond your daily tasks and responsibilities.

 

Mindfulness is especially helpful with the development of emotional self-control because it enables a heightened self-observation capability. This cultivates awareness of the sequence of internal events that occur as you process sensory input. Developing awareness of this process leads to a more functional understanding of the way your feeling influence the quality of your interaction with others.

 

Emotional Self-Control is the ability to control impulsive behaviours, set apart negative emotions and not be overly reactive in stressful situations. It also relates to your ability to remain positive in all workplace interactions.

 

The benefits for leaders

 

Leaders reporting improvements in Emotional Self-Control experience a profoundly positive effect in their leadership style, with:

Significant improvement in team engagement

Reduction of emotionally influenced bias

Less interpersonal conflict

More effective management of problems and crises

Improved communication with colleagues and teams.

 

Moreover, leaders also experience an improvement in their personal leadership capabilities, as:

Faster cognitive recovery from stressful experiences

Greater ability to accept unsatisfactory circumstances and move forward

Improved management of depression and anxiety

Increased workplace productivity

 

 

Source:

MoreThanSound