Finding the Space to Lead: A Practical Guide to Mindful Leadership - Hardcover

Marturano, Janice

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1620402475 ISBN 13: 9781620402474

Publisher: Bloomsbury Press, 2014

Synopsis

The complexity and relentless pace of our world places exceptional demands on leaders today. They work incredibly hard and yet feel that they are not meeting their own expectations of excellence. They feel disconnected from their own values and overburdened. By the thousands, they seek out books on leadership skills, time management, and “getting things done,” but the techniques these volumes offer, useful as they are, don't often don't speak to the leader's fundamental sense that something is missing.

Janice Marturano, a senior executive with decades of experience in Fortune 500 corporations, explains how Mindful Leadership training integrates the practice of mindfulness-meditation and self-awareness-with the practical tools of management, enabling leaders to bring a wider range of their capacities to the challenges at hand. We already know from scientific research that mindfulness practices enhance mental health and improve clarity and focus. FINDING THE SPACE shows how this training has specific value for leaders.

This is not a new “leadership system” to add to the burden of already overworked people. It brings the concepts of mindfulness into the everyday life of anyone in a leadership role, through specific exercises that address practical issues-the calendar, schedule, phone usage, meetings, to-do list, and strategic planning, as well as interpersonal challenges such as listening and working with difficult colleagues.

Leaders who have experienced mindfulness training report that it provides a “transformative experience” with significant improvements in innovation, self-awareness, listening, and making better decisions. In FINDING THE SPACE TO LEAD, Marturano masterfully lays out her proven techniques for promoting mindfulness in the busy executive's working life.

About this title

About the Author

Janice Marturano was for many years a senior executive and deputy general counsel at General Mills, a Fortune 200 corporation; she has also worked at Panasonic and Nabisco. At General Mills she initiated the company's program in mindfulness for leaders, which has helped earn it the #1 ranking among American businesses for executive training. She is now the Director of the Institute for Mindful Leadership, which she founded and which offers this training to leaders from corporations, nonprofits, and other institutions. She lives in New Jersey. She has been profiled in the Financial Times and now blogs for the Huffington Post. She was invited to speak on Mindful Leadership at the 2013 World Economic Forum in Davos.

Reviews

Mindfully leading means exactly that: paying attention to and embracing the four qualities that result in managerial excellence: focus, clarity, creativity, and compassion. More than that, explains Marturano, a former General Mills executive who established the Institute for Mindful Leadership, it’s the path to finding the space to think and to emote during this age of ever-growing distractions. Don’t dismiss her words or her exercises. For instance, installing the habit of removing yourself from laptop, smartphone, e-mail, and other modern mandates has proven to drive positive results. Not only reduced stress but also a more resilient mind and body equip leaders with a purpose, with authenticity, and true empathy in serving others. Each chapter and its exercises start with a simple 10-minute “intentional” pose and graduate to a recognition of the inspiration needed to guide others. Changing the ways we see and feel can have real human impact on the corporations and businesses we work for and with, thanks to the author’s passion for self-awareness and meditation. --Barbara Jacobs

Edition details

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Press
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1620402475
• ISBN 13: 9781620402474
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 208