The Value of Mindful Leadership During Crises & Beyond
Mindful leadership revolves around the practice of looking inwards to inform how we engage with others and the world around us. Mindfulness itself is the ability to develop mind-body awareness, letting everything around you fade away and simply focus on the way you feel in the present moment. During this time period of uncertainty as we are living in a global pandemic, facing civil unrest, preparing for upcoming elections, and much more, it is difficult to create space to pause and reflect. As leaders, many of us are constantly on the go and thinking one step ahead, but it is imperative that we remember to stop and breathe. Without these breaks, we are destined to burn out, to become overwhelmed, and to push ourselves too hard, which in turn makes our work in social justice suffer.
Mindful leadership is especially important for global health leaders to cultivate right now because our world has shifted drastically over the past year amidst myriad crises. COVID-19 cases are continuing to rise as new variants are emerging, vaccination rollout is not happening as fast as it should be in the U.S. or globally, women’s health care is being challenged incessantly with lawmakers attempting to ban or reverse abortion practices, and racial inequity will take concerted and serious efforts to eradicate. Global health leaders need to take a breath in order to reset and refocus, which will then allow them to perform to the best of their abilities.
As a rising leader working with other leaders in my internship at Global Health Corps, I feel all of this deeply. I’ve also been practicing yoga since 2015, initially prompted by a desire to find a new form of exercise. I had no idea the ways in which yoga and meditation would change my life for the better. After my first class, my mindset did not immediately change, but I kept returning. I found the right yoga studio for me. I found a community. Whenever I walked through the doors, I felt a sense of ease. All of the regulars knew each other, and all of the instructors knew us.
While the pandemic threw a wrench in my yoga practice over the last year, I was excited to recently have a chance to participate in the first session of GHC’s new programming focused on mindful leadership. The series will roll out virtually in six-parts across the next several months. During these workshops, we will be focusing on cultivating sustainable leadership, rooted in body-based, awareness-based, and trauma-informed practices. The first session centered around foundation and structure. The following sessions will delve into alignment and movement, inner work, relational integration, community integration, and service and leadership.
GHC has partnered with Ghylian Bell, the founder of Urban Yoga Foundation (UYF), to facilitate this programming. A leader, yoga instructor, author, and activist, Ghylian’s work is rooted in social awareness and collective responsibility. She founded UYF in 2007, opening her first studio in Harlem, New York and has now expanded across the country and the world.
“To unify our global community by using mindfulness yoga practices as the foundation for healthy lifestyle choices, academic endeavors, social consciousness and creative expression.” — UYF’s Mission
In the workshop, Ghylian shared how her home was a hub of community and culture and when she became a single mother to her daughter, her family was there to help no matter what. The beauty in this unity led Ghylian to aspire to create a safe space for each person in the community — her vision is rooted in the idea of walking into a home and immediately feeling invited and warmly embraced.
Ghylian began the first workshop by asking how everyone was feeling in that moment. She led the group as we noticed each part of our bodies, where we were positioned in space, how our feet felt grounded in the earth, and what our breath was like. With our eyes closed, we were able to observe our natural breath as it rose and fell, and then we changed our breathing, making it slower and more controlled. Ghylian asked the group what came up for us as we became fully aware of our bodies. This moment of reflection is an essential part of mindful leadership. Without this piece, there is no recognition of the self; there is no growth.
Ghylian used the latter half of the workshop to give the group a journaling prompt, where we began to understand the “Great I Am.” For several minutes, we wrote poems as we explored different aspects of where we came from. Some ideas that sprang up were:
I am from (geography, region, city, town)
I am from (type of land and landscape — city, country, rural, dirt roads)
I am from (family structure — two parent home, single parent home, multi-family, raised by another relative)
I am from (a memory about an experience with your family, a family meal, an activity, a way you spend time together if you do)
I am from (a message you received about what it meant to be you based on identity)
I am from ( a message you received about people who were different from you along the lines of race, gender, sexuality, ability/disability, etc.)
I am from (a specific religious/spiritual belief system)
I am from (another aspect of your identity)
I am from (anything else you want to include)
After everyone was finished writing, we took turns sharing our thoughts while the rest of the group breathed through these stories and visualized them as a circle. Through Ghylian’s guidance into our bodies and the introspection of the journaling prompt, we took our first steps into mindful leadership.
Throughout my experience with yoga, I have learned to take my practice with me on and off the mat. Recognizing where my body is at each day has become a part of my routine. Focusing on my breath occurs instinctively. Understanding what I need in order to produce my best work is something I continue to improve upon, but it is always on my radar. Mindful leadership allows these components to arise on a daily basis. The beauty of this practice is discovering within ourselves.
