How Gratitude Helps You Lead a Life of Deliberate Calm
Chester Elton
I help transform corporate culture | 20+ years experience | 500+ leaders coached | Keynote Speaker | Ready to improve your company culture? For business inquiries, [email protected]
Recently I had the opportunity to interview Jacqui Brassey , one of the co-authors of ‘Deliberate Calm. How to Learn and Lead in a Volatile World.’ Jacqui is a co-leader at the McKinsey Health Institute and a Senior Expert at McKinsey’s People and Organization Practice. We connected over the color orange, which as most of you know I wear every day. I explained to Jacqui that the Dutch are the reason carrots are orange , which put a big smile on her face since she is a proud Dutch national.
In?Deliberate Calm, Jacqui, Aaron De Smet ?and?Michiel Kruyt ?explain that as the speed of change in our world accelerates, leaders must perform outside their comfort zones in their personal and professional lives. This discomfort requires them to adjust. Yet, the same conditions that make adjusting important can also trigger fear, resistance to change, and reactive behavior. Jacqui and her co-authors call this the?“adaptability paradox”:?when we most need to learn and change, we stick with what we know, often in ways that stifle learning and innovation. To avoid this trap, leaders have to be proactive to learn and lead with awareness and intention, even during uncertainty, complexity, and change.
They provide great stories, tools, and a holistic approach to leading life with deliberate calm and then wrap up with some simple steps to help you get started. One of my favorite ways of 'becoming calm' is having a gratitude practice. The simple act of showing gratitude is proven to help leaders in high-stress situations and help build genuine connections in relationships. One suggestion is to be intentional with a mindset of appreciation for challenges we face. A side benefit is that our dopamine levels increase and we have the energy to keep learning. My nightly gratitude practice, with my lovely wife, of saying three things we're grateful for is simple and powerful, especially when we are specific and try to mention new things each day.
How do you practice gratitude in your day-to-day life? I challenge you to use this powerful technique, especially when you face new situations with high stakes. Let me know how it's going. I love to learn from you!
Love and gratitude,
ANXIETY AT WORK PODCAST
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Each week, my co-author and dear friend,?Adrian Gostick , and I get to talk to leading authorities on mental health and explore the causes of workplace stress and anxiety, along with practices that are proven to reduce tension and cultivate calm.?
Our guest is?Sheila Champion-Smeeth , Global Head of Wellbeing for Cisco. In this episode you will learn:
1.) Why CISCO has a engagement score of 96%
2.) How to drive a conscious culture of wellbeing
3.) Why more time with your leader increases wellbeing
Visit?The Culture Works ?for free resources including
to help you build an "all in"?#culture ?of?#gratitude
Leading with Gratitude ?&?Anxiety at Work ?are available wherever you like to get your books.
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1 年Being grateful changes my outlook quickly, I choose three things daily and I write new things everyday on my desk calendar. Seeing how they add up brings me joy when things seem hard.
Director of Retirement Sales Execution
1 年Ahh Chester, once again, I am grateful for YOU. Your “bursts of precision” as we used to call words of wisdom at a prior employer, are so valuable. It seems like yesterday I had multi-decade veterans pouring bursts of precision into me and my colleagues working on an internal sales desk. Now, I am the multi-decade veteran. How did that happen? ?????? Next week I have the privilege of traveling to our home office and spending time with my colleagues on our sales desk. You better believe I will use your words of wisdom to kick off our time together. Thanks for making me a better leader and better person.
?? Published Award-winning Author, Speaker | Certified Mindset Coach | Passion: Cultivating Mindful Confidence & Success in Clients in Transition
1 年I text with my college student daughter each evening and we share our 3 gratitudes. This gives me a way to both check in with her in a more nuanced way, and provides some balance in all the “drama” she relates to me otherwise!
Retired from CalSTRS - Enterprise Strategy Management
1 年Chester, I really enjoyed our work together at CalSTRS. Although I'm retired (since 2014), I'm still a loyal follower and LOVE your suggestions for new reading. Once an organizational development geek - always an organizational development geek! :-) Thank you for this latest suggestion - Deliberate Calm. Now that I'm retired and volunteering with the Assistance League of Sacramento, I still can appreciate the messaging. These principles apply to everyday life. Thank you for being you!