Self-Maintenance is Conscious Leadership

While we draw on others for support and care, we take individual responsibility for leading our own wellbeing journey.

Being a Conscious Leader means taking care of your instrument: your body, your mind, your energy, your state of being.

When I began studying with my current meditation teacher in 2008 I was somewhat surprised that for the first three years, our focus kept returning to Self-Maintenance, which at the time seemed self-indulgent to me, and a little selfish. One of the first suggestions that she offered was that I start weight training in order to become more grounded and embodied. This wasn’t what I expected, but I went along with it, and she then led me through a process that helped me discover the finer details of what my body, mind and being needed to thrive.

As the years went on, and I became stronger, healthier and more centred, I noticed that my capacity to sit in stillness with awareness was also growing. My ability to navigate the complexities of my life increased, and I started to get a sense of what many teachers point to when they describe the capacity to demonstrate equanimity throughout the course of events. I learned that my own wellbeing was foundational to both excellence and the quality of anything I wished to contribute at home and at work.

The truth is that being a human being is a high-maintenance occupation. Whether studying meditation is for you or not, the lesson here is about the benefits of recognizing and actively drawing on your own resources. If you want to know your best health, strength, resilience and happiness, it is important to accept that it takes planning, commitment and consistency.

While we draw on others for support and care, we take individual responsibility for leading our own wellbeing journey. The aim of the Conscious Leader is to look after themselves so completely, that when they walk in the room, they are fully resourced, energized and creative. Others feel their vitality and dynamism, and they inspire outcomes previously out of reach.

To get a sense of this, imagine that later today you were to walk in to a meeting feeling great, only to find a serious argument in full flow. How skilled do you think you would be at leading the energy in the room from conflict to calm? Alternatively, how quickly might you lose your sense of positivity and instead resonate with the conflict. In other words, how well can you retain your own shape, and how often do you bend to the shape of others?

Conscious Leadership?takes you through the skills and habits that are central to the work of Self-Maintenance:

• Is your support team in place?
• If not, who do you need to recruit?
• How skilled are you when relating to your mind, thoughts, and self-talk?
• Are you adept at managing your energy?
• What are your practices of wellbeing & embodiment?

Excerpt from Conscious Leadership – Self Mastery At Work by Neil Seligman (?Conscious House, 2024)

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