Podcast Episode 2: Leadership of Mind, Body, & Spirit
Transcript
My wife, Jennifer, and I occasionally need to provide pictures of the two of us together for different media purposes. For several years, we settled with using coasters, a saltshaker, and cardboard boxes of various heights to prop up our cellphone and then trigger the ten-second timer to snap a quick pic to share. The day finally came when the cellphone failed far too many times to stay put in its precariously perched position that we looked at each other and simultaneously questioned, “Why the heck don’t we just buy a tripod?”
Problem solved, right?
So we bought a tripod and were beyond thrilled we had the opportunity to capture our first picture using this surprisingly inexpensive piece of equipment. I extended its three legs to the same height, strategically spread them out to get a strong supportive base, locked in the cellphone, and set the ten-second timer. I immediately bolted from behind the tripod and assumed my seat in the chair next to Jennifer. We simultaneously smiled, stared at the cellphone, and watched in disbelief as we saw it start to slant sharply to the right. It turns out that in my moment of sheer excitement taking a saltshakerless selfie of sorts, I neglected to lock one of the extended legs of our recently purchased tripod.
Are you catching this? Our tripod did not work because one of its legs was not as strong or stable as the other two. To properly function and provide its intended support, all three legs of a tripod need to operate at the same level. I have learned over the last 10 weeks of our MA in Leadership program that leadership itself is surprisingly similar to a tripod. Sure, I can have a desire to lead, but for me to fully function in this role I also must have equally strong support from my mind, body, and spirit.
When you set up a tripod, you always have to start with one leg. It’s a little different with an actual tripod because it doesn’t really matter where you start. But I’ve seen that with leadership, the best place to start is making sure I am approaching it with the right mindset,
asking questions such as where am I coming from? What are my experiences? How are they shaping who I am and how I approach any given situation? I could be very high-level about this and just quote Shakespeare in Hamlet when Polonius states, “To thine own self be true” (Tearle, 2023). But this doesn’t get to the core of who I am. This all came to light for me through different exercises and personality assessments such as CliftonStrengths and Enneagram. My top five strengths are Positivity, Connectedness, Adaptability, Responsibility, and Developer (2023). Add to that are what I, according to the Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator, defined are my top four personality types—Type 9, The Peacemaker, Type 2, The Helper; Type 6, The Loyalist; and Type 3, The Achiever (2023).
It’s one thing to think I know who I am, but when I had two independent third-party assessments spell it out from perspectives that are not influenced by emotions or personal connections, it spoke loudly to me. This made me feel that much more confident and comfortable in how I mentally am approaching life and leadership. Such a foundation makes it more legitimate for me to go all Shakespearean and remind myself that I mentally need to stay true to who I am when I move forward as a leader.
My body is what have I have discovered as being the second leg of my leadership tripod. This isn’t so much a quest for optimal health in terms of how much I can bench press, how many miles I can run, or cutting fat from my diet and getting my recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables. I mean, these are good benchmarks for good health, but there’s so much more that goes into our body makeup when it comes to leadership. Here’s something for you to literally sleep on: I know from personal experience that as a person who lives with Multiple Sclerosis how important it is for me to get a good night’s sleep. This is straight from my neurologist—Dr. Tiffany Braley from the MS center at the University of Michigan Hospital—who stresses to me every time I see her how pivotal it is for people living with MS to get at least seven hours of sleep each night. In fact, Jennifer and I were part of one of her research projects relating to sleep. Such rest goes beyond the world of MS. It also is important when it comes to leadership, most notably for people in supervisory roles, according to a Journal of Business and Psychology article by researchers Charlotte Fritz, David E. Caughlin, and Dana Auten. In the article, “When a Good Day Makes for a Good Night: Antecedents of Sleep and Morning State”, they discuss the impact a good night’s sleep has on leaders and the people they guide. They note that, “… findings from our study can contribute to the development of interventions that support supervisor sleep, creating positive outcomes for supervisors as well as their employees. For example, organizations could implement procedures and provide resources that actively facilitate positive supervisor experiences on a daily basis to help support high supervisor sleep quality at night” (Fritz, et al., 2022, p. 1236).
With this, I know that I need to focus more on my quality of sleep not only for my personal health but for my abilities to serve as a leader.
Empowered by the knowledge that I am doing what I can to take care of my mind and body, I in turn can solidify the foundation of my tripod and continue developing my spirit as a leader. I truly feel my leadership spirit is tied to where my heart lies, how I treat myself and other people, and authentically speaking my truths. Compassion for myself is key to accepting who I am and unconditionally loving myself, according to authors Nick Craig, Bill George, Scott Snook, Lauren Schwenk, and Josh Hall. In their 2023 True North Fieldbook, these authors explain that, “In order to acknowledge your weaknesses and shadow sides, you will have to accept the things you like least about yourself as being integral to who you are” (Craig et al., 2023, p. 72). This awareness and authenticity make it easier for me to express where I am coming from to help build people’s trust in me as a leader. This is something that Simon Sinek explains is fundamental to inspiring others. He notes in his 2009 book, Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, “We are drawn to leaders and organizations that are good at communicating what they believe. Their ability to make us feel like we belong, to make us feel special, safe, and not alone is part of what gives them the ability to inspire us” (2009, p. 55). This is the perspective that solidifies my approach to how commitment to my spirit strengthens my direction as a leader.
This leadership tripod of body, mind, and spirit would not have any legs to stand on if not for me focusing on taking care of myself first and foremost. This notion of self-care is seen in, among other activities, taking breaks as needed, listening to powerful music (including A LOT of Bruce Springsteen!), and going in for monthly massages to ease work-related stresses and to heal my muscles that are mending from transferring Jennifer as her caregiver. This is similar to what they teach parents when they take their child on an airplane. If the plane encounters turbulence and air masks drop from the ceiling, the parents are instructed to put the air masks on themselves first so they have the ability to help their child. All this to say that I need to take care of myself first before I’m able to fully take care of others. Something I need to continually remind myself of, though, is that I can’t let self-care sabotage me to the point that I prioritize that over taking care of business. So, I need to remember to practice self-discipline before self-care allows me to self-destruct.
References
Craig, N., George, B., Schwenk, L., & Hall, J. (2023). True north fieldbook: The emerging
leader’s guide to leading authentically in today’s workplace. Wiley.
Digmann, D. (2023). CliftonStrengths assessment discussion. LDR 505: Leadership of mind,
body, spirit.
Digmann, D. (2023). Enneagram results discussion. LDR 505: Leadership of mind, body, spirit.
Fritz, C., Caughlin, D. E., & Auten, D. (2022/12//). When a good day makes for a good night: Antecedents of sleep and morning states. Journal of Business and Psychology, 37(6), 1235-1253. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-022-09793-4
Sinek, S. (2009). Start with why: How great leaders inspire everyone to take action. Penguin Group.
Tearle, O. (April 7, 2023). The meaning and origins of “to thine own self be true.” Interesting Literature. https://interestingliterature.com/2022/01/to-thine-own-self-be-true-meaning-
analysis/amp/