Leading in a Non-Linear World

CHAPTER 9MINDSET-BUILDING EXPERIMENTS

Here are a few very simple experiments you can start immediately to strengthen your mindset. Rather than seeing these practices as commitments, I'm suggesting you simply become curious and try them to see what happens. Don't look at poor results as failure, but as the means to ask new questions – for example, ‘why might it not have worked?’, ‘what happens if I try in different circumstances?’.

High achievers tend to write off small gains as inconsequential, seeking instead silver bullets to gain big wins fast. That's not how your mindset works. These small gains add up to huge culminative effects over time. For me, the body scan exercise yielded little at first, but over time, the practice gave me tremendous insight and perspective. A 30-minute walking meeting each day results in up to 4,000 calories used every month. Over time, six minutes of focused breathing a day might sustain your energy and help you sleep better.

THE BODY SCAN

The moment you wake up, before thoughts flood into your mind, spend a minute focusing your attention on your body – noticing how you feel. Start at the top of your head and linger for 5–10 seconds on your forehead, throat, heart, stomach, groin, thighs, knees, shins, and feet.

When you start thinking about the day ahead, given how your body feels, how resourced are you? This helps you prevent misreading your feelings and emotions. It places you in greater control.

MEASURE YOUR INTEROCEPTIVE ACCURACY

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