The Mindful Leader

The Mindful Leader

by Michael Bunting
Released August 2016
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9780730329763

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Book description

The ultimate guide to becoming an extraordinary leader – while finding happiness, gaining authenticity, and banishing stress

Integrating proven mindfulness practices and world-class leadership theory, The Mindful Leader is the essential guide for self-aware leadership. The book simplifies mindfulness principles and links them solidly to business benefits. It provides a practically-grounded template for leaders to develop unprecedented levels of self awareness, wellbeing and effectiveness.

Research findings throughout the book detail the positive impact of mindfulness from the perspectives of brain science, psychology and leadership. International case studies from a variety of industries illustrate the everyday implementation of mindful leadership. You'll learn easy mindfulness practices that you can implement today and a practical framework for everyday mindful leadership. You'll also be given access to online resources for vision reflections, values clarification, mindfulness practices and more.

Mindful leadership is a hot topic – but it's not as simple as "when you become mindful, great leadership will spontaneously happen." This book serves as both mindfulness training and leadership training, clarifying the parallel while guiding you through the many points of intersection.

  • Improve your leadership skills via context-specific mindfulness practices
  • Learn mindfulness from a practical perspective, with real workplace skills
  • Discover how leaders from around the world practice mindful leadership every day
  • Understand the neuroscience link between mindfulness and great leadership
  • Learn practices that deliver a deeper sense of integrity, authenticity, fulfillment and bottom-line results improvement

Mindfulness provides real, practical tools for self-awareness, mental wellbeing, stress reduction and more. When practiced through a leadership lens, it becomes much more than just another leadership guide. Mindfulness transforms leadership as a whole, delivering real, lasting change that transcends typical leadership training. For a clear, concise framework of mindfulness at work, The Mindful Leader is the ideal guide for those serious about effective, sustainable leadership.

Table of contents

  1. About the author
  2. Introduction: How mindfulness impacts leadership
    1. What is mindfulness?
    2. The integration of mindfulness and leadership
    3. Why does mindfulness matter for leadership and the bottom line?
  3. Chapter 1: Be here now
    1. Absentmindedness: the opposite of mindfulness
    2. Presence: the antidote
    3. Mindfulness is much more than observation
    4. The senses: how to be present
    5. The body: the gateway to ‘self’-awareness
    6. The four foundations of mindfulness
    7. Transforming ourselves through self-awareness
    8. Stages of mindfulness development
    9. The research on mindfulness
    10. Formal and informal mindfulness practice
    11. Mindfulness is a value proposition
  4. Chapter 2: Take 200 per cent accountability
    1. Looking deeper
    2. Response-able leadership
    3. Liberating your leadership potential
    4. Accountability is a core mindfulness practice
    5. Credibility-killer, life-stealer
    6. Distress intolerance and equanimity
    7. Leaning in deeper
    8. You can't do it without inner kindness
    9. Taking 200 per cent accountability
    10. 200 per cent in action
    11. True freedom is available
  5. Chapter 3: Lead from mindful values
    1. Why do values matter so much to leadership?
    2. What do we mean by ‘values'?
    3. Values for wellbeing
    4. Making a stand for something better
    5. The best value to start with in leadership
    6. Meeting your shadow
    7. Values are the container for mindfulness
    8. Finding the courage to follow our values
    9. Why we're cynical about values
    10. Two methods for staying on track with values
    11. How to skilfully establish organisational values
    12. Breathe life into your values
    13. The truth will set you free
    14. Find your compass and refer to it often
  6. Chapter 4: Inspire a mindful vision
    1. Understanding human motivation
    2. Mindful livelihood: the basis of mindful vision
    3. It pays to be conscious in business
    4. A mindful vision is interdependent
    5. From personal vision to shared vision
    6. Putting your money where your mouth is
    7. Conscious business isn't easy
    8. How anyone at any level can make a difference
    9. Ethical investing: extending our mindfulness from how we earn to how we spend
    10. Change happens one person at a time
  7. Chapter 5: Cultivate beginner's mind
    1. Change or decline
    2. Beginner's mind
    3. Open-minded curiosity makes us smart
    4. Why do we resist beginner's mind and stay entrenched in expert's mind?
    5. Falling asleep at the wheel
    6. Releasing bias and accepting reality
    7. The brain science of beginner's mind
    8. To innovate, first create a safe learning environment
    9. Shift from ‘initiatives' to ‘experiments'
    10. Overcoming the god complex
    11. How to deal with complexity
    12. The underlying attribute of beginner's mind
  8. Chapter 6: Empower others to shine
    1. Cultivate generosity to release insecurities and empower people
    2. See the worthiness of others
    3. Cultivate compassion to truly see people
    4. Empower people by setting clear agreements
    5. Fixing versus empowering
    6. Turn on the light
  9. Chapter 7: Nourish others with love
    1. Lovingkindness: the heart of mindfulness
    2. Empathetic joy: authentic encouragement from the heart
    3. Gratitude: the gift that always comes back to us
    4. Flowering from within
  10. Chapter 8: Transforming for good
    1. Overcoming ‘immunity to change'
    2. There is more to behaviour change than meets the eye
    3. Changing deeply ingrained habits takes time
    4. You are worth it
  11. Acknowledgements
  12. Notes
    1. Introduction
    2. Chapter 1
    3. Chapter 2
    4. Chapter 3
    5. Chapter 4
    6. Chapter 5
    7. Chapter 6
    8. Chapter 7
    9. Chapter 8
  13. Index
  14. Advert
  15. EULA

Product information

  • Title: The Mindful Leader
  • Author(s): Michael Bunting
  • Release date: August 2016
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9780730329763