Articles

A library of reflections on leadership, consciousness, and the work of awakening to a more aligned way of being. 

These essays are for leaders navigating the frontier between inner stillness and outer impact.

Categories
Coaching Philosophy

Acting from Wholeness vs Acting from Lack

Our actions usually flow out of our desire for a better feeling-state. We imagine that we will feel better in the having of something, and hence we are moved forth into action.This is the level at which most of us operate, where actions are an expression of our desire to have something that will make us feel better. In other words, our actions are sourced from the lack of that which we desire.The premise in

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Leadership Philosophy

Emotional Regulation through Enjoyment

This week, I am face to face with the violence in our world. There are times when I am overwhelmed by empathy for my fellow humans.When circumstances stir up strong emotions, being able to regulate and transmute them becomes a key asset. But the word ‘regulation’ comes across as ‘to control or manage’, to which I want to offer an alternative.When situations in life become too much to bear, many people numb themselves and continue

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Philosophy

The Truth Before Thought

I know that you sometimes hurt yourself with your thinking. You think that this thinking is justified, given whatever you think is happening in your circumstances. And often, you are right. Except, you might be oblivious to the possibility that these circumstances are also a part of your thinking, rather than outside of them. Given this possibility, there are two directions we can take in transformative coaching. We can demonstrate to you how your thinking

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Leadership Philosophy

Spiritual Detachment: A Double-Edged Sword

Most leaders I work with are astute enough to recognize the limitations of a purely material view of life. They are navigating what I call the frontier between inner stillness and outer impact. Leaders who are moving from a fixation on outer results towards inner stillness can experience a sense of detachment - of taking the focus away from the material results in their life and placing it on their identity and self. This can

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Leadership Philosophy

Radical Presence

Presence is like riding a bicycle. No matter how much you read or talk about riding, the feeling of being in balance on a moving vehicle is a feeling, not a concept. This felt sense can be pointed at, and you might understand it theoretically. But until you actually have the experience of being in balance, it does not fully click. And once you experience it, you can always come back to it rather effortlessly.

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Coaching

Beyond Self-Improvement

Most personal growth endeavors are like trying to optimize a mask. By reading the books, hiring the coaches, and optimizing your routine, you might unknowingly treat your personality like a piece of software that needs constant patching. This approach of trying to build a better ‘you’ has a ceiling. Leadership beyond a point is not about adding more skills to your ego. It is about subtracting the interference of the ego. When you are in

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Coaching Philosophy

Love as a Force of Nature in Coaching

The following article was originally published as a guest post for my colleague Clare Norman's blog. Clare, too, is an ICF Master Certified Coach and I'm honored that she invited me to write this piece for her series on love in coaching. While it is originally intended for coaches, I find that what it points to is equally applicable to anyone in a leadership role. I hope you read it with a felt-sense rather than intellectually.

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Leadership Philosophy

Awakening as Leadership Maturity

Early career leaders often fall into habits that feel inauthentic to them, because they want to come across a certain way to their stakeholders - as credible, or as in control, or as trustworthy etc.In developmental psychology, this is known as the socialized mind, where we are defined by the expectations of others, and we shape-shift to meet them.As they mature, the desire to be performative is overcome by the desire to be themselves. People reach

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Leadership

Awakened Executive Presence

The industry standard for executive presence is Gravitas, Communication, and Appearance. To lower our vocal register, stand with an open posture, dress for the role, and speak with decisiveness. Here, presence is simply a substitute word for whatever signals credibility. These can be useful instructions. They approach leadership as a performance, and presence as a series of levers to pull to manipulate how others perceive us. And while this approach can get you promoted, it comes with

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