It is often the case that the rational side of managers is well developed. For instance they may be good at analysing and making logical decisions. But sometimes, even in the highest powered businesses, managers and team leaders need to check on that place from where they work -and ask how much they are connected to their hearts and souls. The question may be - to what extent does someone manage from the inside and from what FEELS right ?
The linear rationale is important but not always enough, especially in managing people. When we begin to practice thinking from the heart as well as the brain then a whole new dimension is opened up. As an organizational consultant for various businesses my role is to help managers connect to their softer, intuitive and more creative sides. In this way managers can experience being 'complete' and discover how non rational behaviour can actually help them in the office, both in making decisions and working with others.
Silence is golden
The first key to connecting to the 'femenine' side is for managers to 'bypass' thinking and words. The left brained genius Albert Einstein was one of the inventors of bypass techniques. By imagining that he was crossing time on a ray of light he arrived at his famous equation. By being fully relaxed and resting under a tree Issac Newton noticed the fallen apple. Archimedes had a bathtub, as a place of silence to inspire him. And apparently Bill Gates uses a rocking chair in order to work out his string of thoughts.
Manager that "wake up" to their silent and more intuitive side will find that their relationship with their workers will be different. Sometimes having the right attitude to employees is simply being more sensitive and listening. For example, a manager in a hi-tech organization repeatedly requested for one of his employees to visit a client in a town some miles away. Time after time, this employee avoided her manager's request. Apparently, it was said that this person was a good worker professionally but problematic, especially as she would not accept her manager's authority. In addition, some of the staff members started calling her "the prima donna."
The boss, who was connected to his feelings, felt in his gut that the disobedient employee was hiding something important from him. He invited her for a conversation and asked just one question -"what is happening?" The worker exploded in tears and said that she suffered from fear of open spaces and that the way to the client that she had been instructed to visit, was one continuous open space. The manager felt relieved to know the truth, and together they agreed to find a solution.
Meditate to destress
Meditation is a key way for managers to access that part of themselves that need not talk, but rather listen to what's going on around them and within. In eastern cultures and mainly in Buddhism, meditation is a way of life that gives calmness, concentration and inner quiet.
It has been found that the centre of happiness in the brain of people who meditate regularly is bigger than people who never meditate. If a manager finds himself in conflicts and ungrounded situations, then by practising meditation, he would be able to disconnect from pressure and stress and not be personally affected by work problems. Even if the situation doesn't improve the manager could handle the situation and not get sucked into it.
Meditation can be silent or accompanied with guided imagery. One time I met with a tough female manager from a hi-tech company. She found it difficult to relax, to open up and let go of her need to always be in control. Through guided imagery, she repeated the motif of having control and losing control, and she also practiced being in the 'here and now.' The results were excellent. With just half hour each day of practising guided imagery, she became more empathetic to her employees and even began to be able to delegate and let others lead in some aspects of her work.
Moving towards success
Meditation and guided imagery are just two tools. Sometimes the key to opening a manager to awareness is through movement. Many of the people that I work with are getting to know the benefits of tai chi and akido. With these martial arts you learn the basic principle: that sometimes a good leader needs to give over, and, that being soft and flexible rather than stubborn, leads to a more complete feeling of success.
Sometimes a manager may only need a simple movement exercise to get things flowing. I once worked with a manager who found it hard to communicate with his employees and became very impatient when they were not as efficient as he was. In a particular movement exercise this manager repeatedly raised his hand to reach his body height of about six feet and I would try to touch his raised hands. The action was a metaphor for his way at work - that is, his persistent aloofness with his colleagues and employees. Now after having completed the programme, the manager's workers have reported, "that we are being listened to and this gives us the urge to work."
Erella Shefy is managing director of Humanager Consulting, Israel. Her consulting experience includes organisational, team and management development. Her attitude is to integrate Eastern methods into the workplace.