Middle Way Management and Reflective Thought

In my last post, I talked about linear and non-linear thinking and how they affect the practice of Middle Way Management™. I suggested it is possible to practice Middle Way Management as a non-linear thinker in the context of a linear-thinking, American-style organization. In this post, I discuss the role of reflective thought and how you can rely on it as a calming instrument during the course of your hectic day.

Reflections on Reflective Thought
We all engage in reflective thought at some level throughout the course of a day. As a manager, it can be quite difficult in the workplace to reflect on events immediately after they have happened. I know, I've been there. Attending meeting after meeting after meeting after meeting does not promote the kind of peaceful reflection one requires to absorb much, let alone the content of those meetings!

It is an absolute necessity that you take the time out of your busy day to reflect on events. Without this, you will carry past injuries into the present so that you are living in a fearful future that will most probably never come about. As Mark Twain so eloquently put it, "I have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened."

Reflective thought is not a quick review of meeting notes or briefly glancing at your schedule in the morning before everything busts loose. Reflective thought is the intentional act of quieting your mind in a peaceful place so that you can not only reflect on the past, you can address the future in a non-reactive way by mindfully living in the present.

Since one of the main ideas behind Middle Way Management is the act of living in the Now while letting the past inform your present and planning for the future, this simple act of taking time to reflect on workplace events is crucial to your success as a Middle Way Manager™.

Vision: A Moral Imperative of the Middle Way Manager
As a leader who embraces Middle Way Management, it is important you understand the critical role played by vision in your daily management practice. Truly, without vision, the organization will perish. Vision is the anchor for the activities of the present; it is what drives us to create and understand the 'what' and it is what compels us to find innovative solutions for the 'how' and 'when' of our work.

Vision is what excites and motivates people to perform to the best of their abilities. The leader-manager who lacks vision provides no incentive to the team. For this reason, it is a moral imperative of the Middle Way Manager to foster mindful awareness based upon shared organizational vision. Vision cannot be developed without engaging in frequent, consciously mindful reflective thought. Hence, reflective thought that leads to a clear, concise, exciting vision for the team is an obligation of the Middle Way Manager.

Quiet Reflections
I once worked for an organization led by a Buddhist CEO. Upon arriving for a meeting at his office one day, I was told by his assistant that he was not yet available because he was "meditating or something." What a great reason to be left waiting. This CEO took time every day to engage in meditation based upon his personal religious beliefs, which informed every aspect of his management style. While it is my observation that he did not hold upper-level managers sufficiently accountable for their decisions, actions, and outcomes (a topic for a future post), he did manage with compassion, empathy, understanding and patience.

Along these lines, it is important for you to take the time to find a quiet place and reflect on events of the day, both past and upcoming. As a busy manager, I have had to block out time on my calendar as a meeting so that no one would book over the top of my reflection time. This may seem disingenuous, but if you book it as personal time and you work for a busy organization, your request will probably not be honored. Besides, it really is a meeting--with yourself.

Your place of restful thinking will offer you the peaceful environment necessary for you to calm your mind. In this case, an open door policy should be discarded for a few moments. You can use the breathing technique described in a previous post or simply sit with your eyes closed while listening to some pleasant music. It's probably not practical to light a candle in an office building, yet I do this when I am working in my own office at home.

I sit in a comfortable chair, close my eyes, calm myself with mindfully aware breathing and reflect. At first, your mind will wander. It always helps me before a session to review a few topics before settling in. This way, you can let your unconscious mind work on other topics as you review ones at the top of your mind. You should not take too much time to do this--it is not an exercise in mediation. Rather, it's an opportunity for you to quiet your mind and get organized so that you can charge ahead with renewed vigor. Ten minutes or so are quite enough for me.

Hopefully, this gives you a way to maintain a busy managerial work schedule without sacrificing too much of your physical energy. In my next post, I will discuss Middle Way Management and life/work balance. The consciously mindful path of the Middle Way Manager treads carefully between work and home. We truly do serve others best by balancing our workload with our personal obligations.

Until then, reflect early and often!

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.