Equanimity is a leadership practice
/Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth [ref 1] was one of my favorite books when I was a kid. Professor Lindenbrock was a remarkably cool and steady expedition leader in the face of many challenges:
“Axel,” replied the Professor with perfect coolness, “our situation is almost desperate; but there are some chances of deliverance, and it is these that I am considering. If at every instant we may perish, so at every instant we may be saved. Let us then be prepared to seize upon the smallest advantage.” ― Jules Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth
His acknowledging and accepting that both terrible and wonderful things can happen, and his calm composure in preparing to take advantage of the best choices is an example of leadership equanimity.
Examples of Equanimity
Merriam-Webster defines equanimity as an evenness of mind, especially under stress. It suggests a habit of mind that is only rarely disturbed under great strain. (See also composure and sangfroid.) [ref 2]
Consider the following examples I’ve developed [ref 3] to illustrate high-tech leaders acting with equanimity.
Example: Jiaoxian, a seasoned Chief Technology Officer (CTO) with over 20 years of experience, leads a large IT organization facing a critical system outage.
Instead of succumbing to panic, Jiaoxian shifts to an equanimous mindset by practicing mindfulness techniques. She takes a moment to breathe deeply, centering herself and maintaining a present focus. By consciously managing her reactions and choosing a calm and composed demeanor, she sets the tone for the team, instilling confidence and stability. Jiaoxian maintains her composure and quickly assembles a cross-functional team to assess the issue. She encourages open communication, ensuring all team members feel heard and valued. Jiaoxian fosters a collaborative environment where everyone contributes ideas for a swift resolution. By demonstrating equanimity, she inspires confidence in her team, ultimately leading to a focused and efficient resolution of the system outage.
Example: Malik, a young and innovative team lead from an ethnically diverse background, manages a team of developers working on a high-stakes project with tight deadlines. He encounters unexpected challenges and increasing pressure from upper management.
Instead of succumbing to stress, Malik employs PQ™ Reps [ref 4] and positive reframing techniques. He consciously reframes challenges as opportunities for growth. He practices visualization exercises to envision successful outcomes, helping him shift from a reactive state to a proactive and equanimous mindset. He remains calm and composed. Instead of assigning blame, he encourages the team to view challenges as opportunities for growth. Malik leads by example, showcasing resilience and adaptability. By maintaining equanimity, he empowers his team to overcome obstacles creatively, fostering a positive and solution-oriented work culture.
Example: Ayesha, IT Director in a global organization with a PhD in IT and a background in cross-cultural management, oversees the integration of diverse IT teams across different continents. A crucial project update email outlining changes in project timelines and requirements, is interpreted differently by members of the team due to cultural differences, leading to confusion.
A team member from a culture that highly values strict adherence to deadlines perceives the timeline adjustment as a sign of incompetence or lack of commitment. On the other hand, a team member from a culture that emphasizes flexibility and adaptability interprets the message positively, understanding it as a proactive measure to ensure the project's success. This leads to a divergence in team members' attitudes and approaches toward the adjusted timeline. Some become more cautious, attempting to accelerate their work to meet the original deadline, while others relax their pace, assuming that the project's timeline is now more lenient.
Ayesha, known as a consistently calm and cool-headed leader, focuses on empathy and understanding, actively practicing putting herself in the shoes of team members from diverse backgrounds. She employs practices including active listening, empathy, and openness to diverse perspectives. She conducts a virtual meeting to address concerns, clarify the project updates, and encourage team members to express their interpretations. By fostering an environment of open communication and understanding, Ayesha works to overcome the communication challenges within her global team.
Example: Javier, Chief Security Officer (CSO) with a military background, faces a cybersecurity breach that threatens sensitive data in the organization.
Javier draws on his military experience to maintain composure during the crisis. He applies tactical breathing techniques, a practice commonly used in high-stress situations. By regulating his breath and maintaining a disciplined approach, Javier creates a mental space for clear thinking, enabling him to lead with composure during the cybersecurity breach. He implements a well-defined incident response plan and ensures clear communication channels with all stakeholders. Rather than reacting impulsively, Javier leads his team with discipline and precision. Through his equanimity, he guides the organization to efficiently contain the breach, investigate the incident thoroughly, and implement robust security measures to prevent future occurrences.
Example: Mei, an Agile project manager in a startup environment, encounters unexpected scope changes and resource constraints in the middle of a crucial development phase.
Mei practices presence in the moment, acknowledging the challenges without judgment. She remains unfazed by the challenges, leveraging her agile mindset. She facilitates a team retrospective to identify the root causes of the issues and collaboratively develops adaptive strategies. She ensures that the team understands the need for flexibility and encourages a culture of continuous improvement. Through her equanimity and agility, she transforms challenges into learning opportunities, promoting a resilient and dynamic IT organization.
Why Practice Equanimity
Equanimity is crucial during high-stress situations, such as system outages or security breaches, so leaders can make decisions calmly, assess the situation objectively and guide their team toward effective solutions. Equanimity helps leaders maintain focus on problem-solving, and to manage the emotional impact of critical incidents on the team rather than being reactive.
Equanimity also provides an environment where teams can collaborate effectively and resolve conflicts without unnecessary escalation. Leaders and team members can handle disagreements professionally, leading to better teamwork.
Equanimity enables professionals to adapt to changes in technology, project requirements, or industry trends, because it encourages a mindset that sees challenges as opportunities for growth and innovation. In the high-tech world, equanimity is essential for embracing change, fostering creativity, and maintaining resilience amid evolving technological landscapes.
How To Practice Equanimity
Probably the most important step in learning to practice equanimity is to become aware of the degree to which you already do or don’t practice it. Albert Einstein has a pretty blunt opinion:
Equanimity is a cultivated skill or practice. Leaders acquire equanimity through a combination of specialized training and (years of) experience developing a mindset tailored to their specific leadership context.
The earlier examples identify practices leaders can use to first regain or shift to a state of equanimity, generally by getting past any panic or fear by becoming present and aware of what’s happening, and detaching from outcomes/ accepting whatever happens.
The examples also identify practices leaders can use to follow-up/ respond/ take action to their situation, including empathy, curiosity, and creativity. Variations of these practices are common in frameworks and bodies of knowledge like Energy Leadership™, Positive Intelligence®, positive psychology, neurology, and even Buddhism.
My approach to leadership coaching is less focused on managerial skills and more focused on leadership attitude, mindset and energy. I coach Positive Intelligence® [4] and practices like awareness, acceptance, mindfulness, presence in the moment, and equanimity, especially for high-tech leaders.
If you are feeling inspired to build, reestablish, or further develop these and other leadership practices, check out my Energy and Mindset Reboot Program, and find out what it can do for you in a free 30-minute Discovery Session.
“Panic causes tunnel vision. Calm acceptance of danger allows us to more easily assess the situation and see the options.” -- Simon Sinek
References:
[1] https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_Journey_to_the_Centre_of_the_Earth/d9EZAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover
[2] “equanimity,” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary and Thesaurus, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/equanimity, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/equanimity. Accessed 1/3/2024.
[3] Content developed with assistance of ChatGPT 3.5 on 12/28/2023
[4] Shirzad Chamine, Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours, Geenleaf Book Group Press, Austin, TX, ©2012 https://a.co/d/3NCZUXZ