How Can You Lean Your “Success Ladder” Against the Right Wall?

Have you heard the story about the leader who managed to climb all the way to the top of the ladder of success . . . only to discover that it was leaning on the wrong wall?

While the image is humorous, the potential consequences are not.

Another way to express the story is to describe leaders who thought they had driven themselves to the height of success only to discover that they were falling over the brink of a cliff. We’ve even dove into how some leaders cross the border of servant leadership into martyr leadership.

So,how do we prevent such catastrophes for ourselves? In a word: mindfulness. 

How Mindfulness Can Prepare Us For Action

Contrary to the image held by many westerners, mindfulness is not simply about naval-gazing and sitting contentedly under the Bhodi tree. In fact, mindfulness has been associated with stress reduction in the workplace, improved health benefits, and even greater workplace productivity.

Therefore, mindfulness is not about inaction, but rather it is a grounding that prepares us to take action.

Mindfulness is a state of heightened awareness, focusing on the present, that often expresses itself in compassion for both self and others. Part of this awareness includes connecting with our core values, and being able to discern when either we or the world we live in becomes out of sync with these values.

When we pay attention to the disconnect between our world and our values, we then discover a space where we can take meaningful action.

Download your copy of our Mindful Action Research paper >>

2 Benefits of Mindfulness for the Success Ladder

To return to the story about the ladder and the wall, mindfulness has two benefits:

• First, it helps us to find the right wall.
• Second, it makes sure we don’t fall off the ladder while climbing.

Therefore, mindfulness doesn’t just prepare us for action, it prepares us for meaningful action.

CLU’s students use mindfulness as a fundamental skill in their capstone action projects, and previous projects included beneficial applications of mindfulness in the workplace.

To better understand how CLU connects mindfulness and action research, be sure to read “Mindful Action Research: A Values-Based, Scholar Practitioner Approach” available at Academia.edu.

The paper will provide readers with an introduction to both mindfulness and action research as well as show how to apply mindfulness as a skill for positive and change-producing collaborative action research. 

Read this free academic paper on mindful action research here.

Photo credit: © Nerijus Juras | Dreamstime.com