A tree flowers, opens its leaves, extends its branches, and grows with simple encouragement: water, light, earth, mulch. Keep it in the dark, or expect it to grow without attention, and we get a weak spindly tree, bearing little fruit.
Like the tree, without mindful awareness, our wisdom languishes until it is nothing we can count on in tough times. We have an intuition of our inherently broader perspective, yet we can so easily lose track of it in the daily rush, until we forget to access all of who we really are.
Even when we are sick and tired of acting in unwise ways, we too often repeat the same foolish choices. Without consciously cultivating our wisdom, we lose track of how to mindfully create and embrace change for a new future. What is wisdom?
One definition to consider is that wisdom is the freedom and ability to make the kinds of choices that move our lives forward and benefit the planet. Although wise choices could and do improve our lives, there is little understanding, discussion, or application of wisdom in leadership. Plus, even though wisdom has been contemplated and debated for millennia, there is little consensus on its definition.
But, we know the difference between wise and unwise choices in our own lives. As leaders we can see the reverberations from unwise choices.
Our wise self is waiting, responsive, available to be cultivated, ready to be used to show a better way. As many of my clients have found, consciously cultivating wisdom works. Leaders and their teams are consistently surprised by the results.
A Senior VP once said, “My habitual patterns create grooves with walls so high it’s hard to remember another path exists!” She was sick of the results she created from deep inside the groove. The path was too hard, the cost too great to continue. She was ready for change. She had some things she really wanted to get done and needed a big shift to do so. So, she used this approach to cultivate her inner knowing, the voice that speaks in words of wisdom.
She called the following steps her on-ramp. Making a practice out of using these steps, she discovered the wisdom that is always there.
The key is practice: three times a day this week will start your climb out of your habitual grooves and into taking new actions.
1. Notice when you are wise or when those around you are wise. Name it. Appreciating wisdom adds life to any conversation. Speak up and acknowledge someone’s wisdom and you will see them smile. We all love to be seen as our best self.
2. Highlight wisdom and you will see it grow. Acknowledge wise choices in performance reviews or team meetings. Applaud your kids for the times when they are wise. Journal daily on moments of wisdom. Use appreciation to harvest, recognize, and amplify wisdom.
3. Distinguish wisdom as an essential part of effective leadership. Define wisdom as a team or company. Are wise decisions aligned with your values and mission? Unwise set those aside? Learn from unwise and wise decisions. Ask what makes the difference; assess the consequences, the ripple effects of both. Explore what conditions support or detract from wisdom and build structures and agreements that support a flourishing culture of wisdom.
Cultivating, enjoying and amplifying wisdom is a much more satisfying way to live, and key to conscious leadership that creates a thriving world, healthy for generations to come.