The Mindful Leadership Creed:
Mindful Leadership Creed …
Be present.
Tell the truth.
Play to win.
Don’t be attached to the outcome.
The third part of the Mindful Leadership Creed was play to win (see the last post). Here’s one aspect of play to win that we didn’t cover: The best way to win is to stay in the present moment when performing (selling, competing, being of service) and to do this, don’t be attached to the outcome. Focus on being your best now, in the present.
Being attached to the outcome (the future) causes you to think about that rather than focusing on being your best now (in the present). I used to golf with a guy named Mike, who’d been playing golf for over 40 years. One day on the 15th hole, he suddenly realized, “I could shoot a 69. I’ve never shot a 69; it’ll be my lowest score ever. All I have to do is par these last four holes” — which he could’ve easily done.
Mike got so tense thinking about scoring his first 69 that his beautiful, fluid swing deteriorated until it looked almost as bad as mine — and I’m a happy hacker who barely breaks 100.
Thinking of the future (scoring a 69) and being attached to that outcome took him out of the relaxed flow state he’d been in and kept him from being in the present. He ended up shooting a 71 and heaving his clubs into a lake. (Just kidding about the lake, but if you’re a golfer, you believed it, eh?)
Play all-out to win, and stay in the present.
Don’t be attached to the outcome; it’s the future.
You can’t be in both places at once.
What can you do to detach from an outcome, play to win
and be more present?
