Leadership revisited

In the late 1990s I designed and delivered an up to date course on leadership, management and administration (LMA) for education functionaries in Lesotho. A few years later I tweaked the course and delivered it to a group of community economic development functionaries in Scotland.

Twenty years later much of the traditional thinking about LMA is still around but it has often evolved by incorporating the latest thinking from (a) neuroscience, (b) psychology - positive, cognitive, social and evolutionary, and (c) mindfulness meditation.

Some key points in the new thinking include:-

• There are neural correlates of consciousness (NCC). There are modules in networks in a constant churn which maintain a sense of 'reality' in which 'I' features.
• There is considerable neural plasticity - “What fires together wires together”. “Use it or lose it”. It is never too late to change your mind.
• There is new thinking on the topics of mind v matter; and free-will v determinism.
• Most mind/brain activity is in the Unconscious and Self consciousness is a minor bit player after the event. (So much for the European Enlightenment)
• It is part of the human condition to imagine that there is an abiding self or ego. But it is possible to enter a non-egoic state and to be in 'flow' in the zone.
• There is a growing awareness of the complexity of (a) the three pound brain; (b) of its location on the cosmic zoom; and (c) of the potential of experiencing 'no boundaries'
• The human brain is shaped by nature, nurture and serendipity in astonishing detail)

Multi me

When sitting quietly the 'I' word can be used as a pointer to a mind state that seems to objectively exist. But there is a feeling for something that is my brain – ie I am other than my brain which has a mind of its own. The following dialogues give the flavour:

Statement:“I prefer bangers and mash to fish and chips.”

Question: “Who is the I that prefers and why does the preference exist?”

Statement: “I believe in God the Father almighty.”

Question: “Who is the 'I' that believes and what about God the Mother?

Neurology shows that thoughts, feelings and moods are being continually churned so as to monitor and interpret the incoming sense data in advance of reacting or responding. My 'I' [aka my minds other minds] is changing all the time in mini and maxi ways. The following flow of consciousness gives something of the flavour:

I feel the need to eat less and take more exercise.

I also cannot be bothered.

I make bargains with myself – 2 biscuits now and a ten minute walk later; 12.5 minutes for a chocolate biscuit.

I can bribe myself with home made muffins rather than Coop biscuits

I could grow my own food – or at least make better use of the garden

I cannot be bothered

I could develop a routine for exercising my hands and therefore improving my music and my handwriting.

I could develop a routine for … (many things)

I could leave it to the unconscious to sort thing out.

I try to avoid making a to-do-list – dethrone rationality – be postmodern

I should change my clothes and bed clothes more often

I could do the washing up immediately after every meal.

It was scary when I realised that there are so many cultural and subcultural shoulds and coulds.

I have lived and worked in six different countries.

I could develop indexes for … (various archives).

To be a holistic leader there is need to listen, focus and plan - and some of this can be done in a non-egoic frame of mind.

Of the best leaders,

when they are gone,

the people all say,

we did it ourselves.

(Tao teh Ching)