Care take this moment,
Immerse yourself in its particulars
Epitecus born AD50, Greek Philosopher and Stoic

This new school year is like no other in our living memory as school leaders.

Living with uncertainty, planning for the as yet unknown and holding our own anxiety, whilst leading wholeheartedly with hope and optimism is calling on all our strength and skill as school leaders. 

So how can we remain grounded when anxiety and overwhelm can threaten to sweep us off our feet? Many of the school leaders I work with have experienced how becoming present ‘in the moment’ and ‘anchored’ can help retain some balance. This involves coming close to whichever moment you find yourself in, pausing in it, accepting it and allowing it - even for a second.

Here’s how Mindfulness can help.

Mindfulness and the present moment

Our natural human tendency is to overcomplicate our experience. Our minds wander. One minute we are fully connected to the present moment, the next we have drifted into the future, worrying about ‘what next’ or taking up residence in the past, reliving an experience and all too often beating ourselves up about it. Our minds tend to have a ‘negativity bias’ so when we are lost in thought we can find ourselves living a ‘worst case scenario’ - one which is very difficult to switch off from. This is part of a very human and universal experience.

An article from the start of the pandemic in the Harvard Business Review noted that a powerful emotion we are feeling at the moment is ‘anticipatory grief’. In other words, we are swept up in ‘not knowing’ and as a result spend much of our time consciously and unconsciously worrying about and grieving for that which has not yet happened. This is exhausting and erodes our wellbeing.

How do we handle this? The article has a straight forward response - by coming into the present moment. This can help us unravel our kaleidoscope of thoughts and take a step back from them, instead becoming the watcher of our thoughts. We start to see them as mental fabrications that are not necessarily true. We ground ourselves, allowing ourselves be - in this moment - with whatever is here.

A foundational Mindfulness practice for being present is the practice of ‘anchoring’. Here’s how…

A note on practices. These are very simply an opportunity for you to try a practice and see what happens without expectations.

Your mind will wander in the below practices. This is human, and it will happen over and over again! The heart of the practice is noticing when you have become lost in thought and then placing your attention - your ‘torch beam’ - back on your chosen anchor as best you can.

Coming into the present moment

The feet as an anchor. 

Gravity is an ally in bringing us down from a spiralling and busy mind. Stand still, bring your attention into your feet. With as much curiosity as you can muster for one or two minutes, get close up to the sensation of your feet on the floor noting the changing nature of the sensation. Each time the mind wanders and tries to distract you – which it will – gently come back to placing your attention on your feet.

The breath as an anchor.

The breath is always with us. At times like this we can spend a lot of the day breathing very shallowly, shoulders hunched, heart rate up. Stop what you are doing and bring your attention to your breath. Notice where you feel it most vividly, at the nostrils, the back of the throat or in the belly. With curiosity, settle your attention on your breath coming in and out. If it helps you can count, even up to five breaths will help. Each time your mind wanders – which it will - gently bring your attention back to the breath.

Sounds as an anchor

Our schools and offices are full of sound. Stop what you are doing. Sit or stand in stillness as best you can. Become aware of sounds. There is no need to go hunting for them, simply let your body become a microphone picking up any sounds as they come. Notice the tendency to react to them – some we like, some we don't like, some tug for our attention. As best you can, let these reactions go. Do this for perhaps 5 minutes at some point in the day.

As you try these practices, notice the impulse to do, to fix, to be in control. Give yourself permission to release this. Drop your responsibilities, like heavy shopping bags, just for a moment.  They will still be waiting for you at the end of the practice where you can pick them up again, a little more balanced, calm and resilient.

If you have time to go further this 10 minute practice by Mark Williams from the Oxford Mindfulness Centre is great. It’s taken from his book ‘Finding Peace in a Frantic World’ which was my first introduction to Mindfulness.

Some ancient words to leave you with…

Got the time to explore Mindfulness further?

Head to the Resources page of the Empowering Leadership website for podcasts, articles, videos and more!

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Maggie x
maggie@maggiefarrar.co.uk