Anchoring yourself before leadership moments
The leadership practice we don’t talk enough about
Your team borrows your nervous system!
Did you know I’ve been a certified yoga instructor since 2013? Mindfulness and movement are core elements of my leadership and entrepreneurship practice. And some of the most powerful leadership lessons I've learned haven’t come from a leadership book… they happened on the yoga mat.
Every day, leaders shape conversations, influence decisions, create safety, build momentum, and help teams navigate uncertainty. Whether you manage a team of two or lead an entire organization, people are constantly taking cues from you.
How you enter a room.
How you respond under pressure.
How you listen.
In yoga, our practice begins before the first pose. Before movement, awareness. Before effort, presence. Before action, intention.
Leadership works the same way.
I’ve found that leaders easily spend time preparing what they're going to say. But only a few spend time preparing how they're going to show up. Let’s talk about it.
Grounded leaders bring out the best in their teams
Did you know your brain processes emotional cues from other people in milliseconds? Long before someone consciously evaluates your words, they're already taking cues from your facial expressions, tone of voice, pace, and body language. Neuroscience also suggests that cortisol leaks through our skin! (This was a fascinating podcast.)
Researchers have found that emotional states spread through groups, and that leaders have a disproportionate impact on the emotional climate of their teams. Positive emotions from a leader can improve team mood, collaboration, and performance, while negative emotions can disrupt collaboration and trust.
Your team is constantly reading signals from you – your tone, pace, facial expressions, energy level, and reactions. Much of this happens below conscious awareness. Research on mirror neuron systems suggests that our brains are wired to internally simulate the emotional states of the people around us. So when you walk into a meeting rushed, scattered, and stressed, your team can feel it.
That's one reason mindfulness has become such a valuable leadership skill. It helps us notice what's happening inside us before it spills into the room around us.
Key moments for building your leadership practice
Let’s highlight a few moments where a simple grounding practice can make a meaningful difference:
Before you start your day
Before opening email, Slack, Teams, or your calendar, take 60 seconds. Just 60 seconds. There’s a 99.9% chance nothing in your corporate world is that urgent!
Ask yourself:
What kind of leader do my people need today?
What's competing for my attention?
What do I want to model today?
The goal is awareness.
Before a meeting
Instead of reviewing your talking points one more time, take three slow breaths and ask yourself:
What outcome matters most?
What does this group need from me?
Am I here to contribute, facilitate, coach, or decide?
Sometimes the most valuable thing you bring to a meeting isn't another idea, but your ability to create space for other people to contribute theirs.
Before a 1:1
Many leaders enter a 1:1 ready to solve problems. But what I want you to do is to try entering that space with curiosity.
Pause before offering advice.
Ask one more question.
Listen for what's underneath the words.
One of my favorite leadership prompts is: "I'll pause right here. What are your thoughts?"
It always amazes me how often the best insights emerge after the leader stops talking!
Before a difficult conversation
Notice what you're carrying into the room.
Frustration
Anxiety
Defensiveness
Disappointment
Remember this: Simply naming an emotion helps create distance from it. Then ask yourself What am I here to understand? before asking: What am I here to say?
Before hitting send
If there are emotions attached to your email or message, pause. Read the message one more time. Ask:
Is this clear?
Is this necessary?
Will the recipient know what next steps are?
MANY leadership headaches can be avoided by waiting ten minutes before sending. (Speaking from personal experience…)
A simple 60-second anchoring practice
The next time you're preparing for a leadership moment, walk yourself through this brief meditation / reflection:
Pause
Take a breath.
Slow down long enough to notice what's happening.
Notice
What thoughts, emotions, assumptions, or distractions are present?
What are you bringing into this moment?
Choose
Choose how you want to show up.
Choose your pace.
Choose your mindset.
Choose the energy you want to contribute.
(I went ahead and recorded this as a voice memo for you… feel free to download, save, and play to start your day!)
Wrapping it up
Mindful leadership is about showing up anchored, focused, and ready to serve your team so they can do their best thinking, their best work, their best collaboration. That’s memorable.
So, before your next meeting, presentation, coaching conversation, or difficult discussion, take a moment to anchor yourself first. I guarantee your team will feel the difference!
Let me know on LinkedIn what kind of mindfulness practices you do as a leader, or which ones I’ve mentioned resonate with you!
Your action step:
This week, choose one leadership moment to anchor yourself before. Then pay attention — what changes? What feels different? What do you notice in yourself and others?
Lead the way,
