Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee, Resonant Leadership: Renewing Yourself and Connecting With Others Through Mindfulness, Hope and Compassion. Harvard Business Press, 2005.
- Prequel: Goleman, Primal Leadership (2002)
- Sequel: Richard Boyatzis, Fran Johnston and Annie McKee, Becoming a Resonant Leader
Referenced in:
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
Boyatzis and McKee build upon the success of the bestseller they coauthored with Daniel Goleman, Primal Leadership (2002). Though strongly academic, as one might expect from a Harvard Business School volume, it is still adequately peppered with practical and engaging anecdotes drawn from the authors’ consulting. The emphasis is on the psychology of leadership, stressing the importance of a leader’s emotional intelligence (EI) or resonance with one’s own and others’ inner emotional state. Their earlier volume discussed the basic components of resonant leadership, but this volume discusses how leaders may sustain this connection with others long-term. They begin by describing how today’s highly anxious and stressful work climate understandably leads people into the opposite of resonance – “dissonance.” Given this tendency, humans inherently know what kind of leadership brings them out of this state. It has more to do with a leader’s attunement to their feelings, and the capacity to motivate and nurture them in a positive direction through a strong emotional connection. Such leaders have three core qualities: mindfulness, hope, and compassion. They make people feel important, noble, and valued, and thus more capable of making their best contributions.
Executing leadership is quite stressful in itself, however, at times beyond the human body’s normal capacity. It is enough to force even a decidedly resonant leader into the “sacrifice syndrome.” This happens when the performance expectations and the physical and emotional toll of leadership overtax one’s nervous system. The body responds by increasing blood pressure, routing blood to the large muscle groups, and shutting down the brain’s non-essential neural circuits. This deactivates the brain’s more imaginative, creative, and hopeful centers, which results in a narrower and less flexible mindset. For a leader who really cares, such a situation requires that he or she constantly control their emotions in an effort to fulfill the heavy obligation felt toward the people and their welfare. This “sacrifice syndrome,” giving oneself too much for too long, eventually causes the leader to “burn out” and lose touch with others at work, home, and in all aspects of life. Symptoms of this condition include secret feelings that things are not “right;” life becoming mechanical, meaningless, and detached from one’s dreams; negative self-talk and a sense that one must settle for a less than ideal life; acting out at home and work; and justifying behavior and blaming others. As leaders, dissonant people are volatile, reactionary, harsh, demanding, and unaware of how hurtful their behaviors are to others. The good news is that leaders can learn or relearn EI and demonstrate more resonance.
The path out of the sacrifice syndrome is conscious renewal of the mind and body, fortifying the interior and exterior of one’s life against the viral effects of chronic stress. The authors emphasize that such renewal is not accomplished by intense weekend excursions, but by three ongoing practices:
- Mindfulness: intentional awareness, attunement, and attention to self, others, and the world around us to monitor our responses to events.
- Hope: envisioning and working toward a better and feasible future, experiencing an inspiration that actually releases hormones that counter the effects of stress.
- Compassion: Caring for self and others, and actually acting upon thoughtful inclinations.
The physiological effects of renewal are a strengthened immune system and the creation of new neurons that actually improve health, enhance learning capacities, and open the mind to a world of imaginative possibilities that anxiety blocks from our conscious awareness.
One should not expect to make such changes in a smooth linear progression according to plan, however. Instead, research bears out that our growth is usually in spurts. Expecting our growth to develop in keepin with elaborate plans leads to a level disappointment significant enough to halt progress altogether. Lasting change can only be sustained through an Internal Change Process involving five epiphanies:
- The Ideal Self. Developing a personal vision statement, an image of your desired future and the person you want to be.
- The Personal Balance Sheet. This is an assessment of our strengths and weaknesses in relation to our personal vision statement, using feedback through mechanisms such as the Emotional Competence Inventory and others.
- The Learning Agenda. The plan for the next five to seven years of our life to build on strengths and minimize key weaknesses.
- Experiment. Experimenting or practicing the new behaviors that are express the leader we want to be.
- Resonant Relationships. Establishing trusting relationships with those who help us along the process.
Throughout the renewal process, a leader must balance the Positive Emotional Attractors (PEA) with the Negative Emotional Attractors (NEA). Positive attractors build a sense of hope and optimism. Negative attractors reflect the real (or social) self and our weaknesses and fears, breeding pessimism. The emphasis should be on the positive, but there will and should be dance between the two. The NEA reveals the areas requiring change and the evaluative benchmarks that change has or has not occurred. The PEA gives us the energy to sustain change efforts, and should be dominant.
This book is full of inspiring stories of those who have become more effective leaders through their courage and the help of coaching relationships. It is both substantive and practical, with solid research to support the claims that it really works. I recommend it for any leader who embarks on an intentional growth track, especially to those experiencing burnout.
From the Publisher
The blockbuster bestseller Primal Leadership introduced us to “resonant” leaders, individuals who manage their own and others’ emotions in ways that drive success. Leaders everywhere recognized the validity of resonant leadership, but struggled with how to achieve and sustain resonance amid the relentless demands of work and life.
Now, Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee provide an indispensable guide to overcoming the vicious cycle of stress, sacrifice, and dissonance that afflicts many leaders. Drawing from extensive multidisciplinary research and real-life stories, Resonant Leadership offers a field-tested framework for creating the resonance that fuels great leadership. Rather than constantly sacrificing themselves to workplace demands, leaders can manage the cycle using specific techniques to combat stress, avoid burnout, and renew themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally. The book reveals that the path to resonance is through mindfulness, hope, and compassion, and shows how intentionally employing these qualities creates effective and enduring leadership.
Great leaders are resonant leaders. Resonant Leadership offers inspiration-and tools-to spark and sustain resonance in ourselves and in those we lead.
About the Author
Richard Boyatzis is Professor in the Department of Organizational Behavior at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve. Annie McKeeis Co-chair of the Teleos Leadership Institute and teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education. They are coauthors, with Daniel Goleman, of Primal Leadership (HBS Press, 2002).
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