Mindful Leadership in Action: How Taking a Pause Builds Resilience | Nicola Bentley

This episode is brought to you by the Resilience Assessment and hosted by Brad Hook.

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The Guest: Nicola Bentley is a mindful leadership coach who works with leaders to cultivate resilience through mindfulness practices. Her background in marketing, yoga, and mindfulness informs her approach to helping leaders align focus, flow, and fulfillment. Nicola has developed a program called Pillars of Resilience that empowers leaders to navigate life’s challenges with clarity and purpose.

• Connect with Nicola on LinkedIn
• Visit her website: clarityworks.ca
• Get ⁠Resilience Assessment⁠ for yourself or your team

Episode Overview: In this episode, Nicola Bentley discusses the intersection of mindfulness and leadership, emphasizing how leaders can cultivate resilience to navigate challenges with clarity and balance. She explores the spectrum of resilience, from everyday setbacks to life-altering adversity, and shares practical strategies for mindful leadership. Nicola also highlights the importance of intention-setting and mindful pauses to enhance decision-making and overall well-being in high-pressure environments.

Key Takeaways:

• Resilience is More Than Bouncing Back: Resilience is the ability to navigate life’s challenges with clarity and grace, moving beyond setbacks and learning from adversity.

• Mindfulness Cultivates Leadership and Resilience: Mindful awareness helps leaders make better decisions, stay present, and enhance their self-awareness, allowing them to lead with intention and calm.

• Intentional Pauses Improve Decision-Making: Taking mindful pauses before reacting or making decisions creates space for reflection, leading to more thoughtful and effective leadership.

Quotes:

"Mindful leadership helps us move from a place of being overwhelmed to being aligned with focus, flow, and fulfillment."

"Resilience is about navigating life with clarity, agency, equanimity, and grace."

"Taking a pause creates space for skillfulness."

"We can be in the driver’s seat of our lives and align who we are with who we want to be."