Exploring Mindfulness within Leadership Development: A Phenomenological Study

Leadership is a key to success in a complex, rapidly changing world. While scholarly and organizational interest in mindfulness is growing within the leadership and leadership development space, it remains largely unexplored from the leader's perspective. This phenomenological study explored how leaders perceived and described their mindfulness experiences within their leadership development. This exploratory research used a transcendental phenomenological approach (Moustakas, 1994) to capture their self-expression through in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Day's (2000) conceptual framework on leader and leadership development guided the study. The participants were recruited from organizations based in the U.S. that offer mindfulness-based programs, snowball sampling techniques, and word-of-mouth referrals. A purposive sampling strategy was employed, aiming for maximum variation in the sample to include participants with diverse demographic backgrounds and life experiences. A sample of 10 participants comprised eight Whites and two Asians, with a gender distribution of three women and seven men. Participants aged 35 years and above were interviewed to explore how they perceive mindfulness within their leadership development. Six themes and five sub-themes emerged from the data: (a) self-reflection and higher self-awareness, (b) holistic well-being and balanced living, (c) building and strengthening relationships through mindfulness, (d) leadership development: building leadership capacity (sub-themes: enhancing cognitive capacity and function, change management and agility, integrity and ethical leadership), (e) personal growth and self-identity (sub-themes: fostering personal growth and transformation, expressing identity), and (f) challenges of integrating mindfulness into leadership development: cognitive boundaries, leadership demands, and value dilemmas. Findings indicated mindfulness enhancing leadership development through higher self-awareness, positive communication, improving relationships, leadership effectiveness through better decision-making and change management, fostering community building, and building trust. However, leaders noted some drawbacks, including detachment from outcomes, challenges in navigating ethical complexities in a competitive environment, and a possible non-alignment of a humble and relaxed approach with the expectations of followers and stakeholders at work. The study contributes to the growing scholarship in mindfulness and leadership, practical implications, potential directions for future research, and the limitations of the current study. Advisor: LJ McElravy