Mindsight at Work: An Interpersonal Neurobiology Lens on Leadership

"Imagine what might become possible for all of us if we consistently applied mindsight and reflective, compassionate, and integrative leadership to ourselves, our relationships, our organizations, and our countries."

From the abstract: "This article provides an overview of the framework of interpersonal neurobiology (IPNB) and its applications to leadership." IPNB describes "a way of considering mind, brain, and relationships as three interrelated, interacting, and irreducible elements of human experience, creating a conceptual framework for understanding how the human mind develops from the interactions of neurophysiologic processes and interpersonal relationships....IPNB allows us to consider what common factors contribute to healthy minds and well-being across multiple relational endeavors, including leadership, consulting, education, medical and therapeutic work, coaching, and our personal lives...."

The central questions of this article are "What can we do, as individuals, in our relationships and in our organizations, to help create and maintain healthy minds, to facilitate health and well-being on small and large scales? How can we develop organizations that not only function well, but also are creative and flourishing?"

The article discusses integration as a healthy way of linking together differentiated elements of a system into a more complex whole. "Ethical, exemplary leaders are responsible for developing their own minds in ways that help them regulate the flow of information and energy in integrative patterns.." It names four focus areas for leadership development: decision making and problem solving, emotional regulation, collaborating with and influencing others, and facilitating change. Mindsight, described as having emotional and social intelligence, "is our seventh sense, our ability to perceive the workings of our minds and the minds of others...These fundamental components of mindsight are openness or receptivity (to whatever thoughts, feelings, or memories come into awareness), observation (seeing the fuller context than just this event or this moment), and objectivity or reflexivity (developing an awareness of awareness itself, called metaawareness)....From the IPNB perspective, leadership is developing and applying mindsight to promote integration in one’s self, in others, and in organizations."

Further, "[w]hen organizations create their mission-vision-values- goals, they are developing an integrating narrative. We humans have a clear preference to create and tell stories, and narrative integration is the weaving of the facts and felt experiences of our lives into coherent stories that make sense of our inner and outer worlds....When leaders have a coherent story to tell - in the form of history, vision, mission, and values -  this has a significant impact on the integration and resilience of the organization."

The article concludes that in order to apply increasing technology and information resulting in growing knowledge for learning, change, and social influence, leaders must address "the ethical responsibilities inherent in leading minds and brains. When utilized in coaching, consulting, or leading, the IPNB perspective focuses on developing mindsight and the integrative processes that facilitate reflection, relationship, and resilience....With the cultivation of mindsight, leaders naturally consider long-term as well as short-term outcomes, collaboration instead of domination, and business practices that enhance profit, people, and the planet."