I’m trying to be present.

I was inspired by my youngest sister, with whom I am living with during the pandemic. Her presence has been very positive. She brings many blessings to my life: refreshing walks outside, deliciously baked goods, and funny humour over card games. She also has Zazu, her dog from Africa pictured above, that keeps me company during the day. She brings goodness to my quarantine by simply being present with me. 

Being present is not something I am always good at. I find that during times of stress, I am less present to those around me. Not only that, I can lose sight of my surroundings while working away at a task. In conversation, I catch myself being concerned about my response that I lose track of understanding the other person. In a nutshell, I have to consciously grow in the gift of being present—especially during this pandemic, when I am tempted to worry and fear.

This pandemic has certainly had its struggle. I’ve been reminded by some friends and family not to worry too much about the future, nor dwell on the past. As a friend encouraged me, “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery.”

I am reminded that leaders must be present. 

It doesn’t mean we disregard the past, what we could learn from it; or that we disregard the future, what we can plan with it. It means that we are present in the moment and seize it for what it’s worth. Each one of us, with great dignity and worth, have a lot to contribute to others by being present.

As leadership involves working with others, being present is super key. Here are three ways in which I think our presence can bring about good things:

• Effectiveness—when we are present to our surroundings, I find we are usually more effective. Note that I did not use the word productive. Effectiveness = results and relationship-oriented. Productive = task-oriented.
• Strengthened team dynamics—when we are present, we are attentive to our team: knowing how they are feeling and what they’re experiencing. Observing, understanding, and appropriately responding to our teammates’ feelings is a big part of team health and interpersonal relationships.
• Clear decision making—when we are present, we have the clearness of mind and the gift of clarity to make sound and good decisions. A brain that is scattered with anxieties about the future or concerns about the past is not at peace for seeing and choosing the good in a given situation.

Perhaps we can try and be present to encourage us in our leadership effectiveness. We can bring the gift of ourselves to others. It’s as simple as living moment by moment, responding to its duty, asking ourselves, “What’s the next best thing I can do?” and “Who am I to be?”

Surely this is something we can all practice.