Siobhan Patten

General manager, health sector

Why is it that two people in leadership roles encountering similarly serious adversity react so differently?

One person is overcome with a sense of hopelessness that anything can be done about the problem, and the other pauses, examines the problem from all angles, and then has the audacity to see it as an opportunity to put something right that is not working in the organisation.

It’s easy to spot the people at both extremes of the spectrum in meetings and not so easy to manage the people who react to challenges with hopelessness and shrugging- of-shoulders. That’s why it’s important to have your own house in order in the first instance, as it’s not really possible to be resourceful to others when your own reserves of optimism, positivity and energy are low.

This conundrum is amongst the thoughts rolling through my head as I practice mindful eating to the background noise of the Pesky Offspring snorting with laughter (at me, not with me).

I try and make a point of having a family dinner, at the table, when possible, and attempt to make it a space for chat and laughter and generally catching up with each other. And to be honest, I hadn’t really noticed that the scoffing of food was happening at the speed of light.

So when charged with ‘Practicing Absorption’ I had the option to put mindful eating into practice. As I gazed at the colours and textures of the falafels and salad, and lent over the food to inhale the aroma, I found myself wondering why I didn’t do this more often: Slow things down, increase my awareness, become absorbed.

That’s one of the things that I like about the Be Your Best / Potentialife programme. They’re not expecting any radical changes, but the programme is offering me a series of insights, feedback, and practice opportunity for small developments.

A lot of it is about awareness-raising, and re-framing – reminding me why I do what I do, and what I need to do for myself to be able to continue doing that. It’s good, and it’s healthy. And though far from either mindfulness or falafels I was raised, and despite the derision from the Pesky Offspring, I’ll be doing more of the same.