To make good decisions, it’s helpful to consider multiple frames. Mindful leaders learn to take different viewpoints into account. As I’m cleaning out my closet at home right now, I am finding research papers that that I wrote while completing my MEd. Here’s a few points included in my paper on the roles of physical activity and health and implications for leadership:

• Frames are mental models, cognitive lenses, maps, orientations, filters, perspectives, or sets of ideas and assumptions
• By considering different frames, leaders increase objectivity and help prevent poor judgement calls
• People using single frames often have one single solutions for all situations and make numerous errors in judgement
• Leaders who call upon multiple frames have available to them alternate ways of considering problems and a variety of behaviours from which to choose
• This process may require breaking frames as old narrow views are released in order to integrate new perspectives.
• The benefit of reframing for positive outcomes is that it offers leaders a means to make sense of ambiguity and navigate through the waves of change while still considering context and multiple perspectives

It’s timely to review these points right now. Regardless of what decision we’re making, we need to remember the benefit of “breaking frames” in order to integrate new perspectives. Different frames can be more useful in certain situations and discernment is key.

Decision-making is a process. We typically identify the problem we need to solve or the question we want to ask, we gather relevant information, identify the alternatives, weigh the evidence, choose among alternatives, take action, and continue to review our decision. When we are making evidence informed decisions, we need the data to back up our decisions. During these times of uncertainty, we may not yet have all the data that we need in order to make certain decisions.

Mindfulness can help us navigate through the waves of change and stay open to different perspectives. We can make better decisions when we consider a diversity of viewpoints. However, we need to be present as we listen to others, and it’s possible to listen and not hear clearly. Our filters and judgements can get in the way. Listening to other people’s points of view requires a certain degree of non-judgement. If we find  ourselves judging what another person is saying, mindfulness helps us notice this judgement and we learn to gently come back to a space of openness. We train ourselves to get present again and really hear what the person is saying. If are struggling to hear the message, sensing the positive intention behind the message can help.

In addition to hearing other people’s perspectives, we need to consider the variety of messages coming from our own body. In school, we learn to question reference points. In addition to questioning other people’s reference points, we also need to question our own thoughts. We can ask ourselves, is what I’m thinking true? Also check in with different parts of your body. As you make decisions, what variety of “data within” can you consider? What does your mind say? What does your heart say? Can you give them both a say? Can you connect to your “embodied mind” and take an integrated perspective? If you are having a gut instinct about something, is this based on fear? Or it is clear intuition coming from a place of possibilities? If you begin judging yourself for what you are feeling, remember to have compassion for those parts of yourself that you may judge. Send yourself some compassion and continue to be kind and gentle with yourself.

When we are ready to make decisions related to goals for our future, it’s helpful to first reflect on our principles and values. When I was completing the certificate program in applied mindfulness meditation at the U of T School of Continuing Studies, one of the courses focussed on Guidelines for Life. Principles is one of the important guidelines that I come back to regularly. I take time to identify which principles and values are most alive in me. Whenever I come up with a new goal, I take a moment to focus on my values first. Making sure my goals are aligned with my values helps me feel grounded. It also helps me feel “rooted” and “routed” as I take action steps towards my goals. Just like a tree has roots in the earth to support it while it keeps branching out, our values are like roots in the earth giving us direction as we step forward.

To support the goal setting process, you can reflect on questions related to principles. What are the values that ground you? What words, images or ideas come to mind? Take a moment to rest in the strength of whichever values and principles have most meaning for you. What makes you feel most calm, grounded and centered? What makes you feel unsure or unfocussed? If we have an off-day or off-moment, sometimes it’s simply a sign that we’ve come away from our core values. Our body senses when something is not in integrity. When we are in alignment, we naturally feel more grounded. What principles make you feel most at home?

As you reflect on your goals, it’s also important to clarify intentions. Be clear on ____. Fill in the sentence. Then give your intention attention. Put your thoughts, feelings and actions behind your intention. And remember to release tension. Check in with you body regularly, bringing attention to any part of your body that is feeling tense and allowing that area to relax. Consciously breathe and release tension in your body throughout the day. Allow yourself to prepare to take action steps with a sense of ease in your body. You can still be inspired and excited even when your body is calm and relaxed. When we connect with our values and intentions with more ease in our body, we align on the inside. This inner alignment supports our action steps.

What if you are having difficulty making decisions around your goals? If we’re stuck on something that happened in the past, it makes it challenging to think forward into the future. The key to letting it go is to own our present. A quick way to get present is to reflect on the following question, “Is there anyone you need to forgive?” This is a step that often gets missed when people are trying to create a new goal. It’s about letting go of the consequences that not forgiving has created in your life. For example, releasing how much energy you may be leaking by staying stuck on an incident. Or releasing any resentment, anger and frustration in order to make room for new thoughts, new ideas, innovative solutions and inspiration that could be sitting in its place.

Holding onto negative pain is a way of preventing future pain. People do this as a natural coping mechanism. It gives the sense that one can control the speed of change. It’s not forgiveness that’s so difficult; it’s the speed of change, because once you forgive, life moves faster. Speed is the consequence of what we hold onto or what we let go of. When you forgive another person or when you forgive yourself, change is accelerated. Once you embrace the lesson, you make room for more lessons to come your way, more challenges to overcome, and more opportunities to stretch your heart! You can take the energy that you were wasting on not forgiving and redirect it towards more productive thoughts. Sometimes all it takes is awareness of how much energy is being wasted and then we begin to put more focus on the here and now.

If you are already clear on your top goal and ready to make decisions on your action plan, you may want to first ask yourself the following question: “What would change as a result if you achieved that goal?” and “How would this make you feel? What might you sense in your body once you achieve your goal?” and also consider, “What if that feeling is what you are really seeking?” Think about it. How can you practice “embodying” that feeling right now? You can open to create that sensation in your body as you take action steps aligned with your heart.

What if you are unable to figure out your top goal? Give it time. Intuition and Action work together. As mentioned in the previous blog, to manage our energy we need to learn the dance of yin and yang. Sometimes you just need to take more time to “Be” – to pause, rest, ask questions, listen and hear, wait, and open to your intuition. And when you receive an intuitive hit and feel both energized and inspired, that’s the time to take “Action” and be willing to focus, get tactical and practical as you push through any obstacles. It’s not about getting over-driven and busy; it’s about taking the right action. You can stay grounded in your values as you continue to listen to your intuition and step forward with inspired action.