Why are Conscious Leaders So Important?
The nature of consciousness has been discussed by philosophers for centuries. The ancient Greek aphorism ‘Know Yourself’ was inscribed on the Temple of Apollo and used by Plato in his famous dialogues.
Nowadays neurologists, cognitive scientists, psychologists and modern-day philosophers have so much more knowledge of how we think and how the brain works.
Our Personal Consciousness Cannot Be Replicated
Professor Antonio Damasio, expert on neuroscience and Director of the Brain and Creativity Institute describes the experience of being conscious in his book, Self Comes to Mind, as an’ exclusively private’ one. No human being can replicate the experience of another human being.
He further defines consciousness as ‘a state of mind in which there is knowledge of one’s own existence and of the existence of surroundings’.
My own personal definition of consciousness is that it is a person’s ability to have an awareness of themselves and how their thoughts and feelings interact and impact on their environment. They will therefore be aware and mindful of what is going on around them in every sense, both internally and externally.
Why is this heightened sense of Awareness so Important?
Greater awareness and understanding of self frequently leads to more understanding of the motives and foibles of others and, as a result, hopefully, a less judgmental and confrontational approach in one’s personal and professional dealings as well as an appreciation of the impact of one’s actions.
With the destruction of old systems and ways of thinking and with the constantly changing chaotic and sophisticated new norms, there is no one to whom we can look who can tell us with authority or experience how we should conduct ourselves.
We Need to be the Leader of our Own Lives
This time in our civilisation seems to require all of us to lead. We do not necessarily need to lead other people but we do need to be the leader of our own lives, taking time to evaluate facts and information with our left brain and using our creative and intuitive right-brain guidance to help us achieve greater awareness so we can master our emotions and achieve the harmonious relationships and successful goals that we are aiming for.
Our greater understanding and awareness will give us a comprehensive approach to the different situations we may find ourselves in so that as we travel through life, we are more likely to achieve our desires rather than constantly self-sabotage.
Conscious awareness enables thoughtful human beings to reflect on and discover their own personal set of values and to move away from divisiveness to a more compassionate and sensitive approach to difficulty, an approach which is much more likely to facilitate successful solutions to the challenges of our times.