Episode
Why Being 5% Present is a Leadership Sweet Spot
- Podcast
- The Buoyant Leader
- Published
- Apr 14, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 416
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Summary
If you ever want to make me feel inadequate, suggest to me that I “be fully present.” For a long time, that was my aspiration. A thousand yoga and meditation classes drilled into my head that the highest virtue is to “be here now.” I have no problem, in theory, with presence. One of the main themes of my work is to empower executives to tolerate their own thoughts, feelings, emotions, and urges. I generally prefer presence to absence (except for some meetings). It’s the “fully” that’s been the problem. Have you heard it a thousand times too? "Be fully present." In meetings. In one-on-ones. In every conversation that matters. It sounds right. Noble, even. Give 100% of your attention to the people or person in front of you. But here's the problem: if you actually try to be 100% present, you become useless. The Dining Room Problem I’ve been to a bunch of events at Kripalu, a yoga retreat in New England. And one of the weirdest things I do there is mindful eating. Mindful eating is one of those classic presence exercises. I sit down, nodding solemnly to my table mates, signaling that I’m an advanced spiritual being with barely any ego left. No phone in my hand, no tablet in front of me. I gaze deeply at my food. I notice the aromas, the textures. I silently thank the sun, the rain, the farmer, the trucker, the cook, the dishwasher, the accounts receivable clerk for the fertilizer company, the earthworms, the whole shebang. I take small bites, chew carefully, notice everything. It's beautiful. Then someone repeats, “Can you slide your chair in so I can get by?" and I’m completely thrown. Earthworms and dainty bites out the mental window, replaced by a flustered annoyance. It turns out that 100% presence for one thing means zero capacity for anything else. That's fine —mostl…