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Leading With Presence: Unlocking The Potential of People, Performance, and Psychology
Leadership coach and keynote speaker, Mike Lee, shares insights on how to win the battleground of our minds in a world filled with more noise than ever.
In a world dominated by constant distractions, AI disruption, and nonstop change, our ability to be fully present is tested every single day. Our minds drift to the future, consumed by worry, anxiety, or fear. We dwell on the past, stuck in regret, guilt, or shame. Or we simply get lost in the noise of our hyper-connected, always-on era.
Harvard research reveals that we are only present 47% of the time. If you’re working a 40-hour week, that means you’re intentionally focused for just 20 of those hours. Think about what this means for your performance, relationships, and leadership.
The truth is, everything that we value—whether it’s human connection, achieving peak performance, or fostering creativity — exists only in the present moment. When we’re fully present, we can unlock the full potential of people, performance, and psychology.
But how do we do it? Presence is a skill, and like any skill, it can be enhanced with intention and deliberate practice. The path to leveling up presence involves cultivating both internal awareness and optimizing our external environment.
Internal: Building Awareness, Intention and Forgiveness
Presence starts from within. By cultivating self-awareness and setting clear intentions, we create the mental foundation necessary to prioritize and execute tasks and strategies.
1. Elevate Awareness
High-performance conversations often revolve around sustained focus, but sustained awareness is equally vital. Awareness allows us to notice when our minds wander and gently bring our energy back to what truly matters. This skill is the foundation of presence.
Mindfulness meditation is a proven tool for strengthening awareness. Used by elite athletes, CEOs, and even military personnel, this practice trains your brain to recognize distractions and return to the present moment. By building self-awareness, you empower yourself to lead more effectively, connect deeper, and perform at a higher level.
2. Set Intentions
Intentions act as your guide. What do you want to achieve in the next 30 minutes, hour, or day? Setting a clear goal for your time, paired with tools like a focus timer, can help you lock in. When I was coaching basketball every single drill had an objective, usually with a time constraint. Translating this to the world of work I could say, “I’m going to write the first draft of this article in 30 minutes.” This approach creates a psychological trigger to enhance focus.
3. Practice Self-Forgiveness
In two decades of studying peak performance, I’ve learned that the highest performers are also the ones who are hardest on themselves. They set seemingly insurmountable goals, push their limits, and often achieve extraordinary results. However, there’s a fine line between holding yourself to incredibly high standards and falling to the crippling effects of self-imposed expectations. Those self-imposed expectations can bleed into harsh self-criticism and crippling doubt. Self-forgiveness is the bridge from the mistakes of the past to the present moment where we create our future.
External: Designing Environments That Inspire Focus
Our external surroundings have a profound impact on our ability to stay present. Designing environments that minimize distractions and foster inspiration can create the ideal conditions for deep work and flow.
1. Reduce External Noise
When I began traveling for work, I noticed I was significantly more productive on flights. Why? Fewer distractions. At the time, no free Wi-Fi was pulling me into my inbox, and the physical environment was inherently contained.
You can recreate this productivity zone on the ground by using noise-canceling headphones and listening to music that facilitates focus. For me, melodic electronic beats help block out distracting noises like someone moving a chair. Removing distractions allows us to dive into deep work with less friction.
2. Create an Inspiring Workspace
Your environment shapes your mindset. I experienced this firsthand when I was invited to speak at an event at Skywalker Ranch for some of Hollywood’s senior leaders. The entire space is infused with Japanese design principles with the intention of inspiring creativity. When I walked in I thought to myself, “I could stay here for a month and write my next book.”
You don’t need a ranch to feel inspired, though. Surround yourself with elements that spark joy and creativity, whether it’s natural light, art, or a view of nature. If you want people to return to the office, even in a hybrid capacity, build them an environment where they feel lit up. When your environment inspires you, your brain releases a cocktail of neurotransmitters that naturally anchor you in the present moment.
3. Use Tools to Minimize Digital Overload
Technology can either serve or sabotage your presence. Apps like Opal allow you to completely lock yourself out of certain apps that might be distracting for you. For example, from 9-5 each day I have absolutely no access to social media on my phone. Research even shows that having your mobile phone within reaching distance reduces cognitive capacity. By reducing digital noise, you reclaim your mental bandwidth to focus on the task at hand.
Presence Is The Path Forward
In our do-more-with-less, hustle-and-grind culture, presence isn’t just a skill — it’s a prerequisite to compete at a high level. By cultivating awareness, setting clear intentions, and designing an environment that fosters focus, you can unlock deeper human connections, peak performance, and innovative thinking. Because when we’re fully present, we not only perform and lead better — we live better.
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