Sandja Brügmann is an international expert in sustainable communication and conscious leadership. She’s the CEO of Refresh Agency and The Passion Institute, based in Boulder, CO, USA and Copenhagen, Denmark.
Today, we are experiencing a shift away from the old, pure capitalist business principles. Success was once measured purely by profits—with a high disregard for damaging effects on the environment, health and poor worker conditions. Instead, the focus is now moving to the bigger interrelated picture and the environmental, cultural, social and global impacts a business can make.
Leaders of conscious capitalism are typically committed to personal growth, expanded inclusion and conscious awareness of the context in which they do business. Tweet This Quote
Leaders of conscious capitalism are typically committed to personal growth, expanded inclusion and conscious awareness of the context in which they do business. People with these new paradigm skills not only create stronger interrelations while living the life they truly want to live, but they also help ensure a more passionate commitment to leading purpose-driven businesses.
The Passion Institute does exactly this—help executives and entrepreneurial leaders build their inner game, Innerpreneurism, so they can be the passionate, caring, solution and results-focused leaders the world needs.
Here are the 10 skills successful leaders of conscious capitalism need to possess.
1. Courage
Taking your business or personal life to the next level starts within you. Courage is a winning skill to master. Real change happens outside of our comfort zone. When fear rears its head, instead of succumbing, a talented innerpreneur is self-aware, feels the fear and still moves strategically forward in the desired direction. Practice that courage muscle.
When fear rears its head, a talented innerpreneur is self-aware, feels the fear and moves strategically forward. Tweet This Quote
2. Radical Responsibility
Stop the blame game. Commit to a week without complaining, and you’ll realize how difficult this is. Why? On a daily basis, we are surrounded by complaining, blaming language and mindsets. Taking radical responsibility in each situation, as well as action towards the world you envision, will drive a proactive mindset of conscious business.
3. Healthy Anger
Anger has a bad reputation in our society, but it holds an incredible amount of power when it comes to accessing passion and the ability to act, create and manifest a vision. Learning to stay present with anger, which denotes that something is not okay with you, and then creating a strategic and creative plan of action to remedy and establish better working efforts, will be a key future skill.
4. Emotional Intelligence
Our leaders of tomorrow need deep emotional awareness and radical empathy skills. Tweet This Quote
A person’s emotional intelligence is not fixed at birth and can be nurtured and strengthened. Our leaders of tomorrow need deep emotional awareness and radical empathy skills in order to behave in a manner that goes beyond self-interest. According to research in the book Emotional Intelligence 2.0, “EQ is so critical to success that it accounts for 58% of performance in all types of jobs.” And with “EQ being twice as important as IQ in getting where you want to go in life,” it’s hard to deny this skill’s importance.
5. Sensuality
Culture, capitalism and materialism have driven us for a long time—to the point that we have lost touch with our true nature as human beings. Moving away from only rational, heavy decision-making that lacks emotional intelligence into a state where we experience the world through our senses allows for increased tactility and healthy, emotional connectedness. It also means we make better decisions.
6. Physical Self-Care
Taking care of your physical health is a foundational skill in building sustainable leadership. Tweet This Quote
Taking care of your physical health is a foundational skill in building sustainable leadership. Eat a vibrant and life-enhancing diet, sleep, and prioritize getting regular exercise—no matter how crazy your schedule seems. One of my all-time business heroes, Richard Branson, stays in shape with kite surfing. Fashion sustainability front-runner, Stella McCartney, says her four kids inspire her to exercise. India’s fourth-richest billionaire, Anil Ambani, is a serial marathon runner.
7. Commitment
Be committed to a larger vision so you can stay with the hard times and not get bogged down by the ups and downs in the short term. Be a goal digger! Recommit to your goal often—daily is preferred—and consistently consider how committed you are to reaching this vision. The more committed you are, the more likely you’ll apply will, determination and healthy drive, thus reaching your goal.
8. Vulnerability
Allowing your team to see you as a whole and imperfect person, as well as a role model, will inspire the kind of atmosphere where teams thrive, where creativity and innovation flourish. Tweet This Quote
Shame researcher, Brené Brown, found that people who fully embrace vulnerability believe that’s what makes them and others beautiful. Allowing your team to see you as a whole and imperfect person, as well as a role model, will inspire the kind of atmosphere where teams thrive, where creativity and innovation flourish, and where you as the leader can set an agenda for open and collaborative action.
9. Risk Tolerance
Passion and purpose-driven brands see failure as an opportunity for growth. Allowing for room to fail is the same as allowing for room to succeed. This seedling space requires creativity, play, trial and error, and thus, imperfection. Leaders who not only understand how to work with the strengths of the millennial cohort, but also support the strengthening of their weaknesses, will be in demand.
10. Playful Curiosity
Seek out potential opportunities and get curious. Approach a situation from a point of curiosity rather than a victimized stage. To do this, first look inward—how did you cause this situation to happen? Then, look outward and get curious about the other person’s reaction and how they might see the world from a playful attitude. Creative solutions will appear in a playful space that is otherwise not visible and available.