"Neuroscience and sports psychology (for example, acceptance and commitment therapy) show that anxiety, perfectionism, and fear of mistakes shrink cognitive flexibility and creativity. The more we obsess over results, the more our attention collapses into the future. This focus makes us less present with what is happening now. As mental performance coach Graham Betchart puts it: "Stress is the absence of presence.""
"The more we obsess over results, the more our attention collapses into the future. This focus makes us less present with what is happening now. This is not a new idea. Long before modern psychology, philosopher Simone Weil described attention as the most radical form of presence. She argued that attention is not controlling the world, but consenting to it. True attention, she wrote, requires self-emptying: standing unprotected in front of reality, without illusion or defense. Vulnerability is the precondition for wisdom."
A culture of constant performance pressures leaders to appear certain and in control, but striving for invulnerability produces fragility. Anxiety, perfectionism, and fear of mistakes reduce cognitive flexibility and creative problem-solving by collapsing attention into future outcomes. Presence, not perfectionism, restores intuition, responsiveness, and clarity. Vulnerability enables learning by making leaders willing to face discomfort and uncertainty, which supports growth and collaboration. Simone Weil’s idea of attention as self-emptying frames presence as consenting to reality without defense, making vulnerability a precondition for wiser, more compassionate leadership and sustained high performance.
Read at Psychology Today
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