Embodied leaders

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UNITE Vinca Bigo Cambridge PhD THE EMBODIED LEADER

Transcript of Embodied leaders

Page 1: Embodied leaders

UNITE

Vinca BigoCambridge PhD

THE EMBODIED LEADER

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I worked as a fixed income derivatives trader followed by a mini burn out

I acquired a PhD at Cambridge University in 2008

I am a Professor of Ethics, Gender and Leadership since 2010 at KEDGE BUSINESS SCHOOL

I design and teach Yoga, Spirituality and Leadership modules for the Masters Programme at KEDGE

I am a Qualified Kundalini Yoga Instructor since 2010

SHORT BIO

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 Gift Integrity Direction Relaxation

Saying no Discernment MotivationSaying yes Solutions Organise & Classify Control

ManageAuthenticity Uncertainty Creativity Being present Truth

Paradox Communication The 5 senses VoiceResponsibility Values Inspiration Intuition

Charisma Manipulation Ego mindPower MoneyHealing

Endurance Altruism Collective intelligence VirtuesListening Leadership Mastery Flow

LEADERSHIP THEMES ON THE PROGRAMME

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 Access your Power & develop Mastery

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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Develop integrity, authenticity & charisma

Create meaning & impact 

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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Deploying the body in professional spaces

 Working with the individual

body in articulation with the collective body

 

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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 Corporeal Intelligence: Body in Action +

experience with the 5 Senses + Consciously experience the body

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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Mastery (rather than control) pertains to the

concept of Flow a kind of dance with the

universe

Between Relaxation and Action

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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Doing and being at the same time

I do…I am doing… here I am (doing)

I am being done… here I am relaxed, connected to the power of the universe, here the doing that is needed is to be in my verticality, in

my axis, connected with first principles, connected to my intention)

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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 Using our 10 bodies to lead (ourselves first and to then

lead others) 

Breath, eye and body posture, utterance 

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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Controlling Mind Patterns 

A thought becomes a feeling, then an emotion, then a

desire, then an impulse to react

KEY CONCEPT IN PLAY

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ASANAS MEDITATION

PRANAYAMA KRIYA

RELAXATIONDANCE

COMMUNICATENUTRITIONSADHANA

SOME ESSENTIAL TOOLS

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 SOUL

NEGATIVE MINDPOSITIVE MINDNEUTRAL MINDPHYSICAL BODY

ARC LINEAURA

PRANIC BODYSUBTLE BODYRADIANT BODY

10 BODIES

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 UNITY

NON DUALITY / EXTENSIONEQUALITY

TRUTHBEING AND DOING AT THE SAME TIME

WITHOUT FEARWITHOUT ENEMIES

BEYOND TIMEUNBORN

SELF RADIANCE

10 FIRST (UNIVERSAL) PRINCIPLES

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 HUMILITYLOYALTY

EQUALITYSERVICE

SACRIFCEJUSTICE

FORGIVENESSCOMPASSION

ALTRUISMCOURAGE

10 VIRTUES

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 ILLUSTRATIONS OF PHYSICAL

EXERCISES DESIGNED TO INDUCE BODILY EXPERIENCES, SO AS TO

FOSTER AWARENESS, AND SO DEVELOP LEADERSHIP CAPACITIES

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A group of students dances freely around the class room, but they end up going in a circle, following each

other, unless this is collective leadership… The point is to invite

students to become conscious of how they individually and collectively

deploy leadership

ILLUSTRATION A

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The student is asked to maintain a painful yoga posture for 5 minutes. How does the student deal

with the experience of pain? Does he persevere? Is he able to dis identify with the pain, and recognise

it for what it is, a concentration of energy, and extract the energy to serve his goal? Or does his mind amplify the pain by resisting it? What does this say about his ability to deal with stress and

pressure in his capacity as a leader? What does it say about the capacity to observe before reacting?

ILLUSTRATION B

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At the time the regular exercise (in a time and place expressly chosen) strengthens the student’s nervous

system and develops his ability to control his emotions and possible subsequent impulsive and unwanted

reactions when under pressure. The exercise develops the leadership capacity, to react more objectively,

which is of course not the same thing as being detached. One should not here confuse non attachment

with detachment. In such an exercise the pain and pressure can only be traversed serenely when the

neutral mind, that is the conscious mind, remains fully present.

ILLUSTRATION B

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Students are put in groups of three: client, consultant and witness (or observer). The observer occupies the

place of the inner observer (the self observing the ego) that allows effective leaders to keep a perspective and his calm in the middle of turmoil. The client tells his

story, and the consultant listens with the instruction to slow down his breathing, to stay silent and to sit with his spine straight. The observer also stays silent and observes whether the consultant manages to control his breathing and stay vertical (in all senses of the

term), as well as how the client behaves.

ILLUSTRATION C

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In the debrief, it transpires that the consultant is rarely vertical. The slow breathing, when

practised, has the effect of allowing the consultant to not become fascinated, manipulated, or over identify with the client’s story. His discernment

increases. The client can go deeper inside himself and uncover key aspects of himself in his capacity

as a leader. At the same time some client feel (slightly) ill at ease, for he feels the need to know if his message is received, understood and possibly

interesting.

ILLUSTRATION C

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The client becomes conscious in the debrief of his dependence on the other for approval. The invitation is to become more

self reliant, to learn to ‘self qualify’. A leaders qualifies himself, and does not wait for others to do so. He knows his value and the value of his message. Silence does not

destabilise him. Again, students by involving their bodies differently have the

opportunity to becoming aware of how their ego mind operates. The awareness is

an opportunity to gain self mastery and foster their leadership.

ILLUSTRATION C

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By meditating and focusing on the pituitary gland (situated between the eyebrows) the

student is trains her intuition, a key leadership skill.

ILLUSTRATION D

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Students practice vocal, exercises in the form of mantras in order to train the hypothalamus, which constitutes the

interface between our emotions and our thoughts. Doing so develops the ability of

the leader to stay stable in strenuous circumstances, which the ego mind has a tendency to be ill manage, by inducing reactivity (as opposed to pro activity).

ILLUSTRATION E

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 Foodynamiks

Let the power of food serve you powerfully ©http://vincabigo.com

 EXPLORING POTENTIAL HARM TO HEALTH

 microwaves, sugars, salt, lactose, gluten, additives

 EXPLORING SOURCES OF ENERGY

 super foods (spirulina, maca, chia seeds, chocolate, coconut, ginger,…),

veganism and vegetarianism, juices, paleontic food, raw food, water, slow food, lipids

NUTRITION

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EXTRACTS OF EXAM ANSWERS FROM STUDENTS AGED BETWEEN 20 and 25

AFTER A 5 CONSECUTIVE DAY COURSE IN YOGA, SPIRITUALITY AND

LEADERSHIP

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“I consider myself as an athlete. I practice Boxing on a regular basis in Portugal (3-4 times a week), and in Bordeaux I practise it every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. It is also a challenging sport that demand a lot of perseverance. So I naively thought that if I could handle a 2 hour boxing practise, then I could

easily handle a Yoga course which was not at all the case. I was surprised of how difficult it is to actually resist the pain and the

fatigue of the muscles when you are doing the Kryia. I was fascinated by the importance of the role of the mind in this

process. Being focused in what we are doing, being fully there, at the moment of the exercise is the only way of achieving the exercise effectively, the pain is slowly forgotten when the mind is busy and focused in other matters” (Diogo after participating

in a five day Yoga & Leadership class)

EXTRACT A

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“I found that the way in which the class was conducted also added huge benefits to the end result and what I actually took from the class. By being in a setting where everyone was on the same level and we were able to use yoga

mats, its really added to the whole experience. It didn’t feel like you were at school being fed

information, but actually invited to that use this information and translate it within yourself and find your own true meaning and significance.

EXTRACT B

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The information extended beyond yogic technologies and also intergraded with

topics such as mental health, nutrition as well as leadership. An important thing that

I picked up from this class is that your body is usually always able to achieve

much more than you think – it’s the mind that you have to battle with. A strong mind is something that’s essential for all good leaders as this means they can respond

better to challenges” (Toni after participating in a five day Yoga &

Leadership class).

EXTRACT C

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“Towards the end of the course, I was much more comfortable in my body and

gained insight how I can change my everyday to be better. By spending hours

with yourself and your conscious, it provides clarity towards the next steps you should be taking to be the best version of yourself” (David after participating in a

five day Yoga & Leadership class).

EXTRACT D

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“During the week, I prefer this exercise to others because I felt more focused, more

determined. The mantra RA MA DA SA SA SAY SU HUNG had a great effect on me. I imagine myself doing this meditation in a

daily basis around 20 minutes, either early in the morning before going to work or tonight before eating”(Clement after participating in

a five day Yoga & Leadership class).

EXTRACT E

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“Surprisingly, the exercise where we stayed arms up in the air on our legs for 7 minutes was my favourite because I was proud of myself. It’s one of the rare

exercises where I didn’t give up at all. I didn’t think about how numb my legs or feet felt, I was only thinking about

not giving up and that’s it. I think that at the last minute I started to not breath properly because the lower part of

my belly started to ache a bit whenever I exhaled “NAM”. Honestly at this point, I couldn’t feel the connection with my soul and body etc. I feel my body; I am conscious of my breathing but that was all” (Sofia after participating

in a five day Yoga & Leadership class).

EXTRACT F

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TESTIMONIES FROM STUDENTS AFTER PARTICIPATING IN A FIVE

DAY SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP SEMINAR

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“I whish to say that the courses were really interesting and I would truly recommanded to every

student or friend to think about following a course like that, actually I simply think everybody sould do it!”

(Adrien 2015) 

“Thanks you again for this week and for all these great experiences” (Bernice 2015)

 “Thank you so much again for the course, it was

fantastic!” (Brenda 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“Thank you very very much!” (Muyang 2015) 

“Thanks for teaching me, I really enjoyed it” (Oscar 2015)

 “Encore merci pour votre enseignement” (Maeva

2015) 

“I wanted to thank you for this week, I found your course very enriching and interesting for me”

(Anais 2015) 

TESTIMONIES

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“Many thanks for this amazing week. It was a truly inspiring experience!” (Yushen)

 “Really happy to take this course with you,

I think I am inspired” (Jinyi 2015) 

“I am very thankful for attending this meaningful class” (Peiran 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“I learn a lot from this class, if I have chance, I will continue

exercising yoga and the meditation to improve my power and find the chakra. Thank you for teaching us these kinds of methods. I spend an amazing week with you” (Yashu 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“Thank you for your teaching. Although we just spent five days

together, I really enjoy doing yoga and meditating with all and discuss

different topics with different classmates. Besides, you give me

different views to leadership, spirituality, yoga and mediation. Thank you every much” (Yushana

2015)

TESTIMONIES

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TESTIMONIES FROM STUDENTS AFTER PARTICIPATING IN A FIVE

DAY YOGA AND LEADERSHIP SEMINAR

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“I am glad I have taken this class and I wish it could last more than a week so I

can see how far I could go and my limits” (Sofia 2015)

 “Thank you for the course last week. I

found it extremely insightful, fun and eye-opening” (Christopher 2015)

 “Thank you so much for that intense and

wonderful week!” (Katy 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“Thank you so much for this wonderful week, it was definitely an amazing

experience!” (Diogo) 

“Thank you for teaching such an interesting and unique course” (Nina 2015)

 “Thank you for your lessons, I learnt a lot of things that I didn't expect, it was really

interesting!” (Marion 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“I have learned a lot from this course. Thank you so much!” (Shouxuan

2015) 

“I would like to thank you for the class. It was really a different

experience from what I have done so far in university and I am definitely glad that I took the course” (Simon

2015)

TESTIMONIES

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“I'm reviewing my diary now and it reminds me of the days we spent together. Crossing legs and sitting for many hours

was tough for me several days ago but now I'm doing so and getting accustomed to it. It was really a good experience for me and

I really miss you and my other lovely classmates.  I will remember what you told us and try to aim for excellence in my life.

Thank you for your encouragement and warm wishes!”  (Mengmeng 2015)

TESTIMONIES

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 What is spirituality for you? How does is relate to

consciousness? 

What is a leader? Can anyone be a leader? What is the difference between a leader and a manager?

 Using your diary describe your experience this week. Use as many direct quotes from your diary as you can. Be very detailed (This is a very important part of the

exam)

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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 What are all the techniques available in yoga (remember that yoga means union). In other

words, what yogic techniques are available to achieve union? What are yogis or spiritual people aiming to unite? What is the purpose of each one

of the available techniques? How did you personally experience each one of them during

class?  

Describe your ten bodies, say something about how you relate to each one of them, which

exercises develop the 4th, 6th and the 7th bodies, and in particular how you can use each of the ten

bodies in your capacity as a leader?

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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 Why is your relationship to reality important in your capacity to be a leader? What can prevent you from properly understanding the world as it

is? Which chakras are most connected to the most accurate perception of reality? What techniques

can you use to help you gain better access to reality?

  Why do yogis put themselves under situations of pressure (when they hold difficult postures that hurt) during their yoga exercises? How is this

connected to leadership? 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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 What is your most stable reference, a value

or a symbol that most fundamentally guides all your thoughts and actions?

 What are the 5 main spiritual movements in organizations, as discussed in class and given in the readings? Give details of their history, their creators, and find examples of

companies in which they happen. 

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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 Why is it so difficult to be truly creative

(corporations are challenged to continuously innovate and find it difficult)?

What are the barriers? What is it about yoga and spirituality that favours

creativity?  

What does Daniel Priestley say about the criteria for choosing the area in which you

might develop your professional project and in which you may become a key persons of influence? Why is that a

spiritual choice?

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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Briefly describe what kind of impact, with what kind of project, you hope to make on the world? What virtue(s) do you associate

with your project?  

What are the different ways in which you can listen which have explored in class and

what does each way achieve or fail to achieve?

 Happiness is your birth right. What is the

first step to happiness?

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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Responsibility is not about guilt. What does it mean then when you decide that you

take responsibility? 

What did you learn about the Karpman triangle in class? Give an example of how

you have played the role of each of the positions in the triangle in your own life? Which one do you most play? What is the way to get out of the Karpman triangle?

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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Describe in your own words the mindfulness video on TED that you

were asked to watch this week. 

Describe in your own words the “cycle of the thought” described in

the document that you received. 

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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Describe in your own words the mindfulness video on TED that you

were asked to watch this week. 

Describe in your own words the “cycle of the thought” described in

the document that you received.

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS

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Which yogic technique/technology would you be interested in cultivating? Describe

one yogic technology that you could imagine yourself committing to every day

for forty days without interruption (it takes 40 consecutive days to break a bad habit, 90 days to fully adopt a good habit, 120 to

master the new habit and 1000 consecutive days of practice to become one with the

new habit so you don’t even have to think about it). Be very detailed: how many

minutes, what time of day, what exercise?

 

APPENDIX 1 : EXAM QUESTIONS FOR SPIRITUALITY AND LEADERSHIP CLASS