Wisdom Works Research Shows Stress Can Enhance Thriving for Leaders

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Dec. 1, 2021 - PRLog -- Wisdom Works Group releases new data from the inaugural Be Well Lead Well® Research Insights Report, "Effectively Leading Through Paradox," showing that leaders who engage in paradoxical leadership report greater wellbeing with increasing levels of stress–effectively turning stress into thriving.

The timely report, originally released in July 2021, revealed the pivotal relationship between a leaders' wellbeing and how they navigate paradoxes with "both/and thinking", an orientation which recognizes that conflicting perspectives can be an impetus for innovation, learning, and growth for people and organizations alike.

New insights from the 425+ global business leaders surveyed shows that engaging in paradoxical leadership behaviors positively impacts a leader's ability to thrive during times of increased stress. The research found that for those leaders who scored Low in paradoxical leadership, wellbeing decreased as stress increased. On the other hand, those leaders scoring High in paradoxical leadership did not experience this adverse relationship. They reported greater overall wellbeing with increasing levels of stress. By adopting a both/and mindset, these leaders appeared to turn their stress into thriving, the very personal transformation organizations require for leadership effectiveness today.

As outlined in "Effectively Leading Through Paradox," leaders today must navigate and guide organizations through an unprecedented degree of complexity and change, where solutions are never clear or simple. Wisdom Works research suggests that leaders who experience high levels of wellbeing may be better equipped to draw on both/and thinking to handle the paradoxes inherent in organizational life. The report found that leaders who score high in wellbeing are 38% more likely to report engaging in paradoxical leadership behavior than leaders who score low in wellbeing.

"Wellbeing is a vital resource for every leader navigating the unparalleled degree of change and uncertainty in our world," says Renee Moorefield, CEO of Wisdom Works and Executive Director of Be Well Lead Well®, "Well-managed companies require leaders who can meet these stressful demands with inspiration, partnership, and wisdom, rather than reactivity, myopic thinking, or burnout."

Moorefield added, "We believe today's complexities – particularly in the face of recovery post-pandemic - present the precise opportunity for leaders to unleash their potential to grow, evolve, and thrive, and our Be Well Lead Well^® platform empowers leaders to do just that for themselves and their teams."

Data collection was conducted during the pandemic in 2020 with 425+ leaders in top leadership, middle-management and first line leader roles from countries in Western Europe and North America. Leaders rated themselves using two self-report instruments, Paradoxical Leader Behavior scale assessing the extent to which they lead from both/and thinking, and the Be Well Lead Well Pulse® assessment which combines 19 psychometrics linked to overall psychological wellbeing.