INsight/ Responding to Gloom
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Guanyin Bodhisattva image at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Photo by the author.
Manila, 5 October 2023 — How to lead others out of gloom loops.
Story
It happened this week. Uncertainty in stock markets and the economy—intertwined as they are nowadays— sparked talk of a self-feeding gloom loop that could drag them both lower. We also hear about the ‘gloom loop’ in other contexts. Think of the gloom of large metropolitan centers that are facing a malaise and urgently need creative solutions from the public and private sectors to emerge from downward spirals. Dialing up a notch from gloom to doom and taking the discussion to the level of societies, Camilla Cavendish, a policy analyst and contributor to the Financial Times, warned that her country “must break out of its doom loop”, noting that “our national despondency is becoming a trap.”
Looking closer, we see that gloom and doom start in our minds. Gloom loops are deeply personal. They can happen when we are facing a difficult career transition, or simply when we experience stress and hardships for too long. For many people today, these dark insights come at a time when post-pandemic uncertainties, climate-related disasters, and the rush of unregulated AI contribute to unprecedented levels of anxiety in work and life. Even before Covid-19, stress had been classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the health epidemic of the 21st century. The pandemic then triggered further increases in anxiety and depression worldwide. Not surprisingly, at a time when people and markets fret over negative news, artists are offering musical ‘gloom loop packs’ for download, to resonate musically with a sense of deep melancholy.
Beyond a doubt, far too many people around the world are experiencing a sense of gloom. This has led some to take unprecedented actions. Last week, six Gen Zs from Portugal, aged 11-24, took 32 governments to court for failing to avert a climate catastrophe that they believe will harm their futures. Meanwhile, a survey for The Straits Times showed how Gen Ys in Southeast Asia are struggling with stress, mental health, and well-being. Some shared how they felt dictated in their careers by Gen Xers who kept responding to their concerns with a go-to line of “This is how things are.” When we look around us, there are many more gloom loop stories. And, more worryingly, what about the stories of human suffering that go unshared? So what can we as leaders do for people in gloom loops? How to lead others out of gloom loops?
Challenge
From the news we read online nowadays, it is easy to conclude that the world we live in is full of depressing gloom loops about the suffering taking place all around us. In concluding so, you would be right. And yet, you would also be wrong. In recent years, psychologists and neuroscientists have discovered that what we see and feel is guided by how our brains are wired, and that we can change our experience by practicing mindful leadership behaviors. To put it simply, negative news about gloom, suffering, and intrigue tends to trigger us much more powerfully—and stay in our minds longer—than positive news. Moreover, gloom tends to activate our fight or flight response that keeps us on edge for longer, prone to thinking that all of life is a battle for survival. As leaders, we know that this is not the whole story, and that we are tasked to create positivity that enables positive changes to happen. So how do we do that?
When we reflect on this question, it’s worth considering the millennia-old nuggets coming from Asia’s wisdom traditions as well as our latest 20th and 21st-century insights from scientific research. These suggest that leaders look at life from both sides, seeing the suffering as well as the opportunities. To master acknowledging negative affect as well as positive affect. This week, our photo shows a highlight of ancient Asian art, depicting Guanyin, the bodhisattva of compassion. Why is s/he pictured with so many faces and arms? It is because bodhisattvas are known to dedicate their lives to seeing, hearing, and feeling the suffering in the world. That ability is symbolized by the multiple eyes, ears, and arms stretched out to help. In Buddhist wisdom, the bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who voluntarily stay around longer to lead other beings out of suffering. Nowadays, we might call them compassionate servant leaders. In my view, the ‘bodhisattva path’ may well represent the highest calling we as humans can answer to.
What we can do today to lead others—and sometimes ourselves—out of a gloom loop starts by acknowledging with our eyes, ears, and arms (and heart) that suffering is all around us. That’s the first step. We can practice to acknowledge the suffering in others with empathy and compassion. Practicing to be there for the people around us who suffer—to see them, listen to them, and reach out with compassion. The second step, then, is to practice acknowledging and savoring the positive in others and their situations. To see beyond their suffering and negative mindset. That is where the human mind needs extra help, as discovered by the ancient sages as well as today’s modern positive psychologists and neuroscientists. In truth, life and work are full of negatives and positives, yet the positives are often harder to see, savor, and keep in mind. That’s the second step of compassionate leadership.
Question
Before coming to the third step, let’s zoom out for a moment to a societal scale. Asia has seen the rise of some of the world’s most prominent wisdom traditions. It is also where numerous wars were fought and the world-renowned giant Buddha statues of Bamiyan were destroyed by the Taliban in the early 2000s. Now the Taliban are again inflicting injustice and hardship on an unprecedented scale. Looking around the region and the world more widely, it’s easy to see the specter of suffering, struggle, and conflict. On the other hand, it’s easy to overlook the positives. Look at what Indonesia’s G20 hosts did a year ago when they showed inclusive leadership and expanded the agenda of the world leaders beyond political and economic issues to finding solutions to societal problems. To that end, they introduced an R20 to bring global faith leaders to the G20 for the first time—including a monk from Italy who is a professor and world-class specialist on AI regulation. It is also easy to forget the inclusive leadership displayed by India’s G20 hosts last month when they reminded world leaders of the reality of One Earth, One Family, One Future. Through their inclusive diplomacy, a joint statement was unexpectedly agreed on the summit’s first day. A remarkable achievement.
The leadership spirit of reaching out compassionately with many eyes, ears, and arms is not limited to Asia, of course. A year ago, after the passing of Queen Elizabeth, I wrote Leaders Serve Others to acknowledge and celebrate her commitment to dedicate her life to service. Meanwhile, you may have your own role model(s) of compassionate and inclusive leadership. Pope Francis comes to my mind as another example of an inclusive leader who continues to stretch people’s minds to practice more compassion, including during the past week. A year ago, my question to you was if you could start seeing yourself in the image of the Guanyin bodhisattva with many arms and faces. “While living as a 21st-century bodhisattva is easier said than done,” I wrote, “it is a call that each of us can answer by deciding to liberate our minds and transform ourselves. Our planet urgently needs more leaders who decide to live a life of serving others.” Isn’t that a life transition worth making?
Answering the call to become an inclusive and trusted leader who helps others out of gloom loops is the third step of compassionate leadership. I hope to meet you soon on that journey. Last week, I humbly received a positive psychology coach certification that will surely help me to level up my skills for bringing out the best in others. That includes acknowledging the challenges they experience in their life and work, including when they find themselves in a gloom loop. And then to help them see beyond the negatives and embrace positive opportunities to make impactful transitions in their career and life that will enrich their own lives and help to lead others out of suffering and gloom loops.
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