Earlier this year (OMRISE 6 – April 2021) I introduced you to the phenomenon of entrainment and explained that entrainment can have a positive effect on organizational outcomes. It is defined as the adjustment of one or more cycles to a more dominant cycle. Such adjustment can be conscious (through choice) or unconscious. In this article, I will briefly explain how the conscious application of spiritual leadership may influence such an entertainment process.
Let us first zoom in on the model of spiritual leadership. Jody Fry (2003, 2005) developed this model at the beginning of this century describing a transformation process to create an intrinsically motivated organization capable of continuously adapting to the changing environment. Spirituality here concerns “those qualities of the human spirit – such as love and compassion, patience, tolerance, forgiveness, contentment, a sense of responsibility, a sense of harmony – which bring happiness to both self and others” (Dalai Lama 1999: 22, quoted in Fry 2005).
The model consists of three core elements: vision, hope/faith and altruistic love. The vision refers to a picture of the future and is created from the reason for existence. Hope/faith is the source for the conviction that the vision will be fulfilled. It is demonstrated through action and is based on trust, belief, perseverance, and a willingness to do what it takes to do one’s personal best and maximize one’s potential (MacArthur 1998; Fry 2003). Altruistic love is defined as “a sense of wholeness, harmony, and well-being produced through care, concern, and appreciation for both self and others” (Fry 2003: 712).
Consciously aligning these three core elements, spiritual well-being can spontaneously emerge. In other words, “they experience meaning in their lives, have a sense of making a difference, and feel understood and appreciated” (Fry 2005: 836). Note that spiritual well-being cannot be directly pursued; it emerges spontaneously from this alignment or coherence between vision, hope/faith and altruistic love (Sandra & Nandram 2020).
Next to these core elements is the Inner Life, considered as a fundamental source of inspiration and insight that positively influences the development of vision, hope/faith, and altruistic love. It includes personal practices, such as meditation, yoga, prayer, journaling, walking in nature. Or, in other words, “Inner Life is an inward journey of self-discovery and awareness” (Fry et al. 2017: 38).
Similar to the heart in a human body, that is able to pull other rhythms into entrainment, we suggest that the application of spiritual leadership may drive the process of entrainment, positively influencing both personal and organizational outcomes. (Sandra & Nandram 2020) There are a number of reasons for this.
First, the autonomous character of the heart can also be found in spiritual leadership. The intrinsic motivation cycle – the interaction between vision, hope/faith and altruistic love – can be regarded as the autonomous heart rhythm of an organization. Intrinsic motivation is defined as an interest in or an enjoyment of a task for its own sake, evolving within the individual from active engagement rather than from an external influence (Ryan & Deci 2000; Fry 2003).Second, similar to the heart, spiritual leadership is also fractal. This means that it can be applied on every level: personal, group, and organizational.
Third, altruistic love is key for creating an organizational culture whereby people have a sense of membership, feel understood and appreciated. As discussed earlier, care, concern, and appreciation are key behaviors. In physiology, care and appreciation are elevated emotions that increase heart coherence, entraining other rhythms in the human body. Moreover, the coherence between altruistic love, vision and hope/faith creates a sincere desire. Similar to the heart, “sincerity motivates our heart and aligns our true intentions” (Childre & Martin 1999: 104).
Finally, other studies have shown that intrinsic motivation is also associated with better performance, learning, and well-being and it is manifested through autonomy, competence and relatedness. The heart has a comparable physiological characteristic. Increased heart coherence enhances one’s cognitive performance, sensitivity, and mental clarity, in addition to increased emotional stability and well-being. It is regarded as a fast, intuitive source of wisdom and clear perception, an intelligence that embraces and fosters both mental and emotional intelligence.
Now, how can we apply this model in practice?
A good point to start is to develop your Inner Life through a practice that suits you well. There are a variety of practices available these days, such as meditation, prayer, journaling, spending time in nature, and yoga. It is important to find a practice that fits you at this time. For example, about fifteen years ago, I was a regular marathon runner.
This was a perfect fit with my physical constitution and helped me to develop deeper focus, perseverance and bodily awareness. For the past five years, however, I’m especially practicing meditation, which comes handy for relaxation and (giving up) control. Organizations, on the other hand, could start with providing a context and structure that welcomes such an Inner Life practice. Think about a convenient space and time for these practices, or perhaps guided meditations or yoga classes before lunch.
Next, besides an Inner Life practice, one can spend (more) attention on how coherent the vision, values (altruistic love) and actions (hope/faith) are in practice, both at the personal, group and organizational level. For example, is the organization’s vision sufficiently translated into appropriate action? Are the lived values in line with that vision? And are they supporting a caring and appreciative organization? Perhaps, only a small part of the vision has been translated into action? Or, the written values are inconsistent with the lived ones? Several methodologies and tools could be used to verify this coherence, such as constellation work, surveys, and crowdsourcing.
The phenomenon of entrainment might look complex, but did you know that it can also be applied to processes and other cyclic activities to improve organizational outcomes? Next time, I’ll be happy to tell you more about it.
References
- Childre, D., and H. Martin. 1999. The heartmath solution. San Francisco, CA: Harper Collins.
- Fry, L. W. 2003. “Toward a theory of spiritual leadership.” The Leadership Quarterly 14 (6): 693–728.
- Fry, L. W. 2005. “Toward a theory of ethical and spiritual well-being, and corporate social responsibility through spiritual leadership.” In Positive psychology in business ethics and corporate responsibility, edited by R. A. Giacalone, C. Dunn, and C. L. Jurkiewicz, 47–84. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing.
- Fry, L. W., J. R. Latham, S. K. Clinebell, and K. Krahnke. 2017. “Spiritual leadership as a model for performance excellence: a study of Baldrige award recipients.” Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion 14(1): 22–47.
- Sandra, Danny, and Sharda S. Nandram. 2020. “Driving Organizational Entrainment through Spiritual Leadership.” Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion 17 (4): 316–332.
- Sandra, Danny. 2020. “Hartcoherentie en spiritueel leiderschap.” Vakblad Natuurlijke & Integrale Gezonheidszorg (6).
- Sandra, Danny. 2020. “Entrainment in Organizations. An Exploration at the Individual and Group Level.” Doctoral dissertation, University of Antwerp, Belgium.
4. This article is based on Danny Sandra’s doctoral dissertation including a more extensive bibliography. He obtained his PhD in Applied Economics at the University of Antwerp on the topics of spiritual leadership and entrainment in organizations. He’s an experienced management consultant, researcher, coach, and craniosacral therapist who guides leadership teams and their organizations through strategic transformation. More information can be found on www.niketi.com or www.dannysandra.be.
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