Compassion as a Superpower – Podcast with Michelle Maldonado
Article by Milli-Rose, Wired4Music member
Michelle Maldonado, Founder and CEO of Lucenscia, is dedicated to helping leaders and organisations with building positive impact in the world. Maldonado is a George Washington Law graduate, as well as a certified mindfulness teacher at a professional level with the international Mindfulness teachers association, and a coach amongst other things.
The “Compassion as a Superpower” podcast is a truly insightful listen, and as we approach our Inclusive Practice In Action 2023 event, opening up these discussions is essential. This podcast explores many of Maldonado’s personal stories that have shaped the person and leader she is today, looking into the depths of her inner work, and her insights into well-being in the workplace.
From discussing meditation practice with her aunt, as young as seven years old, and trying to implement this into her Catholic household, it is clear that life changing habits were being formed from an early age. Looking back at her younger self, Maldonado discusses the effects of meditation, and how these small habits helped her build a framework.
“When I think back on what that did for me, I wouldn’t have had the language as a seven year old, but what I did know was that I felt better. The colours of the world seemed brighter.”
Leadership in the Workplace: Shifting Priorities
Maldonado says in the interview, “How we do what we do matters in our presence”
Performance in the workplace is such an important topic of discussion, unpacking workload performance, as well as mental health in the workplace. Maldonado draws on her experience of when her department was performing better, in terms of financial figures. Her boss asked, “What did you do”, in order for that to happen. Maldonado replied, “It’s not what, but how”. This goes further to say that if we only see people in the workplace as human doings, and not human beings, then inevitably, the personal value will be affected. We need to see someone as a whole, looking at all strands of development.
As we approach our Inclusive Practice In Action 2023 event, sharing resources that explore different perspectives on global leadership is essential to shifting change. Listening to this podcast displays that small habits can go a long way on a personal, provincial and creative level. This discussion is full of rich material that will leave you evaluating what you bring into workspaces to create inclusive practice in action, while also exploring inner work, habit and outlook.
