Leadership in Turbulent Times Is Spiritual

Summary In the past decade, two formerly estranged domains, spirituality and work, have been increasingly linked. Why has this happened? This articles posits that this strange union is an unavoidable consequence of living in a turbulent time. As our world grows more chaotic and unpredictable, leaders must respond to questions that have historically only been answered through spiritual traditions: How do I cope with incertainty? How do I help others find meaning in their lives? What are my values? How can I act with courage and integrity? Leaders also play a key role in helping people recognize that life is cyclical, unpredictable, and unstable and that they must engage it as such. This is wellexplored in spiritual traditions, but not in traditional management literature. Several organizational and personal practices are offered as simple ways to develop leadership capacity for leading in turbulence.