Courage to Advance: From Digital Overwhelm to Mental Clarity with Timothy Swords

Jun 19, 2025

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Welcome to Courage to Advance, hosted by Kim Bohr and brought to you by SparkEffect, in partnership with The Empathy Edge.

Tune in to our subseries every 3rd Thursday, right here on The Empathy Edge! Or check us out at www.CourageToAdvancePodcast.com.

In today's always-on business culture, how can leaders cut through digital noise to regain mental clarity? Kim Bohr sits down with Timothy Swords, a mindfulness-focused executive coach who blends Harvard MBA-level acumen with over 2,000 hours of mindfulness practice. Timothy reveals how simple grounding techniques transformed executives from being the "scary person in the room" to creating harmonious relationships.

This conversation explores why self-awareness might be more valuable than an MBA, how stress contagion undermines organizational performance, and why working beyond 50 hours delivers diminishing returns. Timothy shares practical "mindfulness hacks," including a grounding technique for meetings, plus how 10 minutes of practice increases self-awareness by 35%.

Whether you're struggling with digital overwhelm, managing stressed teams, or seeking authentic leadership approaches, discover how mindfulness becomes a competitive advantage. Learn why emotions last 30 seconds unless we feed them with thoughts.

To access the episode transcript, please search for the episode title at www.TheEmpathyEdge.com

Key Takeaways:

Mindfulness is "lucid awareness from paying attention on purpose in the present moment"
A leader's emotional state directly impacts team performance through stress contagion
Working beyond 50 hours shows diminishing returns; 70-hour weeks produce no more than 55-hour weeks
Simple grounding technique: Feel your feet on the floor during meetings to interrupt anxiety cycles
Just 10 minutes of daily mindfulness practice increases self-awareness by 35% in 6-8 weeks
Authentic leadership starts with clarity on personal values aligned with organizational values
Two types of self-compassion: tender (being kind) and fierce (setting healthy boundaries)

"An emotion on its own lasts like 30 seconds. But if you're feeding it with thoughts, it goes on and on—it gets worse and worse. If you want to do anger management, you've got to stop that cycle, because you're actually creating your own anger." — Timothy Swords

About Timothy Swords: Timothy Swords blends corporate acumen with mindfulness training to guide senior leaders in integrating mindfulness into decision-making and leadership effectiveness. His experience includes CFO and strategic transformation roles at Fidelity Investments, MUFG Union Bank, and PwC. Timothy holds an MBA from Harvard University and is a certified mindfulness instructor with over 2,000 hours of practice, including training with renowned teachers Jack Kornfield, Jon Kabat-Zinn, and Sharon Salzberg.

About SparkEffect: SparkEffect partners with organizations to unlock the full potential of their greatest asset: their people. Through their tailored assessments and expert coaching at every level, SparkEffect helps organizations manage change, sustain growth, and chart a path to a brighter future.

Go to sparkeffect.com/edge now and download your complimentary Professional and Organizational Alignment Review today.

Connect with Timothy:

Website: MindfulLeadership-Coaching.com

Email: Timothy@MindfulLeadership-Coaching.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timothyswords

Free Resources: mindfulleadership-coaching.com/free-videos

Connect with Kim Bohr & SparkEffect:

SparkEffect: sparkeffect.com

Courage to Advance recording and resources:

sparkeffect.com/courage-to-advance-podcast

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/sparkeffect

LinkedIn for Kim: linkedin.com/in/kimbohr