HBR On Leadership – Episode Summary

Episode Overview

Episode Title: How to Strengthen Your Focus When Demands Never Let Up
Published: January 7, 2026
Host: Alison Beard (HBR IdeaCast, featured on HBR On Leadership)
Guest: Dr. Amishi Jha, Professor of Psychology at University of Miami, Author of Peak Mind

This episode explores the science of attention and focus, especially under high demanding and stressful conditions. Dr. Amishi Jha draws on her research to unpack how the brain manages attention, why distraction is so pervasive, and what leaders and professionals can do to protect and strengthen their focus for better well-being and workplace performance. Dr. Jha shares actionable insights on mindfulness, everyday attention exercises, and ways leaders can authentically enhance focus within teams.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Nature of Distractibility

• Attention as a Design Feature, Not a Flaw

  • Our brains are inherently distractible; mind-wandering is a built-in feature to help us scan for novel and relevant information.

    "Our brain was actually built for distractibility. So the fact that we have this wandering mind... is a design feature, not a flaw." — Dr. Amishi Jha (01:55)

• Modern Technology and Ancient Frustrations

  • The inability to focus isn't unique to our age; even medieval monks struggled with wandering attention, demonstrating it's a timeless human challenge.

    "In the medieval times, there were monks... complaining that even though they had left all their worldly goods... their minds were thinking about lunch." — Dr. Amishi Jha (03:30)

2. The Three Systems of Attention

• Orienting System (“Flashlight”)

  • Focuses on selected content, granting privileged access to information—can be directed externally (the environment) or internally (thoughts/feelings).

    "Wherever it is that you direct that flashlight, you get privileged access to that information." — Dr. Amishi Jha (05:00)

  • Easily yanked away by both external stimuli (e.g., phone pings) and internal thoughts.

    "The kinds of content that draws the flashlight... is not a mystery: novel information, threatening information, anything having to do with yourself." (06:30)

• Alerting System (“Floodlight”)

  • Broad, receptive, and vigilant to the present moment, valuable for situations requiring vigilance.

    "The floodlight and the alerting system are advantaging the present moment. What is happening right now." (07:30)

• Executive Control (“Juggler”)

  • Maintains and updates goals, inhibits distractions; functions like an executive overseeing and coordinating attention.

    "The executive's job is... to manage and oversee to ensure that our goals and our behavior are aligned moment by moment." (08:29)

  • Peak performance involves fluidly coordinating all three systems.

3. Focus Under Pressure: The “VUCA” World

• Challenges for High-Demand Professions

  • Under stress and protracted demands, everyone’s attention systems falter—focus declines, vigilance becomes hyper-reactive, and executive control drops.

    "When you sample attention... after [an] intensive and demanding period... attention significantly gets worse." (11:12)

  • Even experts like military personnel, judges, or doctors are not immune to this.

• The 50% Mind-Wandering Rule

  • On average, minds wander nearly half the time, and high demands amplify this tendency.

    "50% is the amount of time that our minds... will wander away from the task at hand." (10:23)

4. Solutions: Why Mindfulness?

• Failed Interventions

  • Brain-training games, mood induction, and tech devices didn’t prevent attentional decline under stress.

• Mindfulness as “Attention Training”

  • Mindfulness meditation—paying attention to present moment experience without judgment—proved effective in maintaining attention and mood even in stressful periods.

    "People that did this 12 minutes a day under high demand circumstances did not decline in their attention." (18:51)

Memorable Analogy

• Practicing mindfulness is like doing mental “push-ups”: focus, notice wandering, and gently redirect over and over.

5. Practical Mindfulness: How to Practice (16:53, 18:51)

• The Three-Step Practice:

  1. Focusing: Direct attention to body sensation tied to breath.
  2. Noticing: Recognize when attention wanders.
  3. Redirecting: Bring attention gently back to the breath.
  • Even one minute daily (ideally, twelve minutes as found in research) can be effective.

• Reframing Mind-Wandering

  • Wandering isn’t failure; recognizing and redirecting is the practice.

    "The mind wandering and practice of refocusing... is actually the exercise." — Alison Beard (16:27) "There is nothing wrong with mind wandering... When you notice your mind has wandered away... redirected back." — Dr. Jha (17:05)

• Meta-Awareness & “Find Your Flashlight” Exercise (20:20)

  • Acronym: STOP (Stop, Take a Breath, Observe, Proceed) can recenter attention during the day, e.g., after distraction or before big tasks.

6. Leadership Implications: Attention as Organizational Fuel

• Benefits Beyond Individual Performance

  • Enhanced attention fundamentally improves relationships, collaboration, and leadership presence.

    "Attention is the currency of leadership... I would say more, it's the fuel for leadership." (23:07)

  • All three attentional systems are critical for social interactions, reading the room, and collaborative decision making.

• Modeling Mindfulness for Teams

  • Leaders should begin with their own practice—others will notice changes (e.g., better presence, responsiveness).

    "The first thing... Begin with yourself... When leaders are embodied in this sort of mindful orientation, subordinates and coworkers and team members notice." (24:20)

  • Introducing team programs or modeling short practices can benefit workplace culture and collective focus.

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Why the Mind Wanders:

  "Our brain was actually built for distractibility." — Dr. Amishi Jha (01:55)

• Attention in the Monastery:

  "Monks... were now committed to spending their time connecting with God... their minds were thinking about lunch and they were fast forwarding to the next event." (03:30)

• Attention Systems Summed Up:

  "We are kind of dealing with the multiplicity of demands. Not only are we holding goals in mind, but we're using those goals to guide what the floodlight and the flashlight do." (08:49)

• The VUCA Challenge:

  "A shorthand that I like to use... is VUCA: volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous." (10:41)

• On Mindfulness Practice:

  "The exercises... are a workout routine for your mind that's going to result in a certain kind of transformative effect." (14:51)

• The “Push-Up” of Mindfulness:

  "It's focusing, noticing, and redirecting and repeat over and over again... My military colleagues... call this the push up." (18:32)

• Practical Exercise – STOP:

  "Stop... Take a breath... Observe... Proceed... You've got the flashlight back in your hand now." (21:35)

• Attention as Leadership Fuel:

  "Attention is the currency of leadership. I would say more, it's the fuel for leadership." (23:07)

• Modeling for Teams:

  "If you think your team members need it, really double down on getting to it yourself." (24:25)

Important Timestamps by Segment

• Understanding Distractibility and Ancient Parallels – 01:55–04:04
• Three Systems of Attention Explained – 04:08–09:58
• Challenges for Professionals & The VUCA World – 10:23–12:38
• Experimenting with Mindfulness (Research Insights) – 12:40–16:27
• How to Practice Mindfulness Effectively – 16:27–20:02
• In-the-Moment Techniques for Regaining Focus – 20:02–22:40
• Leadership, Relationships & Team Attention – 22:40–26:58

Takeaways for Leaders

• Recognize and accept that distraction is natural, not personal failure.
• Mindfulness meditation is a scientifically validated method to bolster attention, especially under strain—practicing even a few minutes a day makes a difference.
• Meta-awareness (noticing when one has become distracted) is itself a win, and practicing “finding your flashlight” can recenter you quickly.
• Leaders who develop and model strong attentional skills uplift interpersonal connection, communication, and resilience across teams.
• Encourage team mindfulness not by mandate, but by personal example and organic sharing of benefits and practices.

For more leadership insights and details on Dr. Amishi Jha's research, listen to the full episode or check out her book Peak Mind.