Mise en Place for a New Threshold of Leadership
In the heat of disruption—rising inflation, shifting markets, cascading wildfires—it’s tempting to rush. To react. To solve. Leaders are often taught that decisive action is strength. There is also another way to lead, drawn from the calm precision of a Michelin-star kitchen.
Mise en place—“to put in place”—is the practice of readiness. Michelin Star Chefs might say they don’t run because they are already where they need to be. Their ingredients are prepped, their tools are in reach, their minds are clear. This discipline creates space for presence. When the ticket comes in, the dish flows. Timed. Thoughtful. Beautiful.
Leadership in these times asks something similar. Not panic. Not performance. Presence. It’s not about holding on to the old recipe, and it’s not about discarding what has meaning either. It’s knowing what matters most—your life mission, your values, the good, the true, and the beautiful—and letting go of everything else that no longer serves.
This is not a call for magical thinking. It’s a call for poise. When fear sets the pace, decisions often lose their creativity and coherence. Slowing down doesn’t create delay—it invites precision. It helps you know what dish needs to be served, and prepares you to meet that moment with intention.
This new threshold in business invites more than survival. It offers a way to meet the moment with a different kind of intelligence—one that maps not only economic trends, also emotional, cultural, and ecological momentum. Disruption can become an ingredient.
The leaders who thrive now will be the ones with mise-en-place in their inner and outer worlds—those who are ready not just for what’s urgent, also for what is deeply called for.
What are you preparing to serve? And how ready are you to serve it beautifully?
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