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Business leaders need to find inner peace if they are to create an inspiring and sustainable future.
But how can we develop the strength and foresight we need to lead with purpose when growth and profit are constantly driving our efforts? How can we link our actions with results amid increasing noise and complexity? How can we think strategically and expand our consciousness when technology keeps us hooked to our devices?
By introducing periods of retreat, leaders develop greater self-awareness and achieve the clarity, balance, and purpose to do not just what is good for business but also what is right for the world.
The Art of Retreats provides simple, practical advice for creating effective solo retreats, from the occasional hour carved into the day to profoundly insightful weekends and more. Drawing on a unique combination of business experience, science, philosophy, and ancient wisdom, it offers deep reflections, practices, and contemplations that will help leaders find peace, solve, and wisdom in an otherwise hectic life.
FABRICE DESMARESCAUX works with CEOs and their teams to help them reach higher levels of performance and consciousness. A partner at McKinsey & Company, Fabrice has practiced meditation, taught yoga, and led spiritual retreats for two decades. Integrating Eastern spiritual traditions with Western modern management and psychology, Fabrice raises his clients to new heights of clarity and productivity by focusing on what makes us fundamentally human: the desire to be happy, to connect with others, and to be true to our purpose.
"This is by far the best book on leadership I’ve read - Fabrice offers thought-provoking perspectives rather than ready-made prescriptions, and he does so in a very engaging style. His approach to the inner journey of leadership is concrete and practical, because Fabrice is an experienced leader himself. Yet it is also highly original and holistic as it blends modern management with philosophy, psychology and spiritual traditions."
PETER OLSON, Former CEO of Random House
"Fabrice's book has a remarkable ability to engage readers in exploring the profound essence of personal leadership in both business and life."
DR KLAUS KLEINFELD, Former CEO of Siemens, former Chairman and CEO of Alcoa and Arconic, former CEO of NEOM
"Leaders need to upgrade their operating software if they are to be part of the solution and not the problem. In his insightful book, Fabrice offers a roadmap to translate contemplative practices into action for the greater good."
ILIAN MIHOV, Dean of INSEAD
"Leaders are under unprecedented pressure. Fabrice offers an original and proven approach to keep sane, balanced, and purposeful."
OLIVER TONBY, Senior Partner and former Chairman of Asia, McKinsey & Company
"There are many versions of hope. The most authentic kind arises from wisdom, the love of wisdom, and a sense of its practical application. Fabrice Desmarescaux’s vision is authentic in this sense and so also capable of inspiring. The need for leaders to make time for true interiority is proven here on the individual and the corporate level. Leaders shape the mood and destiny of those they are responsible for and so, the more authentic and humble they are, the more empowered and creative will be those they serve. This is a book for leaders to ponder in solitude and apply in meetings and interviews. It will support them in the lonely moments of hard decisions, help them see meaning in failure and never lose the vital link with true hope."
LAURENCE FREEMAN OSB, Director of The World Community for Christian Meditators
"Fabrice does an excellent job of mapping out a clear and concise roadmap for leaders to be a force for good, translating time-tested contemplative practices into action. He makes what is often an esoteric topic accessible for all leaders who are keen to have a more positive impact on their organizations and the world."
LOREN I. SHUSTER, Chief People Officer and Head of Corporate Affairs, The LEGO Group
"It is so easy to imagine that we are too busy to sit quietly and reflect. But it turns out we can’t afford not to. In The Art of Retreats, Fabrice Desmarescaux tells us why and shows us how."
JAMES SHAHEEN, Editor-in-Chief, Tricycle: The Buddhist Review