Igniting Insights with Barry Binder: March 2026
March’s installment of Igniting Insights features an article from HUB Financial Services expert, Barry Binder, as he shares practical and proven tips from his 26-year tenure.
“What’s Your Mantra” — Words That Ground Us
Do you have a phrase or saying you lean on when things get tough – something that steadies you, fires you up, or helps you feel more grounded? I do. In fact, I have several.
Whether I’m standing over a chip shot on the golf course, processing troubling news about someone I love, biting my tongue when a driver cuts me off, looking up an uphill trail that appears to have no top, or wrestling with something I just can’t figure out — whenever stress hits — I come back to the same words: “Every moment is a new moment.”
It’s a line from Lin Yutang’s The Importance of Living, shared with me years ago during a period of major personal upheaval. I’ve said it so often that it’s become automatic now, a mental reset button that brings me back to the present.
If you’ve ever been in a client meeting with me, you might remember that I often step out right beforehand. In those few quiet seconds—usually in a hallway or, more often than I’d like to admit, a restroom—I remind myself: “You’re here to give.” To me, that means I’m there for my client-partner’s needs. I’m there to help, to connect, to contribute. The meeting isn’t about my agenda; it’s about theirs.
These are my MANTRAS. They anchor me, center me, refocus me, and help me show up as the person I want to be.
What is a Mantra?
A mantra is traditionally understood as a tool for the mind. The word comes from Sanskrit, combining man (mind) and tra (instrument or tool). In practice, a mantra, often central to meditation practices, serves as a mental anchor: it steadies attention, reduces distraction, and helps guide the mind toward a chosen intention.
Leadership Mantras
Recently scholars and organizational thinkers began exploring how these simple phrases can support leadership in modern workplaces. In this setting, mantras become a way for leaders to stay grounded in compassion, empathy, and clarity—especially when navigating difficult moments. For example, leading with kindness often requires courage, because meaningful work inevitably brings uncomfortable, awkward, or even confrontational situations. A leader who wants to approach these moments with steadiness might adopt a mantra such as “courage over comfort”, using it as a quiet reminder that leaning into discomfort with compassion can make challenging conversations more constructive and humane.
- Courage Over Comfort
- Busyness Kills Your Heart
- Connect with Empathy, Lead with Compassion
- Clarity is Kindness
These are all examples of mantras that leaders can use to help refine and define their leadership styles.
The use of mantras can be both intentional and unintentional. Over time, a repeated phrase often becomes unconscious “selftalk”—the automatic thoughts that run in the background of our minds. These thoughts shape how we interpret situations, how we respond under pressure, and ultimately how we experience the world around us. In that sense, the mantras we practice—whether chosen deliberately or adopted without noticing—play a powerful role in influencing our mindset, our behavior, and our leadership presence.
What Research Shows
As if the personal and professional perks of mantras weren’t enough, science is now catching up to what many traditions have known for centuries. Research from the University of West Virginia and the University of Pennsylvania shows that repeating mantras can actually change the body and brain—shifting plasma levels tied to better sleep, mood, and cognitive performance, and increasing blood flow in areas linked to memory and mental clarity.2 Put simply: if you want your brain to stay sharp as you age, keep your mantra close – it might be one of your most powerful tools!
So, what’s your mantra? If you were to choose one mantra to guide you, personally and professionally, what would it be?
Want to Dig Deeper?
Exercise: Create your Mantra
- Define and Delete What You Want to Hear in Your Mind.
- Decide what you hope for your mantra to achieve – keep the good, remove the bad.
- Name Your Essential Themes.
- List 3–5 words that capture your core qualities and values, personally and professionally.
- Pick a structure.
- Choose one simple frame: “I am…”, “I choose…”, “I lead with…”
- Create a short anchor phrase (4–7 words)
- Draft your mantra.
- Combine your chosen words into one personal and one professional statement. Keep each under 12 words.
- Examples: “I choose clarity, courage, and steadiness.” “I lead with focus and integrity.” “Move with purpose.”
- Test it.
- Say it aloud. Keep the version that feels natural, energizing, and easy to remember.
- Use it & Refine it.
Here is related material to check out:
Questions? Reach out to Barry any time: