The Link Between Exercise and Leadership

Marcianne Kuethen

April 10, 2013

Our family often talks about what we’ve each done to exercise that day. This conversation inevitably leads to a good laugh as we recall how, in the movie Legally Blonde, Reese Witherspoon concludes that her client, a woman accused of murder, couldn’t possibly have done it because she exercises every day, flooding her body with good endorphins. Sure enough, in the end, the woman is found innocent, proving that exercise makes people happy. The question arises, could exercise also make you a better leader?

Several companies think it can, and they are taking steps to make their executives sweat! Among the benefits they’re hoping for are increased productivity, greater focus, boosted immune system, and improved ability to think clearly, not to mention long-term benefits such as generating new brain cells, improving memory, and possibly delaying the effects of diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Also some are convinced that sweat-inducing exercise prepares employees to better handle on-the-job stress.

It’s sobering to think that not exercising could have the opposite effect–lower productivity, dying brain cells, poor memory, and increased chance of disease. How are things going for you at work? Could your leadership skills use a boost? If you don’t have a regular exercise routine, you may want to break out those jogging shoes, swim trunks, or whatever will get those brain cells re-energized!

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