We run on a treadmill of work in a world of disruptive change — higher stress, doubled workloads, fragile job security, and a to-do list that never ends. Wendy Tan’s insight is that it isn’t only the workload that drains us; it’s fragmentation — scattered attention and a sense of being pulled apart. The antidote is wholeness: a sense of balance and completeness within ourselves and the world around us. Drawing on interviews with leaders and on East–West thinking, she distils three pathways — the ABCs of Anchoring, Balancing, and Clearing.
Anchor — be whole in who you are. A clear sense of your values, purpose, identity, and core responsibilities gives clarity, courage, and commitment; knowing her own anchor (an explorer of ideas, and a mother) helps Wendy decide how to spend her time, say no, and dare to try new things. A healthy anchor holds both the individual ‘I’ and the ‘we’ of family, team, and community — each strengthening the other.
Balance — be whole in your thinking, since the quality of our thinking shapes our actions. Replace ‘either/or’ compromise thinking with the dynamic integration of opposites: push and pull make movement; breathing in and out makes energy; strategy and implementation make success. The trick is to see balance as a 100:100 integration over time, not a 50:50 split — a fulfilling life can be fully career and fully family across time, rather than half of each.
Clear — be whole in the moment. Amid constant activity and the pull of our devices, it’s easy to lose sight of the moment and the person in front of us. Like a bowl that is useful precisely because it is empty, we are most useful when we clear our judgments, egos, and mental clutter — pausing between activities, starting the day with reflection rather than email, and listening to our own inner wisdom beyond the to-do list.
Put together, anchoring steadies us in the face of disruptive change, balancing opens up expansive solutions, and clearing lets us act wisely in the moment. These ABCs help us stay whole and sustain good work.
Key points
- Fragmentation, not just workload, is what drains us — wholeness is the antidote.
- Anchor: clarity on values, purpose, identity, and responsibility — holding both ‘I’ and ‘we’.
- Balance: integrate opposites as 100:100 over time, not a 50:50 compromise.
- The quality of our thinking shapes the quality of our actions.
- Clear: empty the mind between activities to stay present and act wisely.
- Small habits — pausing, reflecting before email — restore presence.
- The ABCs work together to sustain energy and good work.