Qi Gong in the boardroom: Ancient practice for modern resilience

When you picture the boardroom, you probably see spreadsheets, strategy decks and strong coffee – not gentle movement and slow breathing.

But as stress, burnout and quiet quitting continue to shape the corporate landscape, more leaders are quietly asking a different question:

“What if resilience is less about pushing harder… and more about how we care for our energy and nervous system every single day?”

Qi Gong – a centuries-old mind–body practice from East Asia – offers a surprisingly practical answer.

This article is part of the Health and wellbeing in the corporate world: The Human Leader playbook and sits alongside Breathe, reset, reconnect: Short breathwork practices for work and Leading with nervous system awareness: Somatic skills for modern managers as a somatic pillar of your Human Leader toolkit.

A quick invitation before we begin

If your senior teams are running on empty, struggling to switch off and finding it hard to stay present in high-stakes conversations, you don’t have to solve that with another slide deck.

In The Human Leader Workshop we introduce leaders to simple Qi Gong-inspired practices and breathwork they can use in real meetings and real moments of pressure – woven together with psychological safety, hybrid rhythms and human-centred leadership.

1. What is Qi Gong – and why should leaders care?

Qi Gong (sometimes written “Qigong”) is a family of practices that combine:

• Gentle, repeated movements

• Postural awareness

• Slow, coordinated breathing

• Focused, relaxed attention

Traditionally, it’s used to cultivate vitality, balance and calm. Modern research, while still developing, is starting to catch up.

Systematic reviews and trials suggest that regular Qi Gong practice can:

• Reduce stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms (PMC)

• Improve sleep quality, mood and quality of life in different populations (ScienceDirect)

• Support cardiovascular and metabolic health markers such as blood pressure and blood lipids when practised over weeks or months (ResearchGate)

For leaders, that translates into three very practical benefits:

1. A way to discharge tension from long hours at a screen.

2. A tool for state-shifting before important conversations and decisions.

3. A shared, non-threatening practice that teams can use to reset together.

In other words, Qi Gong in the boardroom is not about robes and incense. It is about having a reliable “reset button” for the nervous system that fits into a five-minute break.

For context on why this matters strategically, you can revisit Wellbeing as a business strategy: Embedding health into leadership and Trust as your competitive edge: The science of psychological safety.

2. Why modern resilience needs body-based tools

Most corporate resilience still focuses on:

• Mindset and thinking patterns

• Time management and prioritisation

• Personal coping strategies outside work

All valuable – but incomplete.

Chronic stress lives in the body:

• Tight jaw and shoulders in back-to-back meetings

• Shallow chest breathing at the laptop

• Restless sleep and lingering fatigue

If leaders only address stress in their thoughts, they miss a huge lever: the autonomic nervous system.

Evidence on slow breathing and mind–body practices shows that when we combine gentle movement, breath and attention, we can:

• Increase heart-rate variability (a marker of flexible stress response)

• Reduce self-reported anxiety and stress

• Improve emotional regulation and cognitive performance (nature.com)

Qi Gong sits squarely in this territory – and it is highly adaptable to office clothing and boardroom settings when taught skilfully.

We explore the broader nervous-system piece in Breathe, reset, reconnect: Short breathwork practices for work and Leading with nervous system awareness: Somatic skills for modern managers.

3. Boardroom-friendly Qi Gong: three simple practices

You do not need a mat or special equipment. The key is standing or seated practices that respect clothing and space – and that feel professional, not performative.

3.1 “Shake off the meeting” (2–3 minutes)

Best for: after intense discussions, before moving to the next item.

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart (or stay seated with feet grounded).

2. Begin gently shaking your hands and wrists, as if flicking off water.

3. Let the movement travel up into your arms, shoulders and torso – light, loose, playful.

4. If standing, you can bounce lightly through your knees.

5. Keep your breath easy and natural.

After 60–90 seconds, stop, close your eyes or soften your gaze and notice:

• Tingling in the hands

• Warmth in the body

• A small shift in your mental state

This “shaking” is common in Qi Gong sets and is being explored more widely as a way to release held muscular tension and down-shift arousal.

How to introduce it:

• “We’ve just done some heavy thinking. Let’s take two minutes to shake out the tension before we move on – cameras on or off is fine.”

Pair this with Hybrid teams without burnout: Designing sustainable work rhythms so your meetings have built-in recovery, not just acceleration.

3.2 “Gather and centre” (1–2 minutes)

Best for: settling before a difficult conversation, pitch or announcement.

1. Sit or stand tall, feet grounded.

2. Place one hand on your lower belly, one hand on your chest.

3. Inhale through your nose, feeling the belly gently expand under your hand.

4. Exhale slowly through your mouth for a little longer than the inhale.

5. Imagine “gathering” scattered thoughts in towards your centre as you breathe.

Repeat 8–10 breaths.

This simple pattern echoes many Qi Gong forms where attention is brought to the lower abdomen, traditionally seen as a centre of balance and energy. From a modern perspective, it:

• Encourages diaphragmatic breathing

• Reduces upper chest tension

• Signals safety to the nervous system

You might recognise this as a deeper version of the Calm Down Breath used in Breathe, reset, reconnect: Short breathwork practices for work.

3.3 “Open the field” (2 minutes, standing)

Best for: starting board meetings, strategy days, creative sessions.

1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, knees soft.

2. Inhale and slowly raise your arms out to the sides and up to shoulder height or above, palms facing down or slightly in.

3. Pause for a moment at the top, feeling broad across the chest.

4. Exhale and let your arms float back down to your sides.

5. As you move, imagine widening your field of awareness – seeing the bigger picture, not just the immediate problem.

Repeat 6–8 times, keeping movements smooth and unhurried.

This comes directly from classic Qi Gong “opening and closing” movements, which are associated with:

• Improved shoulder and upper-back mobility

• A sense of spaciousness and perspective

• Gentle activation without strain

It is a natural companion to the connection practices in Rehumanising the workplace for hybrid teams and Psychological safety in meetings: From silent screens to real dialogue.

4. Overcoming common objections (without eye-rolling)

“This will feel too weird for our leaders”

You might be surprised.

When introduced with grounded language – “energy management”, “focus reset”, “nervous-system regulation” – and with a clear link to performance and wellbeing, many senior leaders are relieved to find something practical they can actually do with their stress.

You can also start very small:

• One two-minute practice at the start of a leadership offsite

• A single “shake and reset” between agenda items

• Optional practice in a pilot team before wider rollout

Once people feel calmer, clearer and more present, resistance usually softens.

“Is there any real evidence, or is this just nice movement?”

The evidence base is still evolving, but it is promising:

• Systematic reviews of Health Qigong and Baduanjin report improvements in stress, anxiety, depression and general quality of life, with low risk of adverse events. (PMC)

• Randomised trials suggest benefits for sleep quality and fatigue in different groups, including workers and people with chronic conditions. (BioMed Central)

• Studies on workplace-delivered mind–body programmes, including Qi Gong-style movement and breathing, indicate reductions in perceived stress and improvements in musculoskeletal discomfort and wellbeing. (PubMed)

Qi Gong is not a magic bullet – but used consistently alongside good leadership, workload management and psychological safety, it becomes a low-risk, high-potential tool in your resilience mix.

For the wider risk and duty-of-care angle, see From policy to practice: Bringing ISO 45003 to life in your culture.

Let leaders feel Qi Gong, not just hear about it

You can read about practices forever – but the real shift comes when leaders experience what happens when they:

• Shake out tension after a hard discussion

• Breathe slowly together before a big decision

• Use a short standing sequence to reset a long workshop

In The Human Leader Workshop we give leaders that experience in a safe, professional container – and then show them exactly how to translate it back into their own meetings and teams.

5. Weaving Qi Gong into your Human Leader roadmap

Qi Gong on its own is another technique. Qi Gong woven into your Human Leader roadmap becomes culture.

Here’s how to do it.

5.1 Start with a pilot moment, not a full programme

Rather than launching “Qi Gong for leaders”, start with:

• One board or SLT offsite where you integrate practices into the agenda.

• A pilot function (for example, a high-stress operations or customer team) where leaders agree to try one practice daily for a month.

Combine Qi Gong with the breathing and connection tools from Breathe, reset, reconnect: Short breathwork practices for work and Micro rituals for human connection: Daily practices for hybrid teams.

5.2 Align with leadership and wellbeing objectives

Link Qi Gong explicitly to:

• Reduced stress and better emotional regulation in leaders

• More grounded, present performance conversations

• Improved energy and focus in long hybrid days

Position it as a micro-habit that supports your existing goals, not a separate “wellbeing add-on”.

5.3 Support internal champions

Identify leaders or wellbeing champions who:

• Enjoy the practices

• See the benefits personally

• Are willing to lead short sequences for their teams

Offer them extra input via resources like Breath, movement and focus: A somatic toolkit for corporate wellbeing champions so they feel confident and supported.

5.4 Measure what shifts

You can use the framework from Measuring what matters: Proving the ROI of wellbeing programmes to track:

• Self-reported stress and energy in pilot groups

• Small changes in psychological safety and meeting quality

• Qualitative stories of “I handled that meeting differently after our reset”

These data points make it easier to justify extending the approach.

FAQs: Qi Gong in the boardroom

1. Do we need special clothes or a studio to do Qi Gong at work?
No. The practices we use in corporate settings are office-friendly – done standing or seated, in normal work clothes, with minimal space. You don’t need mats, music or candles. The focus is on subtle movements, posture and breath that can slot into a normal meeting.

2. Will people feel self-conscious doing this in front of colleagues?
Some may at first. That’s why we start gently, keep movements simple and always frame practices as optional invitations. When senior leaders are willing to join in (or even go first), it quickly becomes normalised. Many people report feeling pleasantly surprised by how quickly they feel a shift.

3. How is Qi Gong different from general stretching or exercise?
Qi Gong combines movement, breath and attention in a specific, often rhythmic way. The intention is not just to stretch muscles but to calm and balance the nervous system. That said, from a workplace perspective, the most important part is that it gives people a structured way to move and breathe in the middle of a static day.

4. Is there a risk of cultural appropriation?
Respectful use is key. Acknowledge Qi Gong’s roots in East Asian traditions, avoid making grand spiritual claims, and work with teachers who honour the practice. In corporate contexts, we often use very simple forms and focus on health, regulation and focus, while staying transparent about where the methods come from.

5. How does this connect with our wider wellbeing and leadership work?
Qi Gong is one of the somatic tools that bring your wellbeing and leadership strategies to life. It supports everything you’re doing around psychological safety, hybrid design and AI-era change by helping leaders and teams feel calmer and more resourced in their bodies. It sits naturally alongside the practices in Breathe, reset, reconnect: Short breathwork practices for work and the leadership shifts in Human-centred leadership in the age of AI.

Bring a different kind of strength into the boardroom

Modern resilience is not just about grit and willpower. It is about:

• Knowing how to down-shift your nervous system in minutes.

• Showing up in the room with presence, not just pressure.

• Modelling to your teams that caring for your body and breath is part of being a credible leader.

If you would like your leaders to experience what Qi Gong-inspired practices can do for their energy, focus and calm – and to weave that into psychological safety and human-centred leadership – I would love to support you through The Human Leader Workshop.

Together, we can make the boardroom not just a place of hard decisions, but a place where resilient, grounded human beings lead the way.

I look forward to connecting with you in my next post.
Until then, be well and keep shining.
Peter. :)