Mindful Leadership Metaverse (VR)
Mindful Leadership is a transformative program designed to provide students with practical tools to become emotionally intelligent and resilient leaders. Students will engage in field trips to temples to experience mindfulness, GO boardgame sessions for strategic thinking, and workshops on emotional intelligence and mindful communication.
By the end of the program, participants will have developed a personal leadership style grounded in mindfulness, ready to be applied to any business and leadership context regardless of industry. This provides you with a unique opportunity to learn about managing stress and building self-awareness within yourself.
Minor content
Embark on a transformative journey of self-discovery and leadership development.
Mindful Leadership is built around three core areas:
- Mindfulness
- Emotional Intelligence
- Mindful Leadership
Through immersive experiences such as mindfulness meditation workshops, yoga, and temples, students learn how to enhance their self-awareness and emotional regulation. This hands-on approach enables students to apply mindfulness techniques in both personal and professional contexts, offering a deep, practical understanding of leadership in today’s fast-paced world.
The program continues with sessions on Emotional Intelligence where students will explore emotional regulation, resilience, and empathy through interactive workshops and guest speaker presentations. The final Mindful Leadership unit focuses on applying these skills in real-world settings. Students will develop personalized leadership action plans, participate in strategic-thinking exercises such as the GO boardgame sessions, and join field trips to cultural and business landmarks. This combination of reflective practice and real-world application makes the Mindful Leadership minor a truly unique, life-changing experience that equips students with the skills to lead with empathy, clarity, and purpose in any field.
This minor is offered by the study program Human Resource Management.
Structure of the minor
NHL Stenden, in collaboration with Universitas Triatma Mulya, is pleased to announce the launch of a new online pilot programme, Mindful Leadership, from the Academy of Business and Leadership. This initiative brings the university’s well-regarded Mindful Leadership minor, traditionally delivered in Bali, Indonesia, into an immersive online environment, offering access to students unable to participate in the physical Grand Tour.
The Mindful Leadership minor centres on personal development through mindfulness meditation, emotional intelligence, and leadership skills. Dr Erna Wiles, coordinator of the minor, explains: “Mindful leadership begins with self-transformation.” By integrating mindfulness with leadership training, students cultivate emotional regulation and empathy skills that are essential in today’s professional environments. This digital pilot delivers mindfulness exercises, leadership simulations, and reflective learning within a shared virtual space inspired by Bali’s mindfulness traditions, bringing a touch of the island's atmosphere to the digital experience.
This online format, combining collaborative virtual classrooms with Virtual Reality (VR) experiences, is designed for students who are unable to attend the on-site programme due to personal or financial constraints. While the core of the programme will be delivered digitally, some activities will take place offline at the Leeuwarden campus to foster in-person connections and complement the virtual sessions. The pilot will run in module period 1 (Sep – Nov 2027), with registration opening in November 2026.
The Academy of Business and Leadership at NHL Stenden is committed to educational innovation that responds to the changing needs of learners and the global workforce. This pilot represents a significant step in adapting traditional mindfulness practices for modern digital platforms, offering a novel pathway for personal and professional growth.
Study features
The Mindful Leadership minor is assessed through three key assignments.
Unit 1
• Students work in groups to complete an Industry Report, where they evaluate the impact of mindfulness programs in organizations and propose improvements based on research.
Unit 2
• Student-Led Seminar where groups design and deliver a 1.5-hour training session on emotional intelligence and mindfulness techniques.
Unit 3
• Self-Reflection Essay, reflecting on their personal development throughout the course and outlining a personalized leadership action plan for future use
Minor is accessible for students who have obtained a propaedeutic degree from a bachelor's programme and 30 credits from the post-propaedeutic programme associated with that programme.
Note: All students will benefit from this minor no matter what academic background – however, particularly blends well with BA and IHM programmes.
