Mindfulness in The Workplace: Practical Ways To Introduce It
Mindfulness in The Workplace: Practical Ways To Introduce It
Ways To Introduce It
It seems as though everyone is currently jumping on the mindfulness
bandwagon: from Google through to Nike. But is it just another trendy fad
or could there be something in it? If the notion of mindfulness conjures up
an image of yoga mats, incense burning or mantra chanting, then it’s time
to think again. You see the likes of Google and Nike have discovered that
promoting mindfulness at work can lead to improvements in staff members’
concentration, focus and energy levels and so can have a significant
impact on efficient and effective working as well as a happier and healthier
office. But what is mindfulness and how can you introduce it to a somewhat
skeptical workforce? In this post, we define the concept of mindfulness and
what it means in the context of the workplace. We then go on to look at
some practical ways that you can encourage mindfulness in the workplace
amongst employees.
What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is essentially about awareness. It means being focused in the
moment and not allowing yourself to be distracted by what happened at
that meeting yesterday or what tasks must be completed
tomorrow.Practicing mindfulness enables you to really concentrate on the
task at hand. And in a workplace full of distractions, the ability to focus on
what’s important is becoming an increasingly useful skill not only to get the
job done, but also to absorb and synthesize the sheer volume of
information that passes across our desks or screens every day. And that’s
why the big corporates like Nike, Google and Deloitte are implementing
mindfulness techniques.
Far from being a new fad, mindfulness actually has its origins in Buddhist
teachings. In Buddhism mindfulness is practiced to encourage self-
knowledge and wisdom and it’s this element of taking a step back and
adopting a more measured approach that is behind the popularity of
mindfulness in the workplace. With as many as one in four
Americans identifying work as being a source of anxiety, responsible
employers are becoming increasingly creative in seeking ways to relieve
stress and anxiety while at the same time enhancing concentration and
focus.
The Benefits Of Mindfulness In The Workplace
We’ve touched on several of these already, but it’s worthwhile being
upfront about the potential benefits on offer, especially if your staff
members (or even managers) are unconvinced of its value. In a recent
article the Harvard Business Review examined in detail the benefits and
the scientific research into the effectiveness of mindfulness. The benefits
can be summarized as follows:
Mindfulness helps to build resilience. Practicing mindfulness techniques
and more specifically meditation can decrease the effects of anxiety and
stress. It has the potential to enhance your sense of resilience and ability to
perform under stress.
Mindfulness can strengthen emotional intelligence. Being mindful helps
to improve our levels of patience and ability to regulate our emotions.
Having an inner sense of calm makes it easier for us to cope when things
don’t go our way. It also means that we’re better equipped to deal with
workplace disagreement or differences of opinion and are less emotional in
our reaction to events.
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You may have heard the term “mindfulness” used a lot of late, particularly in
the business world. And there’s a good reason for it. Mindfulness is more than
just the latest buzzword to surface and circulate amongst companies and
corporations.
The term, at its most boiled down, refers to a state of being conscious, aware
and in the moment. The fundamental idea is to focus our awareness on the
present moment to achieve a sense of calm and focus.
But it doesn’t stop there. Technology has created constant accessibility, which
in turn has created a culture where we tend to take the job home with us. This
is skewing the traditional work-life balance.
Practicing mindfulness won’t reduce our workload, cut back the number of
meetings or phone calls we have to take, or get the tough boss off our backs.
But what it will do is allow us to maximize our spare moments during the
workday to reduce the pace, regroup and refocus.
And the reason for this is simple: there’s a proven correlation between
employee well-being and productivity. That is to say, happy employees will do
better work and make the business more profitable, and unhappy employees
will do the opposite.
Whether a small-scale update or a full office revamp, here are a few ways to
design an atmosphere that uses the principles of mindfulness to foster focus,
morale and productivity.
One of the key principles of mindful office design is creating the ability to
escape the stress and distractions of the typical workplace through focus on
the present moment. A designated quiet space will allow employees to
practice mindfulness in whatever capacity they see fit – from breathing to
eating to being actively mindful of the peace and quiet.
Whether an outdoor area that allows them a breath of fresh air or a lounge
area away from the hustle and bustle of the office, designing areas that allow
employees to control their sensory stimulation means they are able to
disconnect from typical office stressors and take a moment to be mindful,
regroup and refocus.
Mindfulness is a skill that must be practiced, developed and honed over time.
But ultimately, mindfulness in the workplace is about temporarily moving
activity away from the main work point. Designing areas within an office where
employees can escape to for some uninterrupted decompression time can
boost employee morale and benefit a business’ bottom line as a result.