How mindfulness helps you run your business

Self doubt and your inner saboteur is, seriously, the biggest obstacle for any working professional to overcome. Is mindfulness the way to work yourself out of it?

Mindfulness is a management technique that dates back to the 1970s, but mindfulness has been a part of spirituality and personal practice for centuries. Can mindfulness help your leadership strategy?

What is Mindfulness?

Most simply, its a way to train your brain to accept, and not judge, any stress, circumstances, or feelings that pass through your head, simply accepting what they are.

On a personal level, and we suggest you start here, mindfulness simple, but not easy, to implement. The most important part is that you “notice” without evaluating, judging, or ruminating.

If you catch yourself getting stressed, for example, take a break and breathe. Notice how you feel. Think about the source of your stress- why is it stressful? Regardless of the answer, focus on the matter at hand instead of the stress. Recognizing thought patterns that aren’t helping you is the first step to a mindful life.

Just like everything else, mindfulness is a habit. It can manifest in daily meditation practices, but can be implemented more simply though being present in every moment and understanding that your thoughts are your reality. Before you try to get a grasp on how to master mindfulness on a larger scale, develop your personal practice and learn what works best for you.

Benefits of Mindful Practices

Mindfulness can provide a variety of benefits, on a personal and professional level. Here are some of the keys:

1. Improve decision making
   Business owners are faced with critical decisions everyday. Mindfulness and meditation help quiet some of the noise, making the decision making process have more clarity.
   
2. Aid with productivity
   One of the biggest challenges in getting things done is the distraction of the mind. And physical and mental stress can crowd your brain and distract you; mindfulness and meditation making space for you to focus on the important task at hand. Let intrusive thoughts come through in your meditation without judgement, and they are less likely to show up in moments of focus.
   
3. Create a space for creativity
   Some of the biggest creative blockers are the same distractors that prevent us from making choices and focusing. By incorporating mindfulness practices into your brainstorming, you’ll make room for more frequent bursts of creativity. By reducing your anxiety and stress, your relaxed mind
   
4. Improving empathy
   Mindfulness can help you separate yourself from yourself- in a really healthy way. And therefore, it becomes easier to see other people as equally stressed and anxious. This translates effectively as a leader. For example, if you’re aware of the limits of your staff and assign an appropriate amount of work, the work they deliver will be higher quality than a stressed and overloaded staff.

How to Structure Mindfulness into Your Business

Workplace mindfulness refers simply to the mindfulness of individuals within the business. So, a present, aware consciousness while at work.

Unfortunately, no one can force the practice of mindfulness and meditation. But as we know, a mentally healthy staff is a passionate and productive staff. Here are some ways to gently encourage staff members to practice mindfulness:

• Share the science (we love this article from Harvard Business Review and this one from Forbes)
• Use group meditation as a team building exercise
• Keep it secular and work related
• Regularly encourage staff self-care practices
• Include it as a part of a weekly or daily meeting
• Track your progress. Maybe create a challenge for the rest of your team!
• Most importantly- set the example!

Trying to cultivate a mentally healthy work environment? This month we are sharing our favorite mental health tips in our newsletter- you won’t want to miss it! Check out our newsletter subscription here.