Mindfulness and Meditation
Mindfulness is the practice of bringing non-judgmental awareness to the present moment. Most of the time our attention is caught up indiscriminately in the ever-changing kaleidoscope of our busy minds i.e., thoughts, emotions, memories, stories, worries, plans, and so on. By practicing mindfulness, we are developing our ability to be more present. Paying attention to our current state and being present in the moment can be very empowering. Our awareness is focussed on the here and now. Eventually, we learn how to bring mindful awareness to every area of our lives and to both inner and outer experience. There have been thousands of research papers written on the benefits of mindfulness and its health benefits over the last 40 years. From a business point of view, mindfulness is a single, elegant, well-researched solution that can enable employees to be more relaxed, less stressed out, happier, heathier, more creative, more focused, and productive.
Being mindful at work means applying our focus and awareness to everything we do from the moment we commence work (in the office or at home). As our life increasingly becomes fast-paced, mindfulness can be an important part of our toolkit. By focusing on what is instead of being distracted by what is not, we can reduce stress in our busy lives. We can then focus on the task at hand and recognise and release internal as well as external distractions as they arise. In this way, mindfulness can help increase our effectiveness, decrease mistakes, and enhance creativity whilst contributing to our overall well-being.
