The Benefits of Being Mindful in the Workplace - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / The Benefits of Being Mindful in the Workplace - Introvert Whisperer The Benefits of Being Mindful in the Workplace   Demands of the modern workplace are making our jobs more dynamic and unpredictable. That means we need to be more present, focused and on point in order to perform well on our day-to-day tasks. However, we are also fighting off distractions, monotony, fatigue, and similar foes that make us feel disconnected from our work. This usually results in productivity drops and cloudy judgment, which make us all the more likely to make mistakes. Feeling distracted from the present moment by past disappointments and future concerns can be quite frustrating. The good news is that “living in the now” is a skill you can work on and improve over time. This practice is more popularly known as being mindful. What Is Mindfulness?   The concept of mindfulness has its roots in Bhudistic practices. It is a psychological process that describes the sensation of being able to focus on the present moment. The idea entered the field of clinical psychology and psychiatry in the 70s and since then studies have shown that mindfulness can be useful for achieving and maintaining mental health. Mindfulness affects our cognition and behavior in a way that makes its benefits quite transferable and applicable to different areas of our lives including our career and work life. It doesn’t matter what type of job you’re doing, everyone can benefit from practicing mindfulness with a goal of improving their performance and taking their career to the next level. How Does Mindfulness Help Your Career and Work Life   Improves Focus and Productivity Being presents increases our focus and sparks our productivity. It’s a tool we use to deal with distractions and provides us with greater stability, control and efficiency.   Reduces Stress   Mindfulness is a great way of relieving excessive workplace stress. So much so that renowned corporations such as Google and Goldman Sachs are creating formal mindfulness programs to reduce the stress of their employees and to fight stress-caused absenteeism and disengagement. Facilitates Divergent Thinking Being more mindful means we’re also more creative. Living in the moment means we’re not relying on or limited by established patterns of thinking and it allows us to explore fresh approaches and ideas.   How To Practice Mindfulness Being mindful is a skill and it can be practiced and mastered. The essence of the practice is focusing on a particular sensation or action, recognizing when your mind inevitably wonders and simply guiding yourself back to the subject of your meditation. Experienced mindfulness practitioners describe the benefits as “strengthening a muscle” which will allow you to gain more control over your attention. There are several techniques that have proven to be very efficient for beginners: Deep Breathing Exercises Focusing on your breathing is probably the easiest exercise you can start with when practicing mindfulness. It’s recommended that you get to a relatively quiet space with little distraction. Close your eyes, breathe in deeply, hold your breath for a moment and then breathe out. While you’re doing this focus exclusively on your breathing and whenever you catch yourself thinking about anything else, simply restart the process again. You will notice over time that it’s easier to remain focus and you will suffer from fewer distractions. Raisin Meditation Meditating while eating raisins is an example of mindful eating. The idea behind the practice is that focusing on the different sensations caused by eating can improve our mindfulness over time. Raisin is a perfect candidate for this exercise because of its texture, shape, feel and strong flavor. The exercise should be around 5 minutes long and each raising should be consumed slowly, following a particular set of actions. The steps included are: observing the raisin, feeling it with your fingers, smelling it, exploring the texture before consuming it and finally, focusing on the taste, sensations of chewing and swallowing the raisin. Body Scan Meditation This technique is an extension of breathing exercises. Once you’ve gotten into position and you’ve done a couple of breathing-focused cycles, you can now choose a body part like your foot or your head and move your attention towards it. Notice the sensations you feel when focusing on that particular body part. There might be some tingling sensations, tightness or you might notice the difference in temperature from the rest of your body. After a certain amount of time, shift your focus back to your breathing and then proceed to explore another body part. Repeat the cycle until you’ve scanned your entire body.     Conclusion   The best thing about mindfulness is that you can have great results with minimal investments. Ten to twenty minutes of mindful meditation should definitely be added to your list of personal habits for a productive tomorrow. In the era of constant informational flow and sensory overload in the modern workplace, mindfulness will both protect our mental health while helping us become more productive and efficient.   … Author Bio: Mark is a biz-dev hero at  Invoicebus   a simple invoicing service that gets your invoices paid faster. He passionately blogs on topics that help small biz owners succeed in their business. He is also a lifelong learner who practices mindfulness and enjoys  long walks in nature more than anything else. Go to top Do you know what your next career step is?   Many people don’t. I want to help you accelerate your career by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my eBook on how to construct your Career SMART Goals â€" that will help you put together your actions and keep you accountable. Get your copy now and start your action plan today! Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleashing your professional potential. Introvert Whisperer