Mindfulness For Your Business

Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.

Mindfulness For Your Business

First of all is the question – what is mindfulness? What does it mean?  What does it mean in relation to having a successful business?  Read on for the answers!

Look at the word itself – ‘mind-full’ – that is actually the reality for most people, whether personally or within the business.  The mind is full of too many things at once.  We use the word mindfulness to mean absolutely the opposite in reality!  It is brining your full attention to the present moment of where you are and what you are doing.  Sound a little weird?  Try this for an example of not using mindfulness.

How many times have you been driving your car, say in busy traffic or the opposite – on quiet roads – you arrive at your destination over 30 minutes later and think to yourself – wow – I didn’t even notice that 30 minutes!  Where were you?  Where was your mind?  Not with you that’s for sure!  You were driving on automatic pilot with your mind absolutely somewhere else – apart from being dangerous to drive like that – it shows that you were not fully present with yourself during that 30 minutes.

Another example – multi-tasking.  We all do it – we all think how good we are that we do it so well – especially women who can hold 3 conversations whilst watching 3 children and feeding the dog and cooking the supper all at the same time!  But where is she?  Where is her mind? It certainly is not here in the present moment! The opposite of mindfulness!

Mindfulness At Work

Think of being in a meeting – 10-12 people around the table with a presentation going on and comments required.  Look around that table – how many are on texting or talking on the phone, holding 2 conversations either side of them and taking notes on a laptop all at the same time??  How is it possible for them to be contributing to the meeting?  If their attention is everywhere else then in reality it is nowhere. This is definitely lack of mindfulness

Steve Jobs said – “I began to realise that an intuitive understanding and consciousness was more significant than abstract thinking and logical analysis”.  Hence why he created a space for people to meet and discuss within the Apple building.  To reflect the space that was needed within the mind for it to access a different quality of knowing – your inner knowing – your inner intelligence – your intuition. In other words – mindfulness!

Using Mindfulness Daily

How to use mindfulness?  A reminder – it is bringing your full attention to the present moment and focusing on exactly what you are doing.  One job at a time!  You easily become a jack of all trades and a master of none unless you direct your mind to let go of all other distractions and singly focus on that one task in hand.

Sit still for a moment and observe your mind as if it was separate from you – as mostly it is!  How busy is it?  How many thoughts are tumbling over each other constantly like rush hour traffic?  STOP.  Take that time to just be still and allow your mind to float and not focus – allow stillness and calm to enter for a short space.  Whilst you are so busy in there you are not hearing that other voice that is all important to you and your business – your intuition.  How can you ‘feel’ your way forward if you do not allow the space and time to do so?  How much less do you actually achieve by trying to do everything at once?  A great deal as has been proven.

Mindfulness – Less Is More

You achieve a great deal more when you dond’t try to achiev everything all at once.  What are you trying to prove and who to?  It takes longer to achieve anything in this state.  Stillness within the mind allows for us to observe what is going on without being caught up in the middle of the frenzy of thoughts.  It helps to protect you from all the stress that is being created by your mind outrunning your body and not being with you at all!

Mindfulness – Paying Attention!

When you are focused and have clarity of mind then you absolutely clearly hear and understand at that present moment.  Today’s business market has to run by using this focus – so many major corporations are aware that it is the way forward.  Japan has always known this as they are able to do complete stillness and encourage the workforce to collectively spend time doing this before work.

Without focus and mindfulness, the way is lost, the reason why you started in the first place is lost, team members are lost for all the wrong reasons and – most important of all – innovation is lost.  It becomes only about the doing and not the feeling.

Mindfulness is what will give you your health and your business the edge – if you allow it daily!