In a year that has been full of uncertainty, changes in work circumstances and just a feeling of what is going on, mindfulness has been more important than ever.
Work can be stressful, more often than not, and it is important to approach work in a mindful way, especially when it is stressful or not what you want it to be. More and more companies are respecting their employees mental health. Companies are encouraging their workers to focus on being mindful, and working through scenarios in a calm, cool, and collective way.
During this unprecedented year, many people have seen the happiness, and relaxation that mindfulness can bring to their daily lives. Mind over mood. Mindfulness has brought a sense of gratitude, and acceptance that living in the now is the best possible thing to do in uncertain times. This mindfulness can easily be transferred into working lives.
Mindfulness increases effectiveness which leads to effective work, and enables more focus during working hours. Being mindful at work allows the mind to work responsibly, and calmly whilst managing to get everything done that you need to.
Here are 5 top tips on how to achieve…Mindfulness at Work!
TO DO Lists
You’re at work, you have a million things to do before the end of day, there’s just not enough time to get it done. You start getting anxious you aren’t going to complete the work, and then before you know it, you’ve spiralled into thinking you’re about to lose your job.
This is where lists come into the picture, and helps declutter the mind. Doing one thing at a time is a fantastic way to be mindful at work! Creating lists means you don’t forget anything, you feel accomplished when you cross them off, and lists allow you to prioritize. During work, prioritizing what needs doing first is an important aspect of any worker. If you don’t prioritize, then you risk doing tasks that don’t need as much focus.
When you’re at work, time can often run away from you and before you know it, the day is over and you’ve hardly done what you were meant to. Great! You could even think you’ve wasted a working day. Lists mean you won’t get this feeling. You will see what needs doing, and you will want to get them all done. Importantly, you can leave work at work.
Work/Life Balance
Speaking of leaving work at work, having a work life balance does wonders for your mental health. This form of mindfulness allows you to shut off the voice inside your head telling you to do more work. Separating work, and home life becomes a magical form of mindfulness that is just as simple as turning the light on. It enables you to relax when you’re away from your desk (this means more now than ever as people are working from home) and helps your mind to shut down earlier ready for a restful sleep. Also, take a technology time out.
So many employees have work apps on their phones, either get rid of them if you can or take some time out from your phone, and have a conscious mind. This will allow your brain to relax, and produce more melatonin, the hormone that helps you sleep. Taking a technology time out lets you enjoy the time you have at home before going to work the next morning.
Mindful Meetings
A personal favourite. You’re in a zoom meeting, and you’ve got distracted by an email that’s not related to work on your laptop. You spend about 5 minutes looking at this email, and the contents within only to have disengaged from your meeting. This is not effective work, and it certainly won’t help with your tasks for the day. Being mindful in meetings means being fully engaged to what, and who is talking, ask questions if needed, and simply nod so the speaker knows you are listening. Even after this pandemic, being mindful in meetings allows you to focus, know what needs doing, and do a great job! This is even a form of mind management.
Chair Workouts
Sitting at a desk all day, typing on a keyboard, and only getting up a few times a day means you are not being as active as your body or mind needs you to be. Chair workouts are a great development! They allow you to stay at work but you’re adding a physical element that will inevitable enable your brain to stimulate new cells to help you concentrate on your tasks. What’s not to love about that? There is even a multitude of YouTube videos that show you how to do these chair workouts, here’s a link to a playlist dedicated to chair workouts.
Breath
Last but certainly not least, breath. This is very important, and it doesn’t have to take hours and hours, a small 5 minutes can do wonders at work. It creates a meditative mind. Set a mindfulness reminder for as much or as little time as you would like, and then you’re ready to go. You could even implement 3 or 4 times a day at your desk. It is completely up to you, and your schedule. You do whatever it is for you to feel present, and in the now.
Breathing exercises will calm you, show you focus, and let you live in the now.
Try to include these tips during your working day, and I hope it makes a difference to your working life, both physically and mentally. Have a healthy mind, calm mind, and mind power. Just including one into your daily routine will mean you have taken a very big step in teaching your brain how to be mindful, and more importantly, the value of mindfulness at work!