Introduction 1
About This Book 2
Foolish Assumptions 2
Icons Used in This Book 3
Beyond the Book 3
Where to Go from Here 4
Part I: Getting Started with Mindfulness at Work 5
Chapter 1: Exploring Mindfulness in the Workplace 7
Becoming More Mindful at Work 7
Clarifying what mindfulness is 8
Taking a look at the background 8
Recognising what mindfulness isn’t 11
Finding Out Why Your Brain Needs Mindfulness 14
Evolving from lizard to spaceman 15
Discovering your brain’s hidden rules 16
Recognising that you are what you think 17
Exploring your brain at work 19
Starting Your Mindful Journey 23
Being mindful at work yourself 24
Overcoming common challenges 25
Creating a mindful workplace 26
Living the dream: Mindfulness at work 27
Chapter 2: Exploring the Benefits of Mindfulness in the Workplace 29
Discovering the Benefits for Employees 29
Increased mental resilience 29
Improved relationships 32
Honed mental clarity and focus 34
Mindful leadership 36
Looking at the Organisational Benefits of Mindfulness 38
Happier, more engaged employees 39
Greater creativity 41
Increased productivity 43
Improved decision making 45
Reducing staff turnover 47
Chapter 3: Applying Mindfulness in the Workplace 49
Gaining Perspective in the Modern-Day Workplace 49
Engaging with a VUCA world 50
Applying mindfulness in changing times 51
Employing mindfulness for new ways of working 53
Building resilience 54
Adjusting Your Mental Mindset 56
Focusing on the present moment 57
Treating thoughts as mental processes 58
Approaching rather than avoiding difficulties 60
Rewiring Your Brain 62
Getting to grips with the science of mindfulness 62
Resculpting your brain to make you more productive at work 63
Using mindfulness to increase your present-moment circuitry 64
Developing Mindfulness at Work 65
Examining intentions and attitudes 66
Remembering that practice makes perfect 69
Experimenting with mindfulness in the workplace lab 70
Acting ethically for the organisation and its people 71
Living life mindfully 72
Part II: Working with Mindfulness 75
Chapter 4: Practising Mindfulness Day to Day 77
Starting the Day Mindfully 78
Making time for mindfulness 79
Integrating mindfulness into your morning routine 81
Travelling Mindfully 82
Driving with intent 83
Thinking about trains, planes and mindfulness 84
Walking mindfully 87
Taking Mindful Pauses 88
Pausing at your desk 89
Enjoying water cooler moments 90
Waking up and smelling the coffee 90
Ending Your Day Mindfully 91
Managing energy and sleep 91
Following a mindful evening routine 92
Using mindful exercises 93
Appreciating the good 94
Chapter 5: Boosting your Mental Resilience 97
Recognising the Need for Resilience at Work 98
The modern day stress epidemic 98
Understanding fight or flight 99
Mindful Working to Enhance Resilience 100
Managing multiple, conflicting demands 100
Grouping tasks 104
Dealing with distractions 104
Mindfully managing your emotions 105
Trying the ‘Managing emotions mindfully’ exercise 107
Dealing with difficult people 108
Mindful Ways to Maintain Peak Performance 110
Maintaining peak performance 110
Using mindfulness to enhance productivity 112
Being in the moment 112
Being Kind to Yourself 113
Discovering the Neuroscience of Kindness and compassion 115
Rewiring your brain 116
Last, but by no means least 116
Chapter 6: Discovering Mindfulness At Work Training 117
Introducing MAWT 117
Getting ready 118
Identifying the outcomes you desire 118
Considering alternatives to self-study 119
MAWT Part 1: Core Training 119
Preparing for MAWT 120
Week 1: Understanding mindfulness at work 122
Week 2: Working with the body in mind 132
Chapter 7: Applying Mindfulness At Work Training 143
Continuing Your Mindfulness at Work Training (MAWT) 143
Week 3: Mindful communication at work 144
Week 4: Mindfully working with difficult people and strong emotions 151
Week 5: Mindful working in times of change 159
Post-Course Summary 166
Chapter 8: Practising Mindfulness in the Digital Age 169
Choosing When to Use Technology 169
Recognising the pros and cons of technology 170
Rebalancing your use of technology 170
Communicating Mindfully 174
Emailing mindfully 176
Phoning mindfully 178
Using a smart phone mindfully 179
Engaging with social media mindfully 181
Writing mindfully 181
Using Technology Mindfully 183
Focusing on one task 183
Discovering technology that enhances focus 184
Part III: Mindfulness for Organisations 187
Chapter 9: Improving Team Performance with Mindfulness 189
Identifying and Harnessing Team Dynamics 189
Understanding team dynamics 190
Managing team dynamics mindfully 192
Improving Team Performance 194
Recognising what’s important 194
Introducing Mindfulness to Your Team 197
Keeping your eye on the goal 198
Staying focused using mindfulness 199
Enhancing Internal and External Business Relationships 199
Becoming mindfully ready for anything 200
Being in the meeting 201
Boosting Team Morale 202
Improving morale with mindfulness 203
Focusing team effort with mindfulness 204
Improving team relationships with mindfulness 205
Chapter 10: Using Mindfulness to Assist Different Business Functions 207
Mindfulness for Human Resources 207
Managing downsizing and redundancies mindfully 208
Dealing with discipline and grievances mindfully 210
Increasing employee engagement 211
Applying some techniques 211
Mindfulness for Occupational Health 213
Improving staff well-being with mindfulness 214
Tackling stress with mindfulness 214
Reducing sickness absence with mindfulness 215
Mindfulness for Learning and Organisational Development 216
Improving learning with mindfulness 216
Introducing mindful practices into the workplace 219
Mindfulness for Service Delivery and Customer Service 219
Maintaining customer focus 220
Dealing with customer feedback mindfully 221
Communicating mindfully with customers 222
Mindfulness for Marketing and PR 222
Communicating powerfully 223
Keeping in tune with consumer and cultural trends 223
Improving responsiveness 224
Chapter 11: Integrating Mindfulness with Coaching 225
Discovering Mindful Coaching 225
Seeing mindfulness as a coaching toolbox 227
Applying mindfulness in coaching 229
Introducing Practical Ways to Integrate Mindfulness into Coaching 230
Increasing insight and clarity 231
Overcoming self-doubt 233
Coaching Team Members in Being Mindful 235
Integrating mindfulness into your team coaching 236
Overcoming barriers to mindfulness 237
Rolling Out Mindfulness through Coaching 238
Dealing with individuals 238
Working with teams 240
Involving the whole organisation 240
Chapter 12: Commissioning Mindfulness Training in the Workplace 243
Bringing Mindfulness Training to Work 243
Starting with the end in mind 243
Choosing from the menu of possibilities 244
Building in evaluation 246
Considering options for introductions and pilots 247
Taking care of the practicalities 248
Working in partnership and managing expectations 250
Identifying follow-up strategies 250
Making Sense of the Different Approaches to Teaching Workplace Mindfulness 251
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) 251
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) 252
Mindfulness At Work Training (MAWT) 254
Search Inside Yourself (SIY) 254
Hiring an Experienced Mindfulness Practitioner 255
Checking out credentials 255
Clarifying organisational experience 257
Judging compatibility 257
Agreeing on what’s possible 258
Hiring a Mindfulness Coach 258
Identifying the benefits of mindfulness coaching 258
Choosing the right coach 259
Mindfulness Pilot Checklist 259
Part IV: Leading with Mindfulness 261
Chapter 13: Thriving on the Challenges of Leadership 263
Thriving Rather Than Surviving 265
Three ways to lead and thrive 266
Being a More Mindful Leader 267
Authentic leadership 267
Resonant leadership 269
Mindful leadership 270
Practising Mindful Leadership 270
Creating a positive and inspiring workplace culture 274
Coping with Stress and Pressure by Building Resilience 275
Maintaining peak performance 276
Implementing mindful strategies for rejuvenation 276
Chapter 14: Leading without Boundaries 279
Creating the Space to Lead 279
Seeing the bigger picture 280
Making time to be yourself 282
Being good to yourself 284
Managing your time and energy 284
Enhancing Leadership Creativity 287
Thinking without boundaries 287
Tapping into your intuition 289
Managing Complexity with Simplicity 289
Recognising that the past is history and tomorrow is a mystery 290
Working mindfully with your brain 291
Maintaining clarity and focus 293
Chapter 15: Leading People, Change and Strategy 295
Leading Mindfully when Change is the Norm 295
Meeting modern-day challenges with mindful solutions 296
Developing new change strategies 296
Embedding change individually and organisationally 297
Creating Strategies that Allow the Organisation to Flourish 299
Identifying organisational culture 299
Creating a collective vision for the future 301
Developing strategies mindfully 303
Embedding new values and behaviours 305
Creating a More Mindful Organisation 307
Remembering that looking beyond the bottom line is good for the bottom line 307
The Return On Investment (ROI) of mindfulness 308
Mindfully improving employee engagement and retention 310
Part V: The Part of Tens 313
Chapter 16: Ten Ways to Be More Mindful at Work 315
Be Consciously Present 315
Use Short Mindful Exercises at Work 316
Be a Single-Tasker 316
Use Mindful Reminders 317
Slow Down To Speed Up 318
Make Stress Your Friend 319
Feel Gratitude 319
Cultivate Humility 320
Accept What You Can’t Change 321
Adopt a Growth Mindset 322
Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Improve Your Brain with Mindfulness 325
Increase the Strength of Your Brain 326
Alter the Structure of Your Brain 326
Improve Your Ability to Learn 327
Gain More Cognitive Control 327
Improve Your Health and Well-Being without Going to the Gym! 328
Live Life with Less Fear 329
Make Yourself Happier 330
Regulate Your Emotions More Effectively 331
Improve Your Life without Even Trying 331
Improve Your Attention Span 332
Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Mindfully Manage Work Pressures 333
Mindfully Coping with Inappropriate Work Demands 333
Mindfully Dealing with a Lack of Control over Your Work 334
Mindfully Managing a Lack of, or Inappropriate, Support 335
Mindfully Managing Difficult Working Relationships 336
Mindfully Gaining Clarity about Your Job Role 337
Mindfully Navigating the Bumpy Road of Frequent Organisational Change 337
Mindfully Dealing with Difficult One-to-One Meetings 338
Mindfully Coping with the Threat of Redundancy 339
Mindfully Coping with Redundancy Survivor Syndrome 339
Using Mindfulness to Reduce Stress 340
Chapter 19: Ten Ways to be Mindful in a Minute 341
Start Your Day with an Energising, Mindful Shower 341
Begin with a Mindful Moment 342
Enjoy a Mindful Coffee 343
Use your Phone to Become More Mindful 344
Eat Lunch Mindfully 344
Be Mindful of Sounds 345
Appreciate the Good 346
Notice the Interplay between Your Thoughts, Emotions and Physiology 347
Become More Body Aware 347
Move Mindfully 347
Chapter 20: About Ten Resources for Further Study 349
Whizzing through Websites 349
Mindfulnet.org 349
Mindful.org 350
ShamashAlidina.com 350
Benefitting from Books 350
MBSR 351
MBCT 351
Other books worth a read 351
Practising with Audios 352
Reading Up on the Research 352
Accessing Apps 353
Locating Training Providers 354
Mindfulness at Work Training 354
The Mindfulness Exchange 354
Mindfulness Works 354
Identifying Universities and Management Schools Utilising Mindfulness 355
Reflecting on Retreats 355
Training to be a Mindfulness Teacher 356
Part VI: The Appendixes 357
Appendix A: Answers to Learning Check Questions 359
Week 1 Learning Check 359
Week 2 Learning Check 360
Appendix B: Summary of Research 361
Index 365
