For many of us, work is a place in which we lose some peace of mind. Although we may have a spiritual or self-care practice at home, we find ourselves falling into autopilot while on the job. Perhaps your job is naturally a high-stress job, you work in an industry in which you interact with people all day, or you simply forget to return to the practices which you know have been beneficial in your life. Research has suggested that mindfulness can help with the experience of burning out¹, increase productivity in the workplace², and increase attention span and the ability to self-regulate³. There are many ways to bring your practice to life in the workplace; these are a few that work well in my life. Mindfulness may be practice any time in any place, and nobody needs to know you are practicing.
Return to the Breath
This is perhaps the most obvious suggestion I can offer. In many traditions, we use the breath as a focal point of our meditation practice. One of the reasons that we continually return to the breath is that it’s always with us. Whether we’re sitting in formal meditation or going about our day at work, we can tune into the body breathing. You don’t need to breath in any special way, and nobody needs to even realize you are practicing. All you have to do is pick a spot in the body and bring your awareness to the experience of breathing.
I personally use the tip of the nose at the nostrils, where the air tickles slightly with the inhale and comes out just a bit warmer on the exhale. It’s a subtle sensation. You may also try tuning into the chest, the abdomen, or the shoulders. Again, you don’t need to take a special breath. Just let your awareness be with the fluidity of the body breathing. You can do it for a few breaths, a few minutes, or until you feel done. Furthermore, you can turn toward the breath while sitting at your desk, while standing, while moving, or pretty much in any posture!
Mindfulness may be practiced any time in any place, and nobody needs to know you are practicing.
Set a Reminder
You probably realize the potential for technology to turn into a distraction. However, we can also use technology to our advantage. I set reminders on my phone (recurring reminders) to return to my practice. Example reminders that I personally have are “Pause, breathe, and go slowly,” “Take a few deep breaths,” and “I love you. Keep going.” They go off throughout my day and remind me to stop and return to the present moment and my practice. You can set reminders like this on your phone, in your calendar, or on your computer. You can also use something like the free One Mind Dharma App which has meditation reminders sent to you randomly!
Get Up and Move
I spend my days working with Mindful Marketing, an online marketing firm that works with mindfulness-based businesses like addiction treatment centers, meditation teachers, yoga studios, and therapists. It’s wonderful work that I love. The big downside is that my work requires that I sit in front of a computer 95% of the time. I get stiff, lose focus, and find myself having less energy for other activities in my personal life. I’ve found that if I get up and move regularly, it’s incredibly helpful.
There are many benefits to getting up and moving. Of course it’s good for your metabolism and can help you maintain a healthy weight. It also increases focus, is healthy for the muscles and heart, and can be a benefit to your mindfulness practice! Most of us think of sitting when practicing mindfulness meditation, but we can also practice while moving. In fact, the Buddha recommended practicing mindfulness while walking in the Satipatthana Sutta, or the discourse on establishing mindfulness. When you get up and move, be with the body. If you walk, feel the movement in the legs, the feet touching the ground, and the body moving through space. I bring up the health benefits because it can also be a mindfulness practice to tune into the kindness of getting up and moving!
Use an Awareness Trigger
Awareness triggers are one of the most useful things we can utilize in our practice. An awareness trigger is something that happens outside of your control and reminds you to be aware of the present-time experience you’re having. My wife, Elizabeth, really found the use of this practice for herself and shared it with me. Since then, it’s become one of the most important pieces of my mindfulness practice. I have investigated many different triggers, and have found some that work for me. Perhaps different ones will work for you, and maybe different situations will call for different triggers.
An awareness trigger is something that happens outside of your control and reminds you to be aware of the present-time experience you’re having.
In the workplace, one of the best triggers I have found is the sound of a phone ringing. Whether it’s a landline or a cell phone, you can use the sound of a phone ringing (or vibrating or buzzing or whatever your phone does) as a reminder to come back to the present moment. You can even couple an awareness trigger with the first tip, to return to the breath. Every time you hear a phone ring, take a mindful breath. Other things you may use in the workplace include walking through a doorway, sending an email, seeing the sky, or ending a conversation with another person (in person or via phone).
Eat Mindfully
Some of us eat at work, some of us step outside to eat, and some of us simply don’t eat. If you’re the last type, I personally recommend taking a break and eating if you’re able! Food helps us focus, keeps us energized, and gives us valuable nutrition for the mind and body. When you eat, use it as a mindfulness practice. Your mindful eating practice may even include drinking water or chewing gum. Whenever you are eating, try to do so with mindfulness. Tune into the way the food looks, how it smells, the taste, the texture, and anything else that arises surrounding the experience. Like anything else you do throughout the day, eating can be a beautiful and mindful return to the present-time experience.
Do What You’re Doing
This is a tip you may have heard outside of the context of mindfulness, but it can be a strong practice in mindfulness. When you’re doing something, try to be with it. This starts with the physical body. Try not to walk and send a text message. If you’re on the phone, don’t also be playing a game on your computer. Then tune into the thinking mind. If you’re researching something, see if you can bring the thoughts to the research you’re doing. If you’re in a conversation, be with the conversation. It’s not easy, but see if you can bring the thinking mind to whatever is going on in the present moment.
Of course the thoughts will arise about other things, the mind will wander, and we’ll fall into autopilot. Again, make kindness a piece of your mindfulness practice. Be gentle with yourself and don’t judge too harshly. When you’ve noticed the mind is wandering or on autopilot mode, just come back to what you’re doing and be there.
Listen Carefully
The Vietnamese monk Thích Nhất Hạnh says, “The most precious gift we can offer anyone is our attention.” When somebody is engaging you, engage with them back by listening. There are a few things you can tune into when somebody is speaking, but if nothing else remember that there’s a difference between listening mindfully and waiting for your turn to speak. Try to be present and not lost in the mind or what you are going to say.
You can tune into the other person. Listen to what they’re saying, tune into their body, and be there with them. You may also rest in awareness of your own body a bit. Perhaps you are talking with somebody you find difficult. Notice any tension that arises in the chest, arms, abdomen, or anywhere else. You can also return to the breath of course. With so many ways to be present while listening, you have a great opportunity to practice when somebody else is speaking to you.
There’s a difference between listening mindfully and waiting for your turn to speak.
Make a List
This suggestion may seem more relevant to a business blog than a mindfulness post at first. However, part of mindfulness is recognizing what is useful to us in our happiness and what causes pain. Making a list has been one of the most beneficial practices I’ve found in my work life. I use Google Keep, a free note-taking service that syncs my notes across my computers and devices. You can of course make lists by hand as well. Whatever you do, simply make a list of things you would like to get done during the day.
I keep a list of things to be done in the near future, and bigger picture to-do’s. I keep the list open on my computer, often in the background. I add to it liberally, whenever something comes to mind. The mindfulness practice here is to really pause and see what is important to us and what isn’t. We prioritize what we do with our time, using the list to practice Wise Effort. We only have so much energy to use throughout the day. A list helps us return to what we need to do. In a way, this is a practice that helps us when we “lose” mindfulness. I return to my list frequently when I finish a task. It helps combat the “autopilot mode” in which we often find ourselves, where we jump from one thing to another without volitional and conscious thought.
Notice Your Thoughts
The final way I practice mindfulness in my work life is by bringing mindfulness to the thinking mind. I know that you may be wondering what I mean by this, as we often think of “quieting the mind” in mindfulness practice. One of my favorite meditation teachers, Ajahn Sumedha, frequently says, “Everything belongs.” This saying points toward the way in which we can make absolutely anything a part of our mindfulness practice. Thoughts are absolutely not excluded.
Try to notice what’s going on in the thinking mind. You may find yourself noticing that the mind is completely lost in fantasy, you may notice the mind is calm and serene, or you may notice that the mind isn’t really active in a given moment. Remember that you can notice mental mood (like anxious, calm, frustrated, active, etc.), thought content (planning, fantasizing, reminiscing, listening, etc.), or simply if the mind is present or not. You can use this with an awareness trigger to help, as mindfulness of the thinking mind can be difficult at first!
These are just nine ways in which you can bring your mindfulness to life. You truly can cultivate mindfulness at any time. It takes some investigation, some curiosity, and some patient acceptance. Find what works for you, and don’t get stuck! Sometimes one thing works for a while, then something else works. Be gentle with yourself and don’t cling to just one “right” way.
Matthew Sockolov owns Mindful Marketing, a boutique online marketing firm that aims to help businesses whose work it is to help others. Matthew is the project manager, overseeing campaigns involving SEO, social media marketing, PPC, email marketing, and more. He also teaches meditation with One Mind Dharma, an online resource for guided meditations and teachings. He is currently in the Community Dharma Leader training program at Spirit Rock, and has taught at Against the Stream, Insight Sonoma, and various treatment centers in California.
Follow Matthew on Twitter @SockolovM, on Instagram @SockolovM, or on Google Plus.
¹https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Terry_Capuano2/publication/7996675_The_Effects_of_Mindfulness-based_Stress_Reduction_on_Nurse_Stress_and_Burnout_Part_II/links/0fcfd514706c29cf55000000/The-Effects-of-Mindfulness-based-Stress-Reduction-on-Nurse-Stress-and-Burnout-Part-II.pdf
²http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2012-04383-001/
³http://www.depts.ttu.edu/psy/people/ytang/2007-PNAS.pdf