Mindfulness in the workplace is as essential as your computer, your desk chair, and your degree. Distractions abound when you aren’t mindful, making it easier to procrastinate but harder to get started on large and small assignments alike. You have to change your behavior to become more focused, as well as the way you behave at work and the way you perceive the things around you, but the results are well worth the effort you put into being mindful.
Do you know how to become more mindful? It’s not that difficult, but because few people consider the benefits of being mindful at work, they’re unaware of the various techniques and strategies that could help them. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Accept advice about how to be more mindful so that you can approach your job with purpose, determination, and focus. You’ll have more time before and after work, plus your job performance will skyrocket, which will please the higher-ups and make them take notice.
Maintain a conscious presence
It isn’t enough to sit at your desk and go about your business. Phoning it in at work is the exact opposite of mindfulness. You’re not being mindful when you’re going through the motions. You need to make sure you’re consciously present at work, meaning that you’re open and receptive to your tasks, your colleagues, and new ideas. Floating through your workday results in sloppy work, a lack of joy, and an overwhelming feeling of boredom. You’re more likely to make mistakes when you’re not present—and you’re less like to care about them.
Do your work with purpose
In the same way that you’re present and proactive, you need to tackle your tasks with purpose and determination. There’s no reason it should take two hours to slug through your correspondence. Think about how you spend your time. Does it take you forever to complete tasks because you’re distracted and uninterested? You’re not pursuing your assignments with purpose. You’re getting by with the bare minimum, and it’s eventually going to show up in your performance. View each job as though it’s essential. Pretend that your performance review rests on every task, and go after it with a vengeance.
Throw yourself into the mundane tasks
No job is too small. To learn how to be mindful at work and accomplish your goals with purpose, you have to approach every activity as if it’s essential—even if you’re just emptying your inbox. Procrastination tends to occur the moment it’s time to tackle the small, seemingly unimportant tasks. Because they seem pointless, it’s easier to put off doing them, while simultaneously telling yourself that you can’t move on to more significant projects until you finish the small stuff. You get stuck in a productivity-sucking cycle of inefficiency. Approach them with enthusiasm instead. You’ll notice a difference.
Remember that it’s not a race
Certain jobs shouldn’t take forever. Referring again to correspondence, there’s no need for it to take up a quarter of your day. With important projects, however, remember that it’s not a race. Always keep your deadlines in mind, but don’t rush through the things you have to do just to finish up with them. That’s not how you bring purpose to your daily duties. Do your best, explore your creativity, and give each task the time it deserves. You’re not racing your coworkers in the time it takes to get something done. A polished result means more than finishing first.
Practice breathing exercises
Your breathing is one of the key aspects of being mindful. Fast, shallow breathing is indicative of stress, anxiety, or even panic. It happens anytime you feel overwhelmed, tense, or frustrated at work—which likely occurs too often for your liking. Whether you’re sitting at your desk or if you have to excuse yourself from a meeting, take several moments to yourself and focus on your breathing. Breathe in through your nose, hold it, then breathe out through your mouth. Repeat until you feel more centered and in control of yourself.
Take a break every hour
One way to encourage mindfulness through your workday is to take a break every hour. It’s healthy to look away from your monitor and step away from your desk. In addition to giving your eyes a rest and your muscles a much-needed stress, you can use this time to practice being mindful. Set a timer for sixty minutes at a time. After it goes off, give yourself a five-minute break. Walk around the office, focus on what’s happening around you, and do your breathing exercises.
Keep the unneeded tech at bay
Tech is necessary at work. In addition to your computer, you might have a company laptop, tablet, or phone. However, you don’t need to use all of them at once, particularly in the office, and you definitely don’t need personal tech items. Put away your personal phone. Don’t waste time playing on a tablet or smartwatch.
Those are distractions, and distractions interrupt your attempts to become more mindful. You can’t focus when you’re distracted by Facebook, Snapchat, or Candy Crush. As soon as you clock out at the end of the day, you can go back to your games and social media. Just leave that stuff out of the office.
Stop multitasking
Multitasking is the professional’s best friend, right? Wrong. Multitasking just means you’re spreading your attention among several average projects rather than focusing on a single task and knocking it out of the park. It’s a myth that multitasking allows you to accomplish more things at once. The truth is that you lose focus when you shift your attention from project to project. Not only do you run the risk of mixing up data and information, but you’re also turning in mediocre work that hasn’t received your full attention.
Plan out blocks of time
Organization is a cornerstone of mindfulness. You can’t learn how to be mindful if you’re disorganized and overwhelmed. The first step toward streamlining your scheduling is to create blocks of time devoted to specific tasks. In the morning, spend your first hour dealing with your inbox. Block out time for meetings, one-on-one dialogues, and special projects, as well as the rest of your day-to-day to-do items. You can even pass your schedule to any coworkers who need to know what you’re up to and where they can find you.
Work on your humility
Humble employees aren’t weak or worried about people-pleasing. Being humble doesn’t mean you’re self-deprecating or submissive. On the contrary, only people with quiet confidence can embrace humility. Furthermore, by acknowledging that you aren’t perfect and you still have a lot to learn, you increase your mindfulness and leave yourself open to constructive criticism. You also look more attractive to your managers and colleagues because you’re willing to listen, learn, and adapt.
Recognize what is out of your control
Stress is often caused by the things you can’t control. Something goes wrong, or an anticipated event doesn’t go according to plan, and your first instinct is to panic, but there’s no need to do that. You simply have to adapt. Always have a Plan B in mind—and a Plan C if one is readily available. You can’t control what other people do, the weather, the traffic, or any number of other things that can affect your work life. You only have control over yourself and your own performance, so prove that you’re an employee who can go with the flow.
Avoid negativity in the workplace
You can’t always avoid negative coworkers or unpleasant supervisors, nor can you say no to tasks you don’t enjoy. You can, however, limit your exposure to negativity. Avoid the colleagues who regularly gossip about their peers, especially if that gossip is related to the office. Don’t talk about others and don’t participate in conversations that encourage the sharing of rumors and conjecture. When your daily tasks force you to interact with staff members you don’t get along with, maintain a cordial, professional attitude and keep your conversation centered on the job.
It’s not hard to learn how to be mindful as long as you’re open and willing to teach yourself how to focus. Being mindful increases your productivity, improves your efficiency, and gives you a sense of joy, even while you’re on the clock. How do you maintain a calm, cool, mindful demeanor at work?
