Spend 10 minutes a day on mindfulness to change the way you react to everything

We all feel a remarkable level of busyness each day. It is kind of the nature of the work. Sadly, that busyness often makes us more reactive and less proactive. And then we don’t show up the way we would like.

A mindful approach to mindfulness (I had to!) can help us create a one-second mental space between an event or stimulus and our response to it. One second may not sound like a lot, but it can be the difference between making a rushed decision or reaching a thoughtful conclusion that leads to a better outcome. It’s the difference between acting out of fear or anger and making a more conscious choice in responding.

Research has found that mindfulness training alters our brains and how we engage with ourselves, others, and our work. When practiced and applied, mindfulness fundamentally alters the operating system of the mind.

In this way mindfulness practice decreases activity in the parts of the brain responsible for fight-or-flight and knee-jerk reactions while increasing activity in the part of the brain responsible for what’s termed our executive functioning. This part of the brain, and the executive functioning skills it supports, is the control center for our thoughts, words, and actions.

One second can be the difference between achieving desired results or not. One second is all it takes to become less reactive and more in tune with the moment. In that one second lies the opportunity to improve the way you show up, speak, and act.

Here are four easily implemented tips to help you become more mindful.

Practice 10 minutes of mindfulness training each day. Most people find mornings the best time to practice mindfulness, but you can do it any time of day. You can find a 10-minute guided mindfulness training program here. Google will take you to 687,432 more options.

Avoid reading email first thing in the morning. Our minds are generally most focused, creative, and expansive in the morning. This is the time to do focused, strategic work and have important conversations. If you read your email first thing, your mind will get sidetracked. Try waiting at least thirty minutes, or even an hour, after you get to work before checking your inbox. Some experts recommend waiting until 11 AM to check your email.

Turn off all notifications. The notification alarms on your phone, tablet, and laptop are significant contributors to reactivity. They keep you mentally busy and put you under pressure, thereby triggering reactionary responses. They cause damage far more than they add value. Try this: For one week turn off all email notifications on all devices. Only check your email once every hour (or as often as responsibly needed for your job), but don’t compulsively check messages as they roll into your inbox.

Stop multitasking. I know you think you have to and that it works. Neither are actually true. Try to maintain focus on a single task, and then notice when you find your mind drifting off to another task—a sign that your brain wishes to change tasks. When this happens, mentally shut down all the unnecessary tasks entering your thoughts while maintaining focus on the task at hand.

I encourage you to give these tips a try. Although mindfulness isn’t a magic pill, it will help you more actively choose your responses and make thoughtful choices instead of simply reacting.

Dan

Adapted from: Hougaard, R., Carter, J., & Dybkjaer, G. (2017, January 18). Spending 10 minutes a day on mindfulness subtly changes the way you react to everything. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2017/01/spending-10-minutes-a-day-on-mindfulness-subtly-changes-the-way-you-react-to-everything