Well-being

Mindfulness training has the potential to deliver a range of benefits to performance at work including:

  • Reduced stress levels, anxiety, depression and burnout.
  • Lower rates of health-related absenteeism.
  • Lower level of ‘presenteeism’
  • Higher levels of personal resilience.
  • Better self-regulation of difficult emotions.
  • Reduction in rumination and worry.
  • Higher levels of well-being
  • Overall work and life satisfaction.

Mindfulness training supports you in taking good care of your mental and physical well-being.

You will learn how intimately and dynamically connected your mind and body are. Your thoughts and emotions directly affect how your body feels and conversely how your body feels directly affects your thinking and emotions. Through mindfulness practice you can identify your habitual patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving and how they interact and impact on your physical and emotional well-being.

1755h0052-600Rather than perpetuating unhelpful habits, you can discover which activities nourish and deplete you so you can make more informed decisions that support your mental and physical well-being. Mindfulness practice can support you through periods of ill-heath and some research suggests it may even off-set some of the effects of aging.

Good health is good for business. Health related absenteeism costs businesses. In 2013, 131 million days were lost due to sickness absences in the UK (Office for National Statistics). 15 million of these were due to stress, anxiety and depression. In addition, many workers attend work whilst ill (presenteeism) and consequently perform sub-optimally. Investing in the health of your workforce is imperative if you want your people to thrive and your business to prosper. Mindfulness training offers a proven and stigma-free intervention in well-being.

Resilience

Mindfulness training builds and sustains resilience to support you through times of challenge and change.

1607h0016-600You will learn how to set yourself up mentally and physically to approach difficulties with equanimity and recover more quickly from set-backs. By auditing your mental processes and habits you will identify which of these exacerbate problems and which enable you to respond resourcefully. Mistakes and feedback can more readily be accepted as opportunities for learning and development.

Eliciting and engaging with your personal values and strengths will guide and motivate you to persevere in order to pursue meaning and long-term goals. With increased agility you will be able to adjust your course to stay on track as new issues emerge and priorities change. Over time you will develop cognitive flexibility and the ability to self-regulate emotions.

Establishing accessible and steadfast anchors will provide you with a secure place to restore balance and stability. Simple and brief mindfulness practices can act as coping mechanisms at times of heightened anxiety or distress. Strong social networks will provide an invaluable support mechanism which can be augmented by reciprocally supporting others.

Stress reduction

Mindfulness training reduces stress, prevents burnout and increases positive outlook.

You will learn how stress impacts on your mind and body and notice how counterproductive patterns of thinking and behaving can proliferate distress. Identifying and recognising internal and external triggers along with early signs of the stress-response alert you to take action early to prevent escalation to unnecessary discomfort and rumination.

1936h0005-600Wise choices will enable you take actions that are helpful in the long term rather than automatically deploying short term ineffective strategies of avoidance, denial or suppression. Understanding how you hold tension in your body and responding with self-care and regular breaks will steady you, offer respite and promote ease.

The right amount of stress at work can motivate and stretch us to higher levels of performance and productivity, however, stress becomes a problem when it exceeds our resources. The world of work is changing at a faster rate than ever with increasing globalisation, new technologies, constant connectivity, growing intensification of work and longer working lives. 2012 Skills and Employment Survey on Work Intensification in Britain reported that “Those in jobs are working harder, faster and to tighter deadlines than they did in the past.” It goes on to warn that this work intensification may come at a cost to business in terms of increasing levels of workplace stress and potential losses to productivity. In 2013, 15 million days were lost in sickness absences due to stress, anxiety and depression in the UK (Office for National Statistics).

A word of caution

Mindfulness is a proven effective approach for many people but it is not for everyone or it may not be appropriate for you right now. Mindfulness involves turning our attention to our inner experience whatever is happening including physical and emotional challenges. It is important to make wise decisions about when to exercise mindfulness and when not to. If you are undergoing medical and/or psychological treatment then it is recommended that you consult your physician or therapist before you begin a mindfulness programme.