Yes, mindfulness is all the rage. Meditation, a calmer, more focused life, and enlightenment are only a few breaths away.

This post is less about all of that, although I’m down for working on it. I’m talking about practical more attainable steps that can make life easier and less stressful in your nonprofit workplace.

Best of all, you don’t need to tell anyone. It’s your little secret.

What would mindfulness in action look like at work?

Scientist and writer Jon Kabat-Zinn explained to Google employees in a mindfulness session at the company’s headquarters in 2007, “Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment, and non judgmentally.”

Nine years later, Google incorporates mindfulness into their “Search Inside Yourself” training, and meditative practices have become common in businesses from Silicon Valley to Wall Street.

Seriously, you don’t need to meditate to reap results. Here are a few less intimidating ideas that have been proven to improve your health and your performance at work. 

3 ways to bring mindfulness to work

1.  Notice

Mindfulness essentially means awareness. If you can catch a difficult moment – in the moment – that’s progress. Whether you’re pissed, frustrated, overwhelmed, or letting yourself get distracted, take note.

The other day I sat down to write this post. Instead, I spent 2 hours – yes, 2 full hours – in Evernote. I was looking for supporting articles and lost myself in renaming tags and folders. It was so much fun.

Then, I caught myself. I noticed.

I got up, went to the kitchen and grabbed an apple. I sliced it into wedges, took a breath and picked up a piece. 

I ate it slowly. Heard the crunch. Tasted the sweetness. 

Sounds like a drama, but it was all of one minute. I grabbed the remaining wedges and took a walk around the block. Then I sat down and wrote this post. Boom!

Catching these moments may happen rarely at first. Maybe you’ll go get an apple or you won’t do anything at all. It’s all good. You won’t be able to take action unless you know when it’s happening. It takes practice. 

2.  Bring a sense of purpose to the every day

You can turn the smallest routines into opportunities for greater accomplishments.

I recently met Leah Weiss, Ph.D., MSW, a lecturer at Stanford Business School and Senior Teacher of the Stanford Compassion Cultivation Program.

She spoke of an idea from one of her students “she changed the password on her computer to “breathe.”
When she took a breath upon logging in, she explained, it allowed her to check in on her intention for the next task.”

So rather than compulsively check her email, she could choose to work on projects that mattered to her. 

This is called a “micro-moment.” That’s all we need to reset our perspective and see things differently. 

Leah continues, “Getting a cup of coffee, waiting for an application to open, or putting our hand on the door handle to the meeting room are all opportunities to reconnect with our purpose and get perspective.”

3.  Do one thing at a time

Focus your attention only on the task at hand. Did you know that multitasking reduces your productivity by 40%. 40%!

Be mindful of when you’re switching from one thing to another. I know that the nonprofit environment is full of interruptions and sometimes there’s not much to be done about it.

You can take note and find a quiet place, even the library, to complete a single task without interruption. It will take less time and you’ll do a better job.

When you become aware of how your routines are controlling you and your day, you can do something about it. But not unless you decide to.

Do you have a small routine that you can turn into a mindfulness moment?

Tricia Dell is a fundraising coach, facilitator, and strategist for nonprofit organizations. Learn more at triciadell.com and follow her on twitter @triciadell.

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