It was 7AM Monday…
The familiar sound of Sarah’s iPhone alarm pierced through the silence in the room.
Peeling herself out of bed, Sarah threw herself into the shower where a whirlwind of thoughts about the week ahead began to occupy her mind. Clothes thrown on, she heads for the kitchen.
Breakfast in hand, Sarah’s mind whirred once more. ‘I best check my emails to see what is happening’. Scrolling away, Sarah finished the last bite of her breakfast that she barely tasted.
8:30AM: Remote working. Laptop open.
Headfirst into an online meeting. Sarah struggles to focus on the meeting, as she mindlessly fires out email responses. Multitasking is sapping her energy already.
10AM: Second meeting back-to-back. A project change that seemingly threatens Sarah’s role is discussed… really frustrated, she reacts on impulse. Afterwards, Sarah thought ‘my passion overwhelmed reason’. The change is actually logical.
Lunch time: Sarah mindlessly eats whilst flicking through the endless stream of emails. Sarah remembers a task she forgot to complete for her boss! Carried away by her thoughts, Sarah grabs her laptop and starts punching away at the keyboard.
Afternoon meetings, multi-tasking and a lack of breaks cause Sarah’s afternoon to be unproductive…
The clock strikes 5PM. Laptop shuts. Time for some fresh air.
Walking around the park, the sun is setting behind orange clouds wrapped in the vast blue sky, birds are singing…. but wait…Sarah didn’t finish that task for her boss. Once again, her mind whirred into action planning tomorrow’s tasks. Before she knew it, Sarah was back at her front door after a worrisome walk!
After dinner the hours passed by, and Sarah climbed into bed. She found herself struggling to relax as a barrage of questions about the day ahead bounced around her mind.
Eventually, she managed to drift off to sleep. It was a state of relaxation, where she was completely at peace with no worries in the world.
What felt like a few seconds later, her peace was disturbed, and she woke up once again to an all so familiar sound.
It was 7AM, as the sun shone through the curtains on Tuesday morning….
Are You Living in the Autopilot Way of Life?
Ask yourself…
- “Can I relate to Sarah’s day? How present am I throughout the day?”.
- How much of your day is spent thinking about the past or future events in work?
- How often do you try to “multitask” at work?
- When was the last time you mindfully Listened throughout a meeting?
- When was the last time you ate mindfully?
These are all indications that you’re living in the autopilot way of life…
What Can I Do to Experience Life in the Present?
We all have an innate capacity for practising Mindfulness throughout our working days..all we need to do, is unlock it!
Mindful.org defines mindfulness as the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s happening around us.
The truth is… you have a choice. You can transform your working day, increase focus, clarity and creativity, and contribute to building resilient teams in your workplace. You can lead the creation of a mindful workplace!
The Mindful Workplace Hive can your organisation and people – Find out what we do…