Mindfulness is Sit and Stay practice for leaders.
As a leader, mindfulness practice increases concentration and flow. It improves emotional and social intelligence. It reduces stress, and increases overall sense of well being.
In mindfulness practice, you are first taught to “sit” in full presence of the moment. This means to pay attention, on purpose, letting go of judgment (such as the story in your head). To be mindful is to have a curiosity that is intentional, nonjudgmental, and nonreactive of the moment.
Once you learn the basics of sitting in mindfulness, the next step is to practice how to “stay” in mindfulness. Essentially this means training your mind to repeatedly return to the present moment each time that you notice it to stray.
The brain doesn’t take kindly to us asking it to sit and stay in the present moment in this way. Like the dog that can get easily distracted, the brain wants to run off “chasing rabbits” too.
In mindfulness, you train yourself to notice these distractions. Your task is to bring yourself back to the present moment, again and again. The practice is to sit, stay, and observe without doing anything about the moment.
A friend of mine asked Sally Boarman, www.dogwoodagility.com, how she got her dogs to sit so still for this cover photo. She emphatically and unhesitatingly replied, “They Stay.” They have learned to let go of the urge to give in to distractions.
If Sally’s dogs can learn to sit and stay, then so can you.
Try sitting and staying fully present in mindfulness today, if only for a few curious and nonjudgmental moments.
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Dr. Cindy Hardwick is a Licensed Psychologist with more than 37 years experience in the areas of behavior, relationships and change.
She focuses on conscious wellbeing in a way that cuts across decades of research and practice to bring about rapid and sustainable change in individuals, relationships and dynamic systems. She is known for her intuitive and nonjudgmental approach steeped in mindfulness.
Cindy provides a unique blend of Consulting and Coaching Psychology to those are in position to be of leadership and service to others.
Learn more about Cindy at CynthiaHardwick.com
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Image provided by Sally Boarman.
