Tip #4: Bring Mindfulness to Every Meeting
This week, a key Mindfulness Exercise that I share in all my corporate meditation sessions – because in the workplace, this one practice can have incredible benefits for individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole.
The Mindful Meeting Minute
Before any meeting – or even a difficult phone call, sales pitch, or presentation – I always recommend taking a full minute to pause.
This simple yet powerful practice allows the mind to catch up with the body (to be truly present) fostering a greater sense of presence and focus. I know myself and I’ve seen firsthand, how this shared moment of silence in the office, can noticeably enhance productivity and engagement.
Why It Works
Meetings often take up a significant portion of our workday, amidst a multitude of other distractions that constantly pull our attention in different directions. To ensure that meeting participants are not only physically present but also mentally engaged, we need a circuit breaker – something to bring everyone’s attention away from whatever task they were involved with earlier, and into the present moment and the meeting’s purpose. Research shows that deep focus in meetings is actually quite rare.
And, in the current era of continuous partial attention – the process of paying simultaneous attention to several sources of incoming information, but at a superficial level – it can be even harder for people to focus, listen and meaningfully contribute.
So, taking just 60 seconds at the start of any meeting to silently pause, breathe and arrive fully in the present moment – creates space for people to check in with themselves, to consciously arrive mind, body and spirit, and commit to bringing their full presence and focus to the task at hand.
In this space, this one-minute space, everyone is more likely to be receptive, and open to new ideas and creative problem-solving – thinking clearer, listening better, and having more meaningful contributions.
Simple Mindful Meeting Practice
+ Invite everyone to settle in and, if comfortable, close their eyes or lower their gaze.
+ Share the purpose of the Mindful Minute: to simply allow everyone to take a moment to arrive into the present moment. Your might also make reference to the fact that everyone has made the time to attend, acknowledging their time and contribution.
+ Begin by asking: Where is your attention right now? This gentle prompt can encourage people to reflect and mindfully choose to refresh their focus and engagement.
+ Let everyone know that there will be One Mindful Minute of silent breath awareness – encouraging slow, deep breaths (6-10 breaths is usually about one minute). Allow one full minute of complete silence.
+ End the Mindful Minute with a spoken intention for the meeting which clarifies the shared purpose moving forward for all participants.
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Another Favourite Pre-Meeting Practice
Back in a time when I worked in the corporate sector, my days were often packed with back-to-back meetings (with many others arounnd me doing the same dance). Most days I found myself rushing from one meeting to the next, carrying the mental residue of each discussion with me.
So, at some point I started scheduling a non-negotiable five to ten-minute gap between meetings. I actually put it in my diary and kept the rule front of mind when scheduling meetings. Then, I’d find a quiet spot … a quiet corner of the office, an empt office, or if I was out in the world, a park bench, a café … where I could dedicate those minutes to breathing and clearing my mind before the next conversation.
This pre-meeting-self-meeting, allowed a conscious pause so I could download any mental load into a diary or journal, or let it go, before moving forward.
Even during meetings, I’d take micro-pauses:
+ to gaze out the window and notice what was happening in nature
+ to take a few conscious breaths
+ to quietly check-in: Where was my awareness? How was my breath? Could I soften a little more?
Observing the Breath
Your breath is an incredibly powerful tool for shifting how you feel at any moment:
Need energy? Gently guide and lengthen your inhalation
Need calm? Gently guide and lengthen your exhalation
Starting any meeting with a few deep breaths can instantly lower stress, promote connection, and enhance focus – creating space for greater collaboration and creativity.
Give it a try and notice the difference!
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Top 10 Tips Series:
Integrating Meditation into Your Day
A Day of Meditation: Tip #1 – Mindful Waking
A Day of Meditation: Tip #2 – Mantra on the Commute
A Day of Meditation: Tip #3 – Moments Waiting