I was never a huge fan of colouring books as a child. As an adult, however, colouring books improve you emotionally & mentally, I’m a fan! Maybe because I’ve come a long way in my ability to stay inside the lines.
I found this article written by Robyn Reisch I thought it would be worth sharing. Ten Ways Adult Colouring Books Improve Your Emotional, Mental and Intellectual Health
I was never a huge fan of colouring books as a child. As an adult,
however, I absolutely love them! Maybe it’s because I’ve come a long way
in my ability to stay inside the lines. Whatever the reason, I am glad
to have made the shift. I am the proud owner of colouring books
depicting Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and, of course, a magical
garden. The stress relief that they provide is fantastic, and the sense
of accomplishment after finishing a page may feel silly, but it is real!
Thankfully, therapists around the world have given this practice a
collective nod of approval.
HERE’S WHY:
1. People who suffer from trauma, PTSD, and excessive stress can
benefit from colouring, as it is known to calm the amygdala. This is the
part of the brain that, when activated, induces a fight-or-flight
reaction. People with these conditions are often kept in a state of
extreme worry and hyper-vigilance due to an overly active amygdala.
2. The decision to colour is a decision to spend time on something
that is just for us. As adults, we often neglect to do this until we
face a crisis that reminds us of the importance of self-care. Colouring
is a simple daily reminder that our happiness matters.
3. Colouring forces us to practice mindfulness, which can ease
symptoms of anxiety and depression. The practice of mindfulness can also
promote feelings of fulfillment and joy.
4. Both the right hemisphere and the left hemisphere of the brain are
used in balance when we colour. This is because we are completing a
concrete task and using fine motor skills, while also thinking in an
abstract way regarding the artful balance of pigments on the page.
5. Colouring uses the same areas of the brain that help us to focus
and concentrate. By utilizing this part of the brain, we can increase
our capacity for attentive thought.
6. Coloring also uses the area of the brain that is responsible for
organizational and problem solving skills. By exercising it, we can
significantly strengthen our adulting skills.
7. Does pulling out the coloured pencils soothe your soul? It’s no
wonder. Colouring can induce feelings of comfort and nostalgia in those
who enjoyed this activity as a child.
8. Colouring injects our lives with a much needed dose of creativity.
As adults, we are often tasked with the same acts of tedium over and
over again. This can dampen our creative spirit, and decrease our
capacity for creative problem solving. Colouring is a way to add a
creative outlet that does not involve extra stress or a serious time
commitment.
9. A coloring routine can combat boredom and a lack of structure,
both of which are known to contribute to a myriad of mental health
issues. These include depression, anxiety, stress, substance abuse,
eating disorders, anger management problems, and obsessive-compulsive
disorder.
10. Colouring mandalas is thought to have spiritual benefits,
increasing our capacity for self-knowledge and connecting us to humanity
and our world.
Colouring has been compared to meditation for its ability to calm the
mind and feed the soul. With so many options when it comes to coloring
books, there is sure to be one that suits your tastes. Take up the
practice yourself, or give one to your stress-addled sister to help her
make it through finals week. They are a whimsical way to look back on
the good times, as well as a practical tool with which to cope with the
problems we face in the present.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ten-ways-adult-colouring-books-improve-your-emotional-mental-and-intellectual-health.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-09-08 15:20:002022-05-02 15:51:10Ten ways adult colouring books improve you emotionally, mentally and intellectual health
Walking has been practiced as a meditative technique for thousands of years. Turn your walk into a mindful moment integrate mindfulness into your life.
Walking is a simple way to fit mindfulness meditation into your daily routine.
Walking has been practiced as a meditative technique for thousands of
years, and is a great way to integrate mindfulness into your everyday
life. But it’s easy to slip into a semi-conscious state, where the legs
are moving but the mind is thinking about something completely
different. It can sometimes feel as though we’re so busy remembering,
planning, and analyzing life that we forget to experience life as it
actually is, rather than how we think it should be — and that’s where
mindfulness comes in.
Mindfulness is being fully present, aware of where we are and what
we’re doing. It keeps us from overreacting or becoming overwhelmed by
what’s going on around us. While we all naturally possess mindfulness,
it’s easier to do when practiced daily.
Whenever you are aware of what you’re directly experiencing, or your
state of mind, you’re being mindful. And there’s growing research
showing that when you train your brain to be mindful, you’re actually
remodeling the physical structure of your brain.
Below is an exercise in walking meditation from the mindfulness
experts at Headspace. It’s perfectly suited to a busy life. If you
already take a daily walk, you need only direct your mind in a different
way as you continue your routine.
If you live close to a park, river, or other pleasant outdoor space,
try the technique in that environment too. There’ll be much less
external distraction in these areas, which can change the way the
exercise feels. It can also be useful to know how your mind works in
contrasting environments.
Here are some tips:
As you begin to walk, notice how the body feels. Does it feel heavy or light? Stiff or relaxed?
Observe how it feels to walk without changing how you do it. It’s
common to feel self-conscious but the feeling usually passes quickly.
Be aware of what’s going on around you. Notice cars, other people,
road signals, all the other things you’d expect to see. Notice the
colors and shapes, the movements, and the stillness too. There’s no need
to actually think about what you’re seeing — simply to see it and
acknowledge it is enough.
Turn your attention to sounds — what can you hear? Take a moment to
be aware of them as they come and go in your field of awareness
Next turn your attention to smells, some of which may be pleasant
and others not. Notice how the mind wants to create a story out of each
of the smells, how they remind you of somewhere, something, or someone.
Notice physical sensations, whether it’s warm sunshine, a gentle
rain, or a cold wind. Feel the soles of your feet touching the ground
with each step, or the weight of your arms swinging at your side.
Gently shift your attention to the sensation of movement in the
body. Notice how the weight shifts from the right side to the left and
then back again in a steady rhythm. Avoid artificially adjusting your
speed. Instead, observe the way you walk and the rhythm you’ve become
accustomed to.
There’s no need to focus so intently that you start to exclude
everything around you. In fact, be open to things happening around you
and, when you know the mind has wandered off, just gently bring the
attention back to the movement of the body and the sensation of the
soles of the feet striking the ground each time.
Give your mind a break
When you become more present and more aware, your mental habits will
become more apparent. For example, how do you feel when your rhythm is
broken by a red light, and you are forced to stand and wait? Do you feel
impatient to get on with your walk? Do you find yourself jockeying for
position with other people? Or do you feel a sense of relief at the
opportunity of being able to rest for a few seconds?
Usually, we’re so caught up in the thoughts themselves, we hardly
notice our reactions to all these things. Mindfulness is a way to bring
us back to the here and now.
Mindfulness can help you reshape your relationship with mental and
physical pain. It can also help you connect better. Ever find yourself
staring blankly at a friend, lover, child, and you’ve no idea what
they’re saying? Mindfulness helps you give them your full attention.
Mindfulness also focuses your mind and reduces the nattering,
chattering voice in our head seems never to leave us alone. Isn’t it
time we gave it a little break?
Source: Mindful, a mission-driven non-profit dedicated to inspiring,
guiding, and connecting anyone who wants to explore mindfulness (mindful.org).
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for
over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the
most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/turn-your-walk-into-a-mindful-moment.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-09-08 12:46:002022-05-02 15:51:11Turn your walk into a mindful moment
[Mindfulness is] the thing you swear you don’t have time or patience for and then realize it’s exactly what will give you more time, energy and patience. Mindfulness Practice Can Calm Your Mind and also refresh your managerial approach.
If you’re like me, you’ve made the rounds at management training
conferences. And after enjoying the sweaty cheese cubes and boxed
chardonnay, you also may have walked away with some “tips” on how to get
the most out of your people.
Set expectations for how you like to be managed. Communicate your
preferences for how you like to receive information and output from your
teams. Set the energy in the room and the pace you want for any
discussion. Keep the dialogue moving and on track with consistent input.
Do any of these ring a bell?
Basically, we’ve been trained to manage like it’s all about us, what
we need and want from the people we lead. When the truth is, it’s not
about us. Our job as managers is to create the environment that allows
our people to thrive, which when you think about it, really means it’s
all about them.
My epiphany on this topic came when my partners and I went through
mindfulness training with our friends at Wisdom Labs. Let me clarify,
mandatory mindfulness training (thanks, Paul Venables). For those of you
who don’t know, mindfulness is the practice of paying attention in a
particular way: in the present moment, without judgment and with real
purpose. It is often credited with developing self-reflection,
resilience and emotional intelligence (things we could all use in this
business).
I was a bit skeptical about mindfulness training from the start. I
don’t know how to meditate. I don’t like to sit still. I talk fast, my
mind is always racing and I have a long to-do list (much to my husband’s
delight). The thought of slowing down, tuning into my body, thoughts
and what’s going on around me (basically, being more mellow) sounded
neither interesting nor achievable.
But after putting it off a few times, I attended over six hours of
mindfulness training and can now say it’s one of the best things I’ve
ever done. It’s the thing you swear you don’t have time, energy or
patience for and then realize it’s exactly what will give you more time,
energy and patience. I suspected that mindfulness training might teach
me to be a more in-touch person (a pretty tall order). I didn’t expect
it to give me two of the most valuable management tips of my career.
First, before you walk into a room (whether it’s a one-on-one or a
meeting with 20 people), set your intention for that interaction. Your
intention is not the goal of the meeting (i.e. “let’s align on next
steps”). It’s the approach and behavior you will bring to it.
Positivity. Support. Vulnerability. Perspective. Your intention should
be based on your values and ultimately your goals, but most importantly,
your sense of what the people in that room need in order to be
successful.
And second, be present in that interaction the entire time. That
means not thinking about your next meeting or your to-do list or (I’ll
admit it) what you’re going to have for lunch. Instead, actively
participate in the conversation, which also means really listening to
what someone is saying and not waiting for them to stop talking so that
you can interject. And being willing to pivot if your intention is not
in line with who you’re talking to and how they’re responding. (All of
this is infinitely more do-able if you leave your phone at your desk.)
OK, I realize I may be getting an eye roll. This may sound like
“squishy” stuff that gets in the way of the actual work that needs to
get done amid shrinking budgets and timelines, crazy client demands and
the never-ending hamster wheel of new business. But before you give up
on me entirely, here’s a few data points.
Studies conducted by Pepperdine University and the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley found
that employees with managers who practiced mindfulness had lower
emotional exhaustion, less stress, a better sense of work-life balance
and, most importantly, higher productivity. In addition, these employees
were more effective peers and managers themselves as well as more
emotionally intelligent. And let’s not forget that numerous studies have shown that the number one reason people stay at a job is due to their relationship with their manager.
And there’s actually nothing “squishy” about mindfulness. In fact,
this practice has been employed by Eve Ekman (our amazing mindfulness
guide) with doctors and nurses at trauma centers, with statistically
significant results in reducing stress, anxiety and depression, and in
turn, reducing mistakes and driving outcomes. (And if trauma centers
aren’t a good comp for ad agencies, I don’t know what is.)
So, to all you managers out there: just give it a try. When you walk
into your next meeting remember that it’s about everyone who’s there
except you. And that if you set your intention based on what they need
and are truly present in that interaction, you may just get more out of
them. And you’ll maybe even feel more mellow in the process.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/how-a-mindfulness-practice-can-calm-your-mind-and-also-refresh-your-managerial-approach.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-07-08 12:38:002022-05-02 15:51:11How a Mindfulness Practice Can Calm Your Mind and Also Refresh Your Managerial Approach
We often do not even consider that we could have a problem with meditation instructions, or that the meditation instructions may not be the “right” ones for us.
The problem with meditation instructions is that one often
assumes if it works for someone else it should work for you. I came
across this article and thought it would be good to share
BEFORE WE MEDITATE for the first time, we have ideas about what
meditation is, what it does, and where it should lead. Then when we get
our introductory instructions—either out of a book or magazine, or from a
teacher leading a class or a retreat—we’re hopeful that the
instructions will fulfill our purpose for meditating and that meditation
will do for us what it has reportedly done for others. We look forward
to becoming calmer, to our physical pain diminishing, and to our
emotional stress and turmoil being eased; we anticipate meditation
granting us the peace of mind we so earnestly seek.
We often do not even consider that we could have problems following
the meditation instructions, or that the meditation instructions may not
be the “right” ones for us. We assume that meditation practices are
proven to work for most anyone, so when we experience frustration with
the task of meditating, we often lay the blame on ourselves. We don’t
see that the meditation practice itself has something to do with it.
Contemporary Buddhist teachers often instruct that the real
obstacles, or hindrances, in meditation are negative emotional states or
unskillful types of thinking. Unfortunately, this view only deflects
our attention from what actually keeps us stuck in our practice: the way
we do our meditation practice. In fact, it is not what we experience in
meditation that creates the hindrance, it is how we apply the
instructions. Having negative emotions and discursive thoughts are
common meditation experiences, but they do not control our practice in
the same way the meditation instructions do.
Over the last two decades in which I have been teaching meditation, I
have observed that much of our frustration, struggle, feelings of
failure and low self-esteem as meditators is linked to the way we have
been applying meditation instructions. This is in part due to the way
that we hold on to the correctness of the instructions and how we adopt
rules that prohibit certain experiences, both of which can create
impasses in our meditation practice. These are two of the most common
causes for the experience of being stuck.
Many of us encounter an impasse when we are trying to figure out how
to do the instructions correctly. The notion that there is a definitive
right way of doing a particular meditation practice keeps the impasse
alive. We assume that if we can figure out the right way to sit, and
just do it, our sittings will be harmonious.
For example, instructions for watching the breath in the Vipassana
tradition often raise questions about following the instructions
correctly. Is it correct to observe the breath at the nostrils or the
abdomen? If it is correct to observe it at the nostrils, how are you
supposed to observe it—as a sensation of air passing over your upper lip
on the way out and as a sensation in your nostrils on the way in? Is it
okay to follow the breath into the lungs? And what about the abdomen?
Are we noticing the breath going in or out of our bodies, or are we
supposed to notice the rising and falling of the abdomen only? And why
the abdomen? Don’t we naturally experience our chest heave and fall as
we breathe? What about being aware of the sound of the breath? That,
too, is a part of our experience of breathing. But Vipassana teachers
often tell us that there is one correct way of observing the breath and
that other ways are not right.
The Vipassana tradition and most other Buddhist traditions generally
discourage doubting the meditation instructions we are given. We are
often told that doubting our teachers and their traditions is a
hindrance to practice, but this puts us in a bind: If we discover a way
to do a meditation practice that seems more conducive to concentration
and wisdom than the established way, we have to either disregard our
discovery or disobey the instructions. If you take the approach of not
doubting the instructions, you are likely to try to follow the
instructions with more effort in order to make them work as well as, or
better than, the way you discovered on your own.
But this direction often strengthens obstacles instead of weakening
them. Pushing yourself to follow the instructions more correctly, and
then finding yourself stuck in similar ways, and then trying harder to
follow the directions often just puts you in cycles of meditative
success and failure. As long as you are primarily focused on doing a
practice correctly, you will only examine the practice through the lens
of figuring what you are doing wrong so that you can stop doing that and
just do the practice in the right way. But what you don’t see is what
the practice is doing to you.
Although we are not often taught this, the most skillful way through
an impasse in meditation is to become aware of it and of what holds it
together and keeps it running. To do this, you need to keep doing the
meditation instructions that have gotten you to this point, but instead
of following them “harder,” try approaching them in a softer, gentler
manner. Do them loosely, and don’t do them all of the time. Instead, try
doing them when it is easy to do them, or, when you feel you need to.
But also be willing not to do them every single time you feel the need.
By adding flexibility and choice to a meditation practice that has
become rigid and restrictive, we move our attention away from a narrow
focus on doing the instructions correctly to a broader awareness of how
we are doing the instructions. We discover that sometimes we are using
the instructions to get to some desired or anticipated meditative state
and other times we are using them to avoid certain feelings, memories,
or thoughts. Then there are those times when we would otherwise feel
lost and confused in our meditation sittings and need the instructions
as an anchor. There are many ways we have held onto the instructions we
have received, so by giving more space around them and giving ourselves
permission not to follow them, we can begin to see what they are
actually doing for us.
AS WE LEARN TO WORK skillfully with the instructions instead of
resolutely pushing ourselves to follow the instructions as correctly as
possible, we will begin to see the other most common cause for impasses:
adopting rules that prohibit certain experiences. On a basic level,
meditation instructions are rules you should follow during meditation.
If they don’t start out as rules, they eventually turn into rules. A
simple instruction to bring your attention back to the breath when the
mind wanders becomes a rule prohibiting thinking, reminiscing, planning,
drifting, contemplating, and so on. Even if a teacher then states that
you should practice greater acceptance of the wandering mind and only
gently bring your attention back to the breath, the rule prohibiting
mind-wandering still remains intact. The way we tend to relate to
contradictory meditation instructions (which is what “Bring your
attention back to the breath” and “Have greater acceptance of the
wandering mind” are) is to resolve the contradiction in favor of the
rule that clearly exhibits the fundamental principle of the meditation
practice: to train one’s attention to stay with the breath.
The kinds of impasses we get into when we meditate according to a
system of rules are those based on controlling and dominating our
experiences. We have a rule about not drifting off in meditation, and so
we work to stop ourselves from doing so. We have a rule about not
rehashing the conversations and events of the day, so we try to get
through those segments of our sittings and on to something more
“meditative.” We have a rule to sit with our backs straight, and so we
correct our posture each time it slumps. We have rules about not
fantasizing or planning or ruminating or working on projects, and so we
devalue or disregard those experiences.
I suggest you become aware of the rules in your meditation practice,
and not just try to stop them, for that would just be creating a rule
not to have rules. You will have rules in your meditation practice, but
they need to be ones that serve you rather than oppress you. The rules
need to be open to questioning, to reassessment, and to further
refinement. Global rules, where you have to do the same thing in all
instances, are not as helpful as rules that have specific contexts in
which they are used. For example, a rule to “always stop one’s mind from
wandering” is not as helpful as a rule to “disengage from planning the
execution of a harmful action” (such as seeking revenge).
Are there meditation instructions that don’t foster the exclusion of
experiences? Even when a meditation practice is presented as accepting
of everything, as open to the full range of one’s experience, there are
still experiences—such as drifting off or having mundane thoughts—that
tend to be excluded. It might be quite a revolution in our thinking
about meditation to consider including all types of experiences in our
regular sittings. If you are going to include the various experiences of
thinking, you may find yourself thinking quite a bit more than your
comfort level. If you include drowsiness and dull mind states, you may
find yourself falling asleep. “How would this be meditating?” you might
ask.
There is a middle way here between the extremes of rigidity and
passivity, one that offers a more legitimate form of meditation. The
beginning instructions I have given for nearly two decades provide just
enough of a grounding in the seated body for the meditator to develop a
capacity to be with thoughts, feelings, and sensations as they arise.
These suggestions are loose and open, but you can make them tighter if
you need to. The instructions are as follows:
Sit in a comfortable position, one that you would not need to change
duringthe sitting. If you do need to change your position, do so slowly
and consciously. You may also lie down, but try to adopt a position that
you would not normally sleep in.
Bring your attention to the touch of your hands resting in your lap
or on your thighs. But do not try to hold your attention there. Allow
thoughts, feelings, and sensations to arise, and let your attention go
with them.
If your attention leaves the touch of the hands for a long period of
time (several minutes), you can gently bring your attention back.
Otherwise, just sit with what comes up. If you encounter an experience
that is hard to tolerate, after a while of being with it you can bring
your attention back to the touch of the hands. But only hold it there
long enough to feel grounded or relaxed, and then, if your mind goes
into that kind of experience again, just let it.
People have made rules out of these instructions, and you might too.
That is fine. At some point, hopefully, you will become aware of those
rules. But, for now, it is enough to know that there is no way to do
this wrong, as it is not about following an instruction as much as about
allowing your experiences to unfold. Seeing for yourself, from your own
experience, what works and what doesn’t is what meditation is all
about.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/the-problem-with-meditation-instructions.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-06-21 14:10:002022-05-02 15:51:11The problem with meditation instructions
Emotional intelligence may be the most important soft skill for the workforce of tomorrow. Emotional intelligence becomes a key ingredient for successful teams. Can you train for emotional intelligence? Yes see our course to help youy and your employees.
As technology evolves faster than workers’ technical skills can keep
up, employers are being forced to upskill employees on their own. To
that end, they’re focused on workers with good “learnability,“ experts say.
But they’re not just training on technical skills; they’re trying to
teach communication, leadership, time management and, increasingly,
emotional intelligence. EI (or EQ) is generally considered a
self-awareness that allows an individual to identify and express their
own emotions and manage their response to things that trigger them. It
allows us to recognize and understand emotional responses in others and
influence them, if needed. But can you really train for EI?
Training for EI
Most experts agree EI is not an inherent trait: As children, we were
trained to manage our emotions. If our parents were successful, we don’t
throw temper tantrums as adults. In the workplace, EI is a valuable
skill; after all, few work in a complete vacuum, and relationships
between colleagues at all levels are influenced by emotions. The ability
to recognize triggers and manage responses is a necessity. The ability
to recognize what triggers others and influence them is a skill.
EI can be refined to help workers control their own emotions and
build stronger relationships with peers. Managing disruptive, knee-jerk
responses to emotional triggers reduces unwanted behaviors. And the
ability to tap into positive, self-driving emotions — like confidence
and enthusiasm — lead to more beneficial outcomes. EI can help manage
conflict, lead through challenges and build relationships.
EI is learned and developed over the course of one’s life, according
to Marc Brackett, founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional
Intelligence and a founding advisor at the Oji Life Lab. “We’re not born
with a rich emotional vocabulary or the knowledge of how regulate our
feelings,” he told HR Dive. We’re taught to control our emotions and
while we all feel emotions throughout the workday, “EI development
provides the ability to articulate and manage them effectively.”
Why it’s so important
It’s easy to see where that fits into the workplace. “Emotional
intelligence becomes a key ingredient for successful teams and the
relationships between managers and their direct reports,“ Kristen
Fyfe-Mills, associate director, communications at The Association for
Talent Development told HR Dive via email. “It is an ingredient that can
fuel collaboration and cooperation across teams and contributes to a
positive culture.”
When someone has cultivated their emotional intelligence, they’re
often able to see with a broader lens, not just their own perspective
and experience of the world, according to Shelley Osborne, head of
learning and development at Udemy. In the workplace, this can translate
to increased empathy, self-awareness, accountability and, ultimately,
improved relationship management, she said.
“Work is all about people and interactions,” according to Robin
Stern, associate director of partnerships at the Yale Center for
Emotional Intelligence and an Oji Life Lab founding advisor. ”Emotions
impact our focus and our ability to work, to make good decisions and
judgments. Emotions are contagious,” she said. Similarly, the ability to
read emotions is important: they guide us to avoid or approach people,
she explained, which affects teams and collaboration.
It makes sense, then, that employers might want leaders with high EI.
“Someone with high emotional intelligence assumes good intent and
avoids jumping to conclusions when interacting with their colleagues,”
according to Osborne. They don’t immediately point fingers when
experiencing a conflict with a co-worker. “They seek to understand and
uncover the core of the issue and better understand others’
perspectives,” she said.
Teamwork and collaboration stand to benefit the most, according to
Kathi Enderes, VP of talent and workforce research at Bersin, Deloitte
Consulting LLP. Those items are “at the heart of today’s most successful
organizations, and team members who are emotionally intelligent will
work together best,” she wrote to HR Dive.
Selling it to employees
EI can help anyone work better together, according Andrea Hoban,
Oji Life Lab’s head of learning. She said she works with a wide array of
clients, from surgeons to ship builders and everyone in between. “It’s
acknowledgement that if I don’t know how I’m feeling, I may have an
unregulated response that could create a relationship that’s difficult.”
And while it may seem insulting to tell employees they need to
improve their emotional control, a good pitch can make the difference.
Approaching the issue from the perspective of building stronger
awareness and more cohesive relationships may be the key.
Teams may be interested to know that such training can help them work
more effectively together. For some groups, like nurses and physicians,
Hoban said, it even enhances their ability to work with patients and
their families more successfully. The training can benefit personal
relationships, she noted, even giving individuals the tools to deal with
teenage children.
Even employees or leaders who may already have strong emotional
intelligence can stand to uncover areas with room for improvement, said
Osborne; “Self-awareness is a key component of emotional intelligence
and employees who seek honest feedback will reap the rewards of personal
and professional development as a result.”
Added bonuses for the future of work
Leaders with high EI also may be critical to their organizations’
futures. “Emotional intelligence is a key factor to unlock inclusion and
innovation,“ said Enderes. A team with emotionally intelligent members
will generate more ideas, create more opportunities to voice these ideas
and provide more contribution to the overall business.
It’s also perhaps the only component of intelligence that machines
have not mastered (yet) and therefore is the only difference between
humans and artificial intelligence, according to Enderes; ”As automation
replaces tasks that machines are best at, having people that are best
at what humans do – empathy, sensing, adjusting interactions – will
enable businesses to create a powerful human/machine collaboration.”
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for
over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the
most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/can-you-train-for-emotional-intelligence.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-06-18 12:41:002022-05-02 15:51:11Can you train for emotional intelligence?
Yoga is a phenomenal form of physical exercise, mental discipline, and spiritual healing. You know it’s awesome when you get all these benefits of yoga. See the 11 benefits of yoga.
I’ve been doing Tai Chi for over 23 years and I’ve benefited greatly
from all aspects of it. But I would also highly recommend the benefits
of Yoga as it is an absolutely phenomenal form of physical exercise,
mental discipline, and spiritual healing. You know something is awesome
when it can do all of those things at once. Anyway, there is a long list
of benefits that you can and should take advantage of that all come
with the simple thing that is Yoga. You may think that Yoga is only for
women, but that is not so,
especially seeing as more and more men are taking it up every day. No
matter if you are a man or woman, Yoga has many different advantages for
the mind and body, all of which you absolutely need to start taking advantage of as soon as possible!
What Is Yoga?
Yoga is originally a Hindu form of exercise, stretching, and mental
training. In fact, it is also seen as a spiritual and ascetic discipline
as well as a physical one. Yoga is widely practiced around the world
and is revered for its mental and physical benefits. It involves a lot
of mental focus, breathing control, meditation, and simple poses which
are meant to strengthen both your body and mind. There are many
different variations of Yoga, with a popular one being hot Yoga, a type which is practiced in a very hot room.
Benefit #1: Muscle Strengthening
One big benefit that you get from doing some regular Yoga is the strengthening of your muscles.
Yoga involves a lot of positions and movements that force you to hold
up your body weight in one way or another, and in some pretty odd
looking positions too. The obvious result of this is that your muscles will become stronger over time.
A big part of this involves your back muscles and your core, as many
Yoga poses are oriented towards challenging those muscles. This is
however also true for virtually every other muscle in your body too.
Everything from your forearms and shoulders to your glutes and calves
will become stronger thanks to some Yoga classes. Of course, we all want
strong muscles, and that is not only because they look sexy. Strong
muscles help to increase our physical performance, they make sports
easier, they make us run faster and jump higher, and they help to make a plethora of daily tasks much easier, not to mention that it doesn’t hurt our self-esteem either.
Benefit #2: Cartilage & Joint Protection
Yet another benefit that you can reap from doing Yoga is that it is
fantastic for the health of your cartilage and for your joints. This is
in part due to your increased flexibility thanks to Yoga, especially
when it comes to the health of your joints, but there is even more to it
than that. You see, the problem is that as you age, especially if you
are not physically active, your joints, or to be exact, the cartilage
that helps your joints move smoothly, starts to break down and
deteriorate. This can cause some seriously painful problems such as
arthritis in your old age, plus having no cartilage between your joints
will be painful either way, not to mention cause a limited range of
motion. Yoga is a great way to mitigate the effects of disability and prevent things like arthritis
because of the nourishing effect it has on the cartilage in your
joints. You see, the cartilage in your joints requires nutrients just
like every other part of your body. The difference is that your
cartilage really only gets necessary nutrients when it is in motion,
such as during Yoga. Yoga has the effect of squeezing your cartilage,
which is very beneficial because your sponge-like cartilage needs to be
squeezed to get nutrients.
Benefit #3: Flexibility
One of the biggest benefits that you will be able to reap thanks to some regular Yoga is increasing your flexibility.
You may not be all that flexible yet and touching your toes might seem
akin to flying under your own power when it comes to your first Yoga
class. However, as you go back to your Yoga class day after day, you
will notice your muscles, joints, and ligaments getting looser and
looser. Before you know it, you will be bending over backward and
wrapping yourself up like a pretzel without any issue at all. Many, if
not all of the poses that you do in Yoga will stretch out your body
in one way or another, thus making you more flexible as time goes on.
Being more flexible is great for many different things including
preventing pulled muscles and other injuries, plus it can be pretty
useful when it comes to your love life as well. Being more flexible is
also useful in terms of relieving certain aches and pains. For instance,
having tight hips can cause knee pain, a tight upper back can cause
back pain, and tight hamstrings can lead to severe lower back pain, all problems that can be solved with some simple Yoga.
20 Minute Yoga for Flexibility | Level 1
Benefit #4: Strengthening The Immune System & Regulating The Adrenal System
Yoga can also be very beneficial for your immune system
because it helps to drain your lymphatic system. When you do Yoga, you
stretch out your muscles and compress them at the same time, plus you
move your organs around too. This has the effect of draining a viscous
fluid known as lymph out of the various lymph nodes in your body. This
fluid is something that your body will produce on its own, but the new
fluid that is created after the old fluid is drained out, is much more
effective at disposing of toxic chemicals and waste, killing cancer
cells, and fighting off infection in general. Another reason why Yoga
helps you improve the function of your immune system has to do with the
levels of cortisol in your body. Regular Yoga can help lower cortisol
levels and that is generally a good thing. Yes, increased levels of
cortisol can temporarily increase immune function and it can help with
memory too, but that is not the case for prolonged periods where
cortisol levels are high. Prolonged periods of high cortisol levels can
damage your immune system, decrease your long and short term memory,
can cause depression, and even osteoporosis too. Therefore, Yoga can
help prevent all of those conditions by regulating your adrenal glands
and your overall cortisol levels.
Benefit #5: Heart Health & Increasing Blood Flow
Now to be clear, most of the things you do in Yoga are not technically considered to be aerobic exercises,
which is the kind of exercise needed to increase the health of your
heart, but that is not always true because Yoga can actually improve your heart health.
You can actually perform Yoga at a fast pace or engage in certain types
of Yoga which incorporate aspects of aerobic fitness. In essence, this
means that you get your heart pumping at an aerobic level, which means
that it is pumping much faster than normal. Your heart beating much
faster than normal is akin to lifting weights for your muscles, or in
other words, it makes it stronger and more efficient. Having a healthier
heart has many different benefits
including the lowering of your resting heart rate, the increased
efficiency of your heart, a reduced risk of heart attacks and strokes, a
reduction in heart and arterial disease, and increased endurance too.
One of the biggest benefits that you get from Yoga and aerobic exercise
in general is that it will help lower your blood pressure, plus of course, provide you with a longer and healthier life
in general. Moreover, many Yoga exercises and poses also help to
increase circulation, and not only because your heart works more
efficiently. This is because poses such as those where you twist parts
of your body help to wring blood out of your organs, send it back to
your lungs and heart for oxygenation, and ultimately help to bring more
fresh blood to your organs, something which benefits them in multiple
ways. Certain poses such as handstands
can also help blood flow more readily from the legs and pelvis back to
your heart, something that can help you if you suffer from swollen
ankles, swollen legs, and kidney problems too. Finally, Yoga can also
help create more hemoglobin in your blood, which are the things that
carry oxygen throughout your body, thus giving your body a better supply
of oxygen, something which it needs for many different things including
physical activity. On a side note, the aerobic effects of certain Yoga
poses and types of Yoga also help to increase the efficiency at which
your lungs absorb and process oxygen, which is also known as VO2, thus
allowing your body to use more oxygen.
The combination of better circulation, a more efficient heart, more
oxygen carrying hemoglobin, and stronger lungs all lead to one main
benefit, that being increased muscular endurance and a better ability to
perform physical activity for a prolonged period of time.
Benefit #6: Maintaining A Healthy Digestive System
The next benefit that you get from doing Yoga is that it can prevent
and control digestion issues such as irritable bowel syndrome, and can
help you digest food better even if you do have a healthy digestive
system. This is because Yoga involves a lot of twisting poses
that cause your bowels and intestines to contract and loosen. The long
term effect of this is that Yoga stimulates your body to pass food and
waste through itself more quickly, thus aiding in proper digestion,
good nutrient absorption, and regularity in the bathroom. Instead of
pounding back glasses full of that disgusting Metamucil, you can always
try doing some Yoga instead.
Benefit #7: Bettering Your Posture – Your Back
Another benefit that you can get from doing even minimal Yoga is an improvement in your overall posture.
Since Yoga does a lot to make your more flexible and limber, and also
helps to strengthen your core and back muscles, the result will be
better posture. Having good posture, which means having a straight back
with your head directly above it, requires a strong core,
back, shoulders, and good neck muscles too. Yoga is something that
through various poses will help strengthen all of the necessary muscles
needed for good posture. Having good posture is not only good for
looking more confident and taller, but also for your physical health.
When you have bad posture, you will most likely be slouched over with
your head leaning forward, something that can cause fatigue in your neck
and back. When you have good posture with a straight back and your head
perfectly above your back, it takes a lot less effort for your muscles
to keep you balanced and upright, therefore decreasing muscle fatigue.
Moreover, having good posture is also a great way to relieve daily
pains. This is because bad posture often leads to neck, back, and leg
pain, all things which some regular Yoga exercises can help get rid of.
On a side note, Yoga is also good for your back,
especially your spinal disks because they can get damaged and compress
nerves. Some simple Yoga moves can go a long way in decompressing your
spine and the nerves in it, plus it helps deliver much-needed nutrients
to your spinal cord too.
Benefit #8: Increased Cognitive Abilities
Something else that Yoga is shown to help you with is with a long list of cognitive abilities.
First of all, Yoga requires a whole lot of focus and concentration,
both things which can be improved through training. Without
concentration and focus, you can’t really do Yoga. Exercise like Yoga is
also known to cause an increase in the production of neurotransmitters
in your brain as well as the rate at which those transmitters function.
This has the effect of increasing your long and short term memory, your
focus and concentration, your problem solving skills, and your overall cognitive abilities.
Yoga is also a type of exercise that concentrates on being in touch
with your mind and improving mental skills, something which everybody
can definitely benefit from.
Benefit #9: Better Bone Health
The next benefit you need to take advantage of through Yoga are the serious bone building benefits
that it brings to the table. Many Yoga positions are known as weight
bearing exercises. Weight bearing exercises are any kind of exercises
which force a certain part of your body to hold up your own body weight
and put a larger than normal amount of strain and pressure on your
bones. This has the effect of increasing the strength, size, and density
of your bones. There are many Yoga poses which have you on your legs,
or just one leg, and many which have you supporting your weight with your arms.
Well, when you do any of those things, the weight you put on your bones
causes the cells in your bones known as osteoblasts to generate more
bone mass, thus resulting in thicker, denser, and stronger bones. This
is a very useful benefit, especially as you get older because old age
can cause bone diseases such as osteoporosis, something which can be
prevented or mitigated through bone building exercises such as Yoga.
Moreover, having stronger bones also means that you have a lower chance
of suffering a fracture or broken bone.
Benefit #10: It Helps Make You Happier
Yoga is also good for your mind, not just for your body. Yoga is good
because it helps to provide your mind with more beneficial
neurochemicals. Yoga is shown to increase the levels of serotonin, dopamine, and certain endocannabinoids, all of which are shown to make you feel happier, decrease anxiety, and help get rid of the effects of depression
too. These neurochemicals are all very important for your mental
wellbeing and for regulating mood. This phenomenon of exercise producing
neurochemicals which make you feel happier, elated, and joyful, is also
known as the runner’s high. Also, Yoga is shown to decrease the amount
of monoamine oxidase in your brain. This is a substance that breaks down
neurotransmitters, something which negatively affects your mood and
cognitive abilities. The bottom line is that Yoga can provide for a happier you
and that is a big bonus. On a side note, Yoga is also shown to relieve
stress and relieve you of negative feelings such as anger and rage.
Benefit #11: Improving Your Balance
Yet another big benefit that you can reap from doing Yoga is an increased ability to balance.
Yoga involves a whole lot of odd positions that force you to balance,
something that is otherwise known as proprioception. Your balance is
actually regulated by things called proprioceptors. Well, just like with
your bones, muscles, memory, and more, the more you do balance training,
the better your proprioceptors become at accommodating for positional
shifts and imbalances in order to help your body stay upright. Having better balance is a great thing to have, especially if you like sports that require a lot of it, sports such as skating or hockey, or even gymnastics too.
Conclusion
The fact of the matter is that the benefits of Yoga definitely
outweigh any preconceived notions that you may have about it. Your
strength, balance, flexibility, digestion, mental abilities, happiness,
and more will all benefit from this awesome discipline so you should definitely give it a try
as soon as you can! If you have any questions or comments about Yoga,
please feel free to shoot us a message and we will get back to you at
the first available opportunity.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/11-benefits-of-yoga.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-06-12 14:15:002022-05-02 15:51:1111 benefits of yoga that will have you wondering why you never tried it before
Worked all day & probably too tired to do some sitting meditation in the evening? Why not practice mindfulness at work? Mindfulness also helps develop EQ.
This is a primary lessons we teach on the Just Being emotional intelligence course.
You’re at work all day and probably too tired to do some sitting
meditation in the evening or annoyed you skipped a morning session. Why
not practice mindfulness at work? I saw this post at the Huffington post and thought I would share.
On any given workday, most people appreciate a little break time. But
not everyone knows how valuable truly taking a moment can be ― because
how you use a break is just as important as the break itself. It’s all
too common: you finally get a much-needed break, and end up spending it
playing a game on your phone, browsing the web, or using other methods
of distraction to take you away from the here and now. Before you know
it, the break is over, and it’s back to work feeling anything but
refreshed.
What if there was a way for you to really take advantage of that
break, to improve your productivity and just your general sense of
well-being? Together with Aetna, we want to show you how mindfulness ― the act of being present in the moment ― can help you achieve just that.
What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is not a new concept ― its roots can be traced back to
Buddhist practices in meditation. But this practice is having a moment
in the mainstream during a time when most people are rarely away from a
screen or disconnected from a constant barrage of communication ― which
is no coincidence. Michael Chaskalson,
one of the U.K.’s leading mindfulness trainers, has worked with
companies and individuals alike to educate them on incorporating
mindfulness into busy lives. And he thinks that mindfulness is becoming
more popular for a couple of reasons. “It’s the coming together of two
things,” said Chaskalson. “One is the science ― there’s been an
extraordinary upsurge in research on mindfulness ― so we know a lot
more.” The field is now far more grounded in facts, he added. “The other
part is that people are struggling. It’s tough out there, we’re living
in an ‘always on’ world. People aren’t taking breaks ― and some of these
demands are self-imposed. It’s really important to come away from
devices and actually experience the rest of the world.”
“When I returned to work after giving birth to my son, I started
meditating at the office for just five minutes daily. These short
sessions really help me to transition from my ‘mom mind’ to my ‘boss
mind.’”
Workers In The U.S. Are Taking Fewer Breaks
If you work for a living, chances are you’ve been touched by the “go,
go, go” mentality that too often comes hand-in-hand with unprecedented
constant availability, thanks to our now-ubiquitous digital connections.
We’re getting more done than ever before, but at what cost?
Counterintuitive as it may seem, a growing body of research suggests
that setting aside work to take breaks actually increases our
productivity. However, when we do take breaks, the majority of us are
taking low-quality breaks without paying attention to what will truly
help us focus when we return to work. And the longer we work without
interruption, the more our productivity suffers.
Small breaks from work are the perfect time to practice mindfulness ―
by truly being present in the moment, paying attention to yourself and
your surroundings. “It’s very important to spend some time simply with
your experience rather than with your thinking mind,” said Chaskalson.
“Experiencing means, when you go for a walk, do you experience your body
moving, do you experience sights, do you experience smells? Are you
involved in the world around you?”
“Every hour, I take a moment to stretch and consciously focus on how
my body feels; this is the ultimate 30-second undercover mindfulness
exercise.”
Eat With Purpose
A genuine away-from-your desk “lunch hour” seems to be, for many, a
relic of the past ― a time when workers weren’t expected to perform job
duties in a moment’s notice and be reachable at any time. One survey from 2012 found
that only one in five office workers even eat lunch away from their
desks. The trouble is, eating is not something that should be done
mindlessly.Mindless eating does not just limit your enjoyment of food ― it also tends to makes one eat faster,
resulting in a delayed feeling of fullness and a higher calorie intake
overall. Susan Albers, a clinical psychologist and the bestselling
author of Eating Mindfully,
acknowledges that while a full lunch hour is ideal, it may not be
realistic for many American workers. Leaving one’s office, let alone
turning off devices and being unreachable, may seem like an
impossibility (and, let’s be honest, zero distraction sounds like a
recipe for boredom). “Some of [what constitutes] mindful eating is
really just a shift in mindset,” said Albers. “You can still have
distractions, but the question is ‘Are you focused enough on what it is
that you’re eating?’” This focus can take many forms, but the most
important part of it is presence of mind, and awareness of what you’re
eating, how it tastes, and how you feel while eating it. No time to do
this for your whole meal? Try just the first bite: “Take a moment to
take a deep breath or pause before you start eating, or make just your
first bite be a mindful bite; because you become habituated to your food
after a few bites, the first bite is actually the most flavorful,” she
said.
“Mindfulness has stopped many workplace snafus from happening in the
first place. Once the mind is calm, a resolution can be reached.”
Nurture Your Body And Mind
Are you a lunchtime gymgoer? While most of us wish to zone out during
our workouts, you can use at least a portion of that time to practice
mindfulness. Studies have found that being more mindful during exercise
may actually affect our likelihood of sticking with a regular routine.
The uptick in adherence researchers observe may have to do with the
satisfaction we experience as a result of our awareness: awareness that
reminds us why we’re taking care of our bodies, and how it makes us
feel.
“If you’re exercising, don’t try to multitask,” said Chaskalson.
“Don’t try to sit in the gym reading your emails or go for a run
listening to an audiobook. When you’re running, run. When you’re on a
treadmill, experience yourself running on a treadmill ― at least for
some of the time.”
If meditation is more your speed, you can look forward to exercise of
a different kind ― by improving the way your brain functions.
Judson Brewer,
director of research at the Center for Mindfulness and an associate
professor in the departments of medicine and psychiatry at the
University of Massachusetts, is an expert in mindfulness training for
addictions, and has studied how mindfulness and meditation affects the
brain.
“When we look at brains of both novice and experienced meditators,
their entire brain during meditation is less active than during
baseline,” said Brewer. “There’s a certain part of the brain that gets
activated when we get caught up in our experience ― [for example] when
we’re stressed out, angry, ruminating or craving. This region is also
the one that is deactivated during meditation and mindfulness. And when
you’re deactivating that, it seems that the brain in general works more
efficiently.”
To explain this concept, he uses an analogy: “[Imagine] we’re driving
the car with one foot on the brake and one on the gas. When we pull our
foot off the brake, we don’t have to apply any more gas ― the car
drives faster and more efficiently. In the same way, if we get out of
our own way, then our brains are freed up to function more efficiently
and do their jobs better.”
Even if you don’t have the flexibility to take long breaks, you can
still incorporate this important practice into your daily life ― and add
some much-needed relief and replenishment to your regular routine.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/want-to-practice-mindfulness-start-at-work.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-05-16 15:07:372022-05-02 15:51:11Want to practice mindfulness? practice mindfulness at work
The true contemplative goal has always been altered traits, meditation practice leads to altered traits. Learn how our course can assist.
I found this and have been meaning to share for ages how a
meditation practice leads to altered traits. Secular meditation pioneers
Daniel Goleman and Richard J. Davidson explain the benefits of a stable
practice that go beyond relaxation and focus in this excerpt from their
book Altered Traits.
Historically, meditation was not meant to improve our health, relax
us, or enhance work success. Although these are the kinds of appeal that
has made meditation ubiquitous today, over the centuries such benefits
were incidental, unnoted side effects. The true contemplative goal has
always been altered traits, the beneficial changes in qualities of being
during daily life that result from sustained practice.
The strongest signs of these qualities were found in a group of yogis who were studied at the Center for Healthy Minds at
the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This raises a crucial question in
understanding how contemplative practice works: those yogis all practice
within a spiritual tradition, in the “deep” mode of full-time practice
exemplified by monks, nuns, and yogis in Asian cultures. Yet most of us
in today’s world prefer our practice easy (and
brief)—a pragmatic approach that tends to borrow what works in the
short-term for immediate benefits, such as stress relief, and leave
behind the rest, such as the de-emphasis of the self.
And quite a lot has been left behind as the world’s rich contemplative traditions morphed into user-friendly forms.
Some important components of contemplative practice are not
meditation per se. Meditation represents just one part of a range of
means—for instance, following a strict code of self-discipline—that
helps increase self-awareness, gain insights into the subtleties of
consciousness, and, ultimately, achieve a lasting transformation of
being. These daunting goals require lifelong dedication.
The yogis all practiced in a Tibetan tradition that holds the ideal
that eventually people everywhere can be freed from suffering of all
sorts—and that the meditator sets out toward this enormous task through
mind training. Part of this yogic mindset involves developing more
equanimity toward our own emotional world, as well as the conviction
that meditation and related practices can produce lasting
transformation: altered traits.
While some of those who follow the “deep” path in the West may
themselves hold such convictions, others who train in those same methods
do so on a path to renewal—a kind of inner vacation—rather than to
follow for a lifelong calling. (Motivations can, however, change with
progress, so what brought someone to meditation may not be the same goal
that keeps them going.)
The sense of a life mission centered on practice numbers among those
elements so often left behind in Asia, but that may matter greatly.
Among others that might, in fact, be crucial for cultivating altered
traits:
An ethical stance, a set of moral guidelines that
facilitate the inner changes on the path. Many traditions urge such an
inner compass, lest any abilities developed be used for personal gain.
Altruistic intention, where the practitioner invokes the strong motivation to practice for the benefit all others, not just oneself.
Grounded faith, the mindset that a particular path
has value and will lead you to the transformation you seek. Some texts
warn against blind faith and urge students to do what we call today “due
diligence” in finding a teacher.
Personalized guidance, a knowledgeable teacher who coaches you on the path, giving you the advice you need to go the next step.
Devotion, a deep appreciation for all the people,
principles, and such that make practice possible. Devotion can also be
to the qualities of a divine figure, a teacher, or the teacher’s altered
traits or quality of mind.
Community, a supportive circle of friends on the path who are themselves dedicated to practice.
A supportive culture, traditional Asian cultures
have long recognized the value of people who devote their life to
transforming themselves to embody virtues of attention, patience,
compassion, and so on. Those who work and have families willingly
support those who dedicate themselves to deep practice by giving the
money, feeding them, and otherwise making life easier. This is often not
the case in modern societies.
Potential for altered traits, the very idea that
these practices can lead to a liberation from our ordinary mind
states—not self-improvement—has always framed these practices, fostering
respect or reverence for the path and those on it.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/meditation-practice-leads-to-altered-traits.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-03-26 14:07:002022-05-02 15:51:12How a consistent and stable meditation practice leads to altered traits
surfing improves your emotional intelligence. It’s not surprising why psychologists and coaching experts find emotional intelligence to be one of the key predictors of success. See how surfing helps your EQ. See other methods.
Emotional Intelligence, describes an ability or capacity to perceive,
assess, and manage the emotions of one’s self, and of others.
It’s not surprising why psychologists and career coaching experts
find emotional intelligence to be one of the key predictors of success.
That’s because people with high EQ can work well under pressure and
because they are able to understand other people’s emotions, it is
easier for them to get along with others.
Emotionally intelligent people are also effective communicators as
they are able to manage their emotions while responding to others. Their
ability to listen well makes them more sensitive to the needs of
others. Their open-mindedness and capacity for empathy help them adapt
to change in both business or social settings.
Emotionally intelligent people make great leaders because they are
able to make sound decisions based on facts and careful evaluation that
also take into consideration the views of others. They are able to
connect with others emotionally, which helps build trust in any
relationship.
Jobs such as those in sales and customer service in which emotional
competencies obviously make a big difference, we already intuitively
know. What surprised me was from the work done at Google with their ‘Search Inside Yourself’
course. They reported that this is true even for individual
contributors in the tech sector, namely engineers whom you would expect
to succeed purely on intellectual prowess. The top six competencies that
distinguish star performers from average performers in the tech sector
are:
Strong achievement drive and high achievement standards [EQ]
Ability to influence [EQ]
Conceptual thinking [IQ]
Analytical ability [IQ]
Initiative in taking on challenges [EQ]
Self-confidence [EQ]
Of the top six, only two (conceptual thinking and analytical ability)
are purely intellectual competencies. The other four, including the top
two, are emotional competencies.
Decades of research now points to emotional intelligence as the
critical factor that sets star performers apart from the rest of the
pack. It’s a powerful way to focus your energy in one direction with a
tremendous results. TalentSmart tested emotional intelligence alongside
33 other important workplace skills, and found that emotional
intelligence is the strongest predictor of performance, explaining a
full 58 percent of success in all types of jobs.
Emotional Intelligence Can Be Developed.
Some people have naturally good EQ skills. Others need to work on
them. The good news is that everyone can get better. Unlike IQ, people
can actually improve their emotional intelligence. Emotional
intelligence is trainable, even in adults. This claim is based on a new
branch of science known as “neuroplasticity.”
Why surfing helps build EQ
Activity in the presence of nature improves both mental and physical
health, reducing stress, improving attention capacity, mood, and general
well being.
Surfing produces a powerful rush of neurochemicals associated with
happiness and well-being, including oxytocin, endorphins, and dopamine.
This rush of chemicals aids in the reduction of stress and the
enhancement of attention capacity and mood.
There are five categories of emotional intelligence. They are;
Self-awareness. Identify your emotions and analyse your reactions.
Self-regulation. Practice control over your emotions and recognise impulses.
Motivation. An emotionally intelligent person is capable of motivating himself.
Empathy. Empathy is more than just putting yourself in the shoes of others.
Social skills. Hear the words and the emotions behind what was communicated to you, then respond with honesty and sensitivity.
So how do we train emotional intelligence? It turns out the first
step is attention training. The idea is to train attention to create a
quality of mind that is calm and clear at the same time. That quality of
mind forms the foundation for emotional intelligence. The foundation of
surfing is also the foundation of EQ training, “A Strong Attention
Capacity”.
The way to train your attention is with “mindfulness meditation.” Mindfulness is defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn as “paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.”
Mindfulness is a quality of mind that we all experience and enjoy
from time to time. And many a surfer feels this often! It’s something
that can be made stronger with practice. Once it becomes strong, it
leads to calmness and clarity that forms the basis of emotional
intelligence.
Surfing combined with mindfulness can increase the effectiveness of
both practices. Surfing itself is a form of everyday mindfulness. It
demands attention to the present moment. Missing the perfect wave or
getting pounded by an incoming set is strong incentive to maintain
focus.
Surfers must focus all of their attention on balancing on their
boards and getting ready for the next wave. Because this requires so
much attention, surfers don’t have time to worry about anything else.
Anyone who has a lot on their mind can benefit greatly from paddling out
into the water and riding a few waves.
Once you have a solid attention foundation then you can move to
self-awareness. Surfers become more self-aware by riding the waves. This
activity forces them to connect with their bodies, identify their
limitations, and acknowledge their strengths. Becoming more self-aware
can build confidence and help individuals increase their emotional
intelligence.
For many, surfing goes beyond sport and often leads to a more
fulfilling, uplifting, and meaningful life. Surfing is an ideal practice
for supporting long-term mental and physical health.
Surfing isn’t easy. A surfer can spend a lifetime improving their
skills and seeking ever more challenging waves. It is the same journey
if you’re trying to improve your EQ. As you evolve as a surfer and as a
human, strong self-awareness will keep you on the right wave so you can
enjoy the ride 🙂
My years of managing dev teams lead me to develop an EQ training course.
It was easy for me to develop their technical abilities but what I
found, what would truly boost their careers was improving EQ skills.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training. My surfing and windsurfing have also been integral in my understanding of EQ.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
Rushing hinders our capacity to be intellectually and emotionally available. Move through our activity with greater mindfulness and you will get ahead.
This is so true, thought I would share this Blog post from mindful.org. Mistakes can be costly, and can trap you in a cycle of having to rush even more to make up for wasted effort, amplifying stress. Mindfulness can help you get clear on your purpose and do it right once.
Time. It’s our most coveted resource because of its scarcity. In an effort to falsely gain
time during the day we rush through tasks, projects, and our lives. But
we cannot be fully present to life or to our craft when we rush. We can
lose our vision and clarity for success. In reactive mindsets, goals
blur. We get sloppy.
Rushing hinders our capacity to be intellectually and emotionally
available, and capture the opportunities that surface in the present
moment. When we slow down and move through our activity with greater
mindfulness we are more likely to act with the full power available to
us in the present moment.
The Cost of Rushing
Chronic rushing through a never ending to-do list feeds anxiety and
heightens stress levels. Due to the epinephrine, also known as
adrenaline, released in the brain during stressful periods, our brains
get “hooked” on the stimulation of activity. Our bodies become addicted
to rushing and our minds switch into autopilot with everything of high
importance and needing to get accomplished quickly. We start rushing
when rushing is not necessary, or multitasking ourselves into
ineffectiveness. This is particularly true for type A executives and
leaders who tend to get caught in the cost of time ideal, making everything time-sensitive and urgent, when in fact, only a few matters at hand take true priority.
Research from a publication in 2015
titled “To Multitask or Not, That is the Question” notes that
multitasking can reduce effectiveness of even the most refined brains.
According to Dr. John Medina, author of the New York Times bestseller “Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School,”
being interrupted during a task can lead to 50 percent or more errors.
Juggling multiple tasks at once is ineffective compared to immersing
yourself mindfully and cultivating solutions strategically and
efficiently.
When you need to do work two or three times over because you did not
do it right the first time, you begin to see the value of patience and
the cost of rushing. Mistakes can be costly, and can trap you in a cycle
of having to rush even more to make up for wasted effort, causing even
greater stress. The answer? Slow down and do it right once. As a leader
in your field, you are not only being paid to do things quickly, you are
being paid to do things well. And if well means patiently, then you owe
it to yourself and others to stay focused.
Being Gets Lost in Becoming
As a culture, we tend to value doing over being. This is especially
true when we have multiple tasks to complete under pressure. Yet, while
there are some things that take priority to reach our goals, there are
those things we simply do to feel or be perceived as productive. Watch
for these traps, triggers, and time wasters:
excessive multi-tasking
trying to look busy
worrying about being judged by those engaging in office gossip and negativity
measuring your progress simply in deadlines met
regularly working through your lunch break
When we rush through tasks in order to feel busy or to impress, it’s
easy to lose sense of why we are doing them in the first place and their
importance to the direction of our lives.
Transactional versus Transformational
Some tasks that keep you busy on a daily basis are purely
transactional, keeping you active so that internally you feel you are
moving closer to your goals, when in reality, you get caught in an
endless cycle of task completion without any real developmental
progress. When you confuse task completion with value creation—or worse
personal transformation—and commit to busying yourself, it is easy to
neglect the importance of transformation to achieve the results you
desire.
In recent years, HR departments have tried to refocus organizations
and employees to engage in more transformational activities, such as
mindfulness and awareness-based practices. While still results-oriented,
mindfulness can help move ideas, projects, careers, and lives forward.
When individuals engage in transformational activities even around
strategy and goal attainment they tend to self-direct and reach goals
with greater ease and more mindful effort. In my Mindful Leadership
Breakthrough System, we cover important activities such as clarifying
personal purpose, mindset inquiry, mental contrasting, or building trust
that can all help with the urge to rush.
Using Mindfulness to Get Clear on Your Purpose
If greater and faster effort expended no longer yields improvement in
results, and you find yourself rushing constantly, it’s time to slow
down, reevaluate, and re-route. Instead of rushing on, create a strategy
and think things through. Try these five mindful steps to keep you
focused while creating a plan for success that re-aligns your activity
with your desired results.
1. What’s the ideal outcome for today and for the future.
Think about your ideal outcome and get clear on your vision of the life
you wish to lead. Ask yourself “What does my ideal life look like? What does it feel like? Am I acting in alignment with that?” Often we chase after job titles or companies to work for because we think that’s what we should or ought
to do. We don’t reflect on whether or not the details of the position
or company culture are in alignment with our personalities, ethics, or
life goals. We jump in at the deep end with narrow expectations: more
money, more prestige, more power. Remember, the result of your
uninformed decision could be your life five months from now, or five
years from now. No matter the time frame, time is precious. Get clear on
the result you want to accomplish, your ideal outcome, so that you can
take necessary and more aligned actions to reach it.
2. What does success mean to you? Each of us has a different definition of success. For some, success is defined monetarily: I am successful because I earn a six-figure annual salary. For others success means having freedom, or having an abundance of relationships that bring happiness: I am successful because I foster close relationships and maintain a strong community of friends and family. If you don’t define success for yourself, you are more likely to rush in the race toward someone else’s version of it.
3. Identify your lack of congruence. Pay attention
to the actions you take each day that either help or hinder the path to
your ideal life. Try to mindfully observe and reflect on your behaviors
without judging them. And don’t beat yourself up if your actions do not
align with your goals just yet. It just means it’s time to start
shifting your focus and re-strategize so that your actions align with
the results you want.
4. Identify the strengths needed for success. What
are the skills necessary to actualize your vision of success? What
strengths do you already possess that you can tap into and build on?
Once you break down the factors necessary to help you achieve your
vision you also become more clear on the direction to take in order to
acquire the new skills and behaviors you need, or further hone the
skills you already have.
5. Expand those strengths in the present. Do not
abandon the skills and strengths you already have for those you don’t as
they can help actualize what you wish to achieve. Focus on them,
nurture them, and expand them. Your mental and emotional bandwidth is
correlated to your ability for refined action. Remember that all
qualities you need to succeed reside in the present with you, and
whoever gets to the present moment first and fully, wins.
When you consistently rush from point A to point B you miss the
subtle nuances of the present moment that bring us joy, build
connections, cultivate strengths, provide opportunities, and keep you
focused to achieve the vision of our ideal life. Instead of getting
caught rushing to nowhere devote some mindful time to slowing down and
outgrowing personal habits and limitations to achieve better results.
I was fortunate enough to have started Tai Chi a moving meditation at a very early age. Practising Tai Chi for over 25 years has allowed me to build a solid foundation to support the most important aspect of EQ development, which is attention training.
If you are interested in supporting yourself or helping the teams you
manage, the links below can help you learn more about EQ training.
https://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/slow-down-to-get-ahead.jpg341840jamiehttps://dantian.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/learn_tai_chi_james_godwin-1.pngjamie2019-02-22 14:22:162022-05-02 15:51:26Slow down to get ahead