mindfulness - Blogs - DPG Community2024-03-29T11:06:41Zhttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/feed/tag/mindfulnessStress at work is good, apparently... sometimeshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/stress-at-work-is-good-apparently-sometimes2018-01-29T14:26:38.000Z2018-01-29T14:26:38.000ZGary Norrishttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/members/GaryNorris<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2217485?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>Stress at work is good, apparently ... sometimes</p>
<p>This all depends on the mindset of the individual:</p>
<p><em>"For employees with a positive stress mindset, there was an association between expecting a larger workload and taking more proactive steps to cope... But for those with a negative stress mindset, this association was reversed"</em></p>
<p>So says the article 'What's your stress mindset?' at digest.bps.org.uk</p>
<p>I've radically shortened that paragraph from the original source as I really want you to want to read the full article. It talks about a recent study at the University of Mannheim led by Anne Casper, where it was shown that stress wasn't so much the pivotal factor in motivation and energy levels at work but more so the mindset the individual has towards stress. </p>
<p><em>"Casper and her colleagues said their new results show the benefits that could come from raising people’s awareness of the concept of stress mindset. Promisingly, they said there is <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23437923">some evidence</a> that people can be helped to develop a positive stress mindset."</em></p>
<p><a href="https://digest.bps.org.uk/2018/01/05/whats-your-stress-mindset/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the article on The British Psychological Society website be clicking here</a></p>
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<p>One of the things I appreciate about these BPS article is the critical thinking approach: towards the end of the articles there is generally an evaluation of the data where caveats and limitations are acknowledged. If I could make an additional recommendation to anyone <em>studying</em> at DPG it is to look at how they do this to evaluate any research they present. As students, having the ability to do this can make a huge difference to the standard of your submissions.</p>
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<p>P.S. Another thing I noticed is that, when I used the word 'stress' to search for an accompanying image to this post, almost all the images depict stress as a negative thing. Should that now change?</p>
<p>There were also a <em>lot</em> of images of fidget spinners, but let's not go there.</p>
</div>Neuroscience and Coachinghttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/neuroscience-and-coaching2016-07-07T07:35:20.000Z2016-07-07T07:35:20.000ZRobin Hillshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/members/RobinHills<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2216956?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357828?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357828?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="325" class="align-center"></a></p>
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<p>The brain is a remarkably adaptable organ capable of making changes and developing new connections. This is called <strong>neuroplasticity</strong> and continues well into our eighties.</p>
<p>Every memory or thought process is made up of a set of interconnecting neurons forming a unique map. The maps that are accessed more frequently stay with us longer. This is a good link to learning and practising actions repeatedly. </p>
<p><strong>Mirror neurons</strong> fire in our brain when we see or experience someone else’s behaviour leading to the idea that we are systematically interconnected and why our social interactions are so important.</p>
<p><strong>Mindfulness</strong> is a foundation for coaching skills and knowledge using neuroscience. Mindfulness is all about learning to live in the present moment through controlling thought processes, emotions and body sensations. Paying attention, on purpose, by slowing down brain chatter and automatic or habitual reactions allows us to experience the present moment as it really is. Mindfulness strengthens the left prefrontal cortex where thought processes arise and the white matter connects between the prefrontal cortex and the amygdala, which improves focus and memory.</p>
<p>Working memory is limited. We can only focus on a few things at a given time so small incremental steps are best. It takes a lot of energy to remain focused and we are easily distracted.</p>
<p>Attitudes, beliefs and values are hard wired. Once a habit has become hardwired, it is difficult to overwrite. The best method is to help people focus on something that overrides the bad habit pathway rather than to try to remove it.</p>
<p>Coaching requires that we encourage attention on solutions rather than the problem otherwise ineffective neural pathways get created. Coachees who are asked to create a journal can generate good quality focus and keep these circuits active and open for longer. </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357858?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357858?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="225" class="align-center"></a></p>
<p>Due to the interconnectedness of the brain, working out which small changes in thinking processes create big changes in behaviour is a fundamental to coaching.</p>
<p>Self directed neuroplasticity, is when we direct ourselves to focus on new habitual pathways and don’t allow ourselves to get distracted. Thus, we can change our brains by conscious effort – shining a light on something new creates new neural connections. The questions that you ask influence the results that you see.</p>
<p><em><strong>Good coaches don’t give advice to their clients.</strong></em> The best approach is to ask perceptive, penetrating questions that allow the client to work out solutions for themselves. Often any advice may not be appropriate as it may not be relevant to them or their circumstances no matter how much it appears to be appropriate.</p>
<p>Human brains work in a way that matches patterns and often notice when something doesn’t quite fit with expectations. If a blue flashing light is expected but a red flashing light appears, more attention will be paid to it because of the difference around expectations. </p>
<p>When we experience this difference in our visual, auditory or any other sense occurs a signal is generated. Activity takes place in the orbitofrontal cortex of the brain. This is just behind the eyes. Activity occurs in this area when we don’t trust something or someone or when something doesn’t appear to be quite right. The ambiguity arouses the amygdala, which are responsible for filtering emotion.</p>
<p>The <strong>amygdala</strong> are central to the <strong>flight and fight response</strong>. They are continually on the look out for danger and they work to move us toward what we see as rewarding and to move us away from what we perceive as dangerous. </p>
<p>These error detection circuits explain a number of well-known phenomena. The reason why we focus on problems is because this energises us. The media report bad news most of the time because it gets our attention. People find it easier to create lists of weaknesses and things that they are not so good than find more than one or two strengths.</p>
<p>How this relates to giving advice as a coach is because the advice is not familiar and so the uncertainty will set off the error detection response. Even if the idea or concept appears familiar it may still induce this response as it may be perceived as a challenge to their status.</p>
<p>Awareness of these principles from neuroscience in coaching help us to keep focused on those processes that enable us and those we are coaching to make the brain change for the better over the long term.</p>
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<p>To access our complimentary <strong>Lightbulb Moments</strong> cards - <em>Introduction to Coaching</em> - and - <em>Insights into Mindfulness</em> - visit our website <a rel="nofollow" href="http://ei4change.com/resources/" target="_blank">Ei4Change.com</a></p></div>Mindfulness,Well-being and Wellness: The Implicationshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/mindfulness-well-being-and-wellness-the-implications2016-03-03T13:39:55.000Z2016-03-03T13:39:55.000ZBay Jordanhttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/members/BayJordan<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2216856?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><span>Wellness, well-being and mindfulness are all becoming hot topics in the HR and business fraternity. It seems that there is a growing awareness of the fact that people perform better when they are healthy and happy. This is certainly progress and cause for celebration.</span></p>
<p><span>Yet, while it is unquestionably good news, it is also something you need to approach cautiously, for it implies the need for greater awareness of the employee as a person. Ideally you should have this already. Yet the pervasive lack of employee engagement revealed by surveys, indicates that such awareness is rare. This suggests that formalising this aspect of the relationship between manager or supervisor and employee presents a massive challenge.</span></p>
<p><span>For starters there is a danger that the lack of trust between employees and their supervisors, implicit in the lack of employee engagement, means that employees will perceive such initiatives as encroaching on their personal lives. Thus they may not welcome them at all. Even worse, there is a strong possibility that this new approach could lead employers down a path of “increasing interference” in employees’ lives. Any hint of that is likely to meet strong resistance by employees, which will make them extremely difficult, if not impossible, to implement these changes effectively.</span></p>
<p><span>You may think this is unduly pessimistic. Yet this <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.mckinsey.com/global-themes/leadership/the-art-and-science-of-well-being-at-work?cid=other-eml-nsl-mip-mck-oth-1603" target="_blank">McKinsey article</a> hints at some of the difficulties you face as an employer. For instance, the research into sleep deprivation that shows your ability to function effectively is impacted when you don’t sleep properly and that missing a night’s sleep is equivalent to being legally drunk for you are basically at 0.1 percent blood-alcohol level, which is double the legal limit for driving in many countries.</span></p>
<p><span>So, “How many people do you have working in your organisation who are effectively working as if they were drunk?” And that’s only the beginning. Now ask yourself, “How are we going to identify such occurrences and what are we going to do to prevent it?” You can begin to see what a potentially tricky road this is.</span></p>
<p><span><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357744?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357744?profile=original" width="450" class="align-right"></a>Naturally, this is a road you will want to avoid. In order to do so, you have to approach it as a cultural challenge. You have to create a culture of mutual respect. You have to create an environment in which people recognise their obligations to the entity and themselves, take responsibility for their actions and are able to do so without fear of consequences. Only then will you create the mindfulness and well-being we are talking about, and reduce the stress that otherwise sabotages all your efforts, and undermines health and thus personal and organisational wellness. </span></p></div>Insights into Mindfulness Lightbulb Moments Cardshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/insights-into-mindfulness-lightbulb-moments-cards2016-02-19T08:22:58.000Z2016-02-19T08:22:58.000ZRobin Hillshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/members/RobinHills<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2216785?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><div>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357770?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357770?profile=original" width="698" class="align-center"></a></p>
<p><span>“<em>Mindfulness is paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.</em>” </span><span><strong>Jon Kabat-Zinn</strong>, Professor of Medicine Emeritus and creator of the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme </span><span> at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.</span></p>
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<p>Ei4Change has available Lightbulb Moments cards giving insights into various aspects of emotional intelligence. These have been well received as a valuable resource in education, training and coaching.</p>
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<p>A new set of 18 Lightbulb Moments cards – Insights into Mindfulness – has just been published.</p>
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<p>Lightbulb Moments are free to download from the Ei4Change website. You can access to all the Lightbulb Moments series and other free resources by clicking on the link.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ei4change.com/resources/" target="_blank">http://ei4change.com/resources/</a></p>
</div></div>Mindful Decision Makinghttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/blog/mindful-decision-making2015-11-20T08:07:44.000Z2015-11-20T08:07:44.000ZRobin Hillshttps://community.dpgplc.co.uk/members/RobinHills<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2216661?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1357691?profile=original" target="_self"><br></a>With the recent surge of interest in mindfulness and e-learning, I have combined the two into a short class - <em><strong>Mindful Decision Making</strong></em> - that is available on Skillshare. This is part of a series of classes on emotional intelligence that can be accessed on the learning platform.<br> <br> In this class, you will understand more about <strong>mindfulness</strong>; how to flourish in a world that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. Learn <strong>the ability to pay attention to the present moment without judgement</strong> and use this skill in your decision making.</p>
<p>The course helps you to</p>
<ul>
<li>Understand what mindfulness is and how it can help you</li>
<li>Explore mindfulness techniques that help you make better decisions and manage stress with calmness</li>
<li>Apply mindfulness to decision making to improve the quality of the choices that you make</li>
</ul>
<p>There is a section in the class on the neuroscience of mindfulness that looks at the latest research and gives more credibility to the practice.</p>
<p><span>Skillshare is a learning community that is </span>dismantling the traditional barriers to learning so that anyone, anywhere in the world, can learn whatever they set their minds to. Anyone can join Skillshare to enrol in online classes, watch video lessons, and work on projects.</p>
<p>The class, <em><strong>Mindful Decision Making</strong></em> can be found here - <a rel="nofollow" href="http://skl.sh/1jaFYjN" target="_blank">http://skl.sh/1jaFYjN</a> I have arranged for DPG Community members to enrol in the class for free until 31 December 2015. Enrolment will take less than a minute. You may even find some other classes you love on Skillshare.</p></div>