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John Darwin

THE BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS

Improves aspects of attention

Increases immune functioning and produces brain changes consistent with more effective handling of emotions under stress

Reduces anxiety levels

Reduces negative mood, perceived stress and rumination

May improve ability to maintain preparedness and orient attention

Reduces symptoms of burnout and improves life satisfaction among health professionals

Increases control of behaviour

May improve ability to process information quickly and accurately

Can support the development of creativity

Supports and enhances the development of skills needed for interpersonal relationships

Increases empathetic responses

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Mindfulness based Life

Enhancement

Mindfulness Based

Approaches

Mindful Learning

Four

Immeasurables

Positive Psychology

Knowing what is happening, while it is happening, without preference.

Rob Nairn

“Mindfulness is a universal human capacity – a way of paying attention to the present moment unfolding of experience – that can be cultivated,

sustained and integrated into everyday life through in-depth inquiry, fuelled by the ongoing discipline of meditation practice. Its central aim is the relief of suffering and the uncovering of

our essential nature.” Saki Santorelli

What is Mindfulness?

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“Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment, and non-

judgmentally. This kind of awareness nurtures greater awareness, clarity and acceptance of present moment reality. It wakes us up to the fact that our lives unfold

only in moments. If we are not fully present for many of these moments, we may not only miss what is most

valuable in our lives, but also fail to realise the richness and the depth of our possibilities for growth and

transformation.”

Jon Kabat-Zinn

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness of feelings

Mindfulness of the body

Mindfulness of experiences

Mindfulness of the mind

Mindfulness is not only about the mind – it also

about the body and everything we feel and

experience. The course addresses this.

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Mindful Movement

Sitting Meditation

Mindful awareness of the body during Mindful Movement [Lying, Sitting, Standing and Walking]

Mindfulness of breath, body, feelings, thoughts, and emotions

Body Scan Meditation Slow scan of entire body

Core Relational Qualities Loving kindness / compassion / empathetic joy / equanimity practices

Mountain Meditation; Lake Meditation; Well Meditation

Walking Meditation Mindfulness in action

Guided Visualisations

Mindfulness Meditation Practices

Three minute ‘Breathing Space’

Scheduled regularly in working day, and additionally when under stress

Mindfulness involves both FORMAL and INFORMAL practice

Informal practice is about having mindful moments throughout the day where you are conscious of what you

are doing and experiencing.

Formal practice involves a variety of mindfulness meditations.

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“In the beginner’s mind there are

many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are

few.”

“The most difficult thing is always to

keep your beginner’s mind.”

ZEN MIND, BEGINNER’S MIND

Skilled Incompetence

Unconscious Competence

Conscious Incompetence

Conscious Competence

Unconscious Incompetence

Beginner’s Mind

Mindful Competence • The person has achieved 'conscious competence' in a skill, and chooses to

concentrate and think in order to perform the skill • The person could reliably perform the skill without thinking about it, but chooses

not to do so • The person is able to demonstrate the skill to another, and may be able to teach

it well to another person • The person keeps a Beginner’s Mind, attending to what is happening and

maintaining mindfulness • The mind is always ready for anything; it is open to everything

Mindful Competence

Expert Mind

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THE FOUR IMMEASURABLES

COMPASSION: The wish to alleviate

suffering

EMPATHETIC JOY: Rejoicing in the success of

others; appreciation, joy at others good

fortune

EQUANIMITY: Seeing equality in beings, balanced, non-reactive, non-partial, awareness; quieting of resentment

LOVING KINDNESS:

The intention of good will; the wish for the welfare and

happiness of all beings.

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POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY: KEY THEMES

GRATITUDE

OPTIMISM HOPE

FORGIVENESS

ADDRESSING NEGATIVITY

SAVOURING

Ten strategies to discover pleasure and satisfaction in everyday moments

Based on material originally published at Prevention.com, and on Bryant and Veroff: Savoring

• Share positive feelings with others

• Build memories

• Congratulate yourself

• Fine-tune your senses

• Compare downward

• Get absorbed

• Fake it till you make it

• Seize the moment

• Avoid killjoy thinking

• Say thank-you

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MBLE: THE

PATTERN THAT

CONNECTS

ORGANISATIONS NEED MINDFULNESS AND COMPASSION

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Compassion

Hope

Mindfulness

When we experience Compassion, we are in tune with the people around us. We

understand their wants and needs, and we are motivated to act on our feelings.

When we experience Hope, we feel excited about a possible future, and we generally

believe that the future we envision is attainable

Being awake, aware and attending – to ourselves and to the world around us

Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee: Resonant Leadership

Being creative, enthusiastic and having fun.

Finding ways to serve or delight people in a meaningful, memorable way.

Being present for people.

Deciding your stance for the day, each day

Empathetic Joy

Empathetic Joy

Mindfulness

Acceptance

Links to:

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Mental Health and Psychological Well-Being • Mindfulness meditation may decrease stress, anxiety, and depression. • Mindfulness meditation supports better regulation of emotional reactions and the cultivation

of positive psychological states.

Development of the Whole Person • Meditation can support the development of creativity. • Meditation supports and enhances the development of skills needed for interpersonal

relationships. • Empathetic responses are increased with meditation and mindfulness practices. • Meditation may help to cultivate self-compassion.

Cognitive and Academic Performance • Mindfulness meditation may improve ability to maintain preparedness and orient attention. • Mindfulness meditation may improve ability to process information quickly and accurately. • Concentration-based meditation, practiced over a long-term, may have a positive impact on

academic achievement.

Meditation and Higher Education: Key Research Findings

Shapiro, Brown and Astin: Toward the Integration of Meditation into Higher Education: A Review of Research

AN EXAMPLE: STRATEGY AND MINDFULNESS

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As a Process The Contribution of Mindfulness Conception, Formal, Analytical

Challenges thinker-doer dichotomy Challenges mindless obedience to ‘the plan’

The Contribution of Mindfulness Challenges Groupthink Encourages a balance between • the advantages of the collective Expert

Mind, and

• through the Beginner’s Mind an openness and alertness to the Automatic Pilots which are often embedded in cultural patterns of behaviour.

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The Contribution of Mindfulness Helps negotiators in a number of ways, by: • Enhancing capacity to focus and sustain

attention

• Supporting ability to listen actively

• Helping acknowledge and validate the other negotiator's perspectives and emotions.

• Helping negotiators to better see the reality of a particular conflict by distinguishing the facts or raw data free from their own cognitive biases

• Encouraging an inclusive process based on mutual respect

• Developing spacious awareness can help the negotiator to listen without reactivity and judgment

The Contribution of Mindfulness • Challenges preconceptions

• Helps unlearning

• Explores alternative possibilities

• Prevents blinkered approach to concepts

• Expands conception of what is possible

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The Contribution of Mindfulness

• Helps the link between tacit and explicit

• Ensures attention to the internal as well as the external

ELLEN LANGER: MINDFUL LEARNING

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MINDFULNESS AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

“KNOWING YOURSELF LIES AT THE CORE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE, AND THE BEST MENTAL APP FOR THIS CAN BE FOUND IN THE MIND-TRAINING METHOD CALLED MINDFULNESS” -DANIEL GOLEMAN

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE: DOMAINS AND COMPETENCIES

GOLEMAN, BOYATZIS AND MCKEE

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GOLEMAN AND BOYATZIS

ARE YOU A SOCIALLY INTELLIGENT LEADER?

Pay serious attention to minute-to-minute operations.

Build excess capability by rotating positions, creating additional sources of knowledge and adding new skills.

Analyse each occurrence through fresh eyes and take nothing for granted.

Success narrows perceptions, breeds overconfidence in current practices and squelches opposing viewpoints. This leads to complacency.

WEICK AND SUTCLIFFE

FIVE PRACTICES FOR DEVELOPING MINDFULNESS

Shift the leadership role to the person or team possessing the greatest expertise and experience to deal with the problem at hand. Provide them with the

empowerment they need to take timely, effective action.

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This course it is extremely beneficial and allows individuals take a break from work

Every university and employer should offer mindfulness courses for their students and staff

Investing in yourself. Something that could change your life

It was one of the most worthwhile things I have done at SHU. I think it could have huge health benefits for SHU employees

I would definitely recommend this course to other people managing change in their lives, seeking empowerment or greater fulfilment or simply an understanding of mindfulness

This course will help you in your work and home life; it will give you techniques, tools and resources to help you enjoy life and be aware of your behaviour with others and yourself

Institutions like universities should recognize the benefits of courses such as these. They help people reflect on their attitudes at (and to) work, and towards work colleagues, and I’m sure they

can only help people to be calmer, more positive, more generous and understanding

As someone who attends a lot of training in my job and has done training the trainer courses in the past, I though this was the best bit of training I had received in a long time. Thank you very

much John; I really feel as though you have given me a skill to help me manage my life on a personal as well as a work level

COMMENTS FROM PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS

Go with a truly open mind and a determination to go with the flow and see what you can learn about yourself. Be prepared to participate.

Do it and enjoy it. Do what feels right for you and concentrate on those parts of the practice. Remember it’s called mindfulness PRACTICE.

Make sure you are prepared to actually do it – it’s not something you can just read about, you have to practice.

Have an open mind. Give what you can to it and stick to it, the benefits will be great!

This is a really worthwhile course, giving you time to learn and relax.

Just relax and enjoy it. Don’t be too daunted by the amount of homework, but do what you can.

Schedule time for homework very clearly and start right after class.

Embark with an open mind.

MINDFULNESS BASED LIFE ENHANCEMENT ADVICE FROM PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS

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Just wanted to say thanks John for the course I enjoyed it tremendously and I am really missing coming already. I am still trying to put everything into practice and I will continue to use the information.

It really did make a difference at a difficult time and continues to do so. It's made me more aware of lots of things and although I'm not as dedicated to it as I was when doing the course it's still in my mind and I'm looking for a yoga/tai chi course to start after the summer I did wonder whether the course would be totally centred around Buddhist teachings and practices. I used the practices within my own faith of Christianity and felt comfortable with that and that it helped me develop further meditation skills and awareness within my own faith.

Just that it was a really great experience whose benefits will continue. I appreciate the obvious love, care and devotion that you brought to each ‘mindfulness’ session; and the way you treated everyone in the group with dignity and respect and without judgement. I found the weekly two hour sessions to be a ‘healing’ experience for me. Thank you very much!

I was just “meant” to be on this programme, thank you so much for the opportunity to go on it. I am so grateful

Thanks John, a lovely experience, well very facilitated by yourself over the eight weeks

MINDFULNESS BASED LIFE ENHANCEMENT ADVICE FROM PREVIOUS PARTICIPANTS

FROM A PARTICIPANT “I found this course really helpful. Before I came along I was feeling burnt out, low in energy, constantly worrying about ‘to do lists’ and anxious. I had no idea of the impact these ‘automatic pilot’ thought patterns were having on me from a physiological point of view. Even when I found time to relax, I was still lacking the skills in being able to switch off and as a result my batteries had almost spent. I had been wanting to learn more about mindfulness for over a year, so it was ideal when the opportunity arose to attend the course. I am aware that there were a limited number of places so felt very privileged to get a place. I think this made me more dedicated to ensure that I attended the weekly sessions, did the reading and the weekly practices. “As a result of the course my energy levels have gone up, I am able to focus better on the task at hand [both at work and at home]. I am able to relax and I am more aware of my thoughts. I aim to continue with the practices and relaxation exercises I have learnt over the course which will hopefully develop lifelong skills for the future.”

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Pre-course and Immediate Post-course Assessment of Mindfulness

FACET EXAMPLES

Observing / noticing / attending to sensations, thoughts, feelings

• I notice the smells and aromas of things • I pay attention to how my emotions affect my thoughts

and behaviour.

Describing / labelling with words • I am good at finding words to describe my feelings • Even when I’m feeling terribly upset, I can find a way to

put it into words.

Acting with awareness / not on automatic pilot

• I find myself doing things without paying attention [R] • I find it difficult to stay focused on what’s happening in

the present [R]

Non-judging of inner experience • I think some of my emotions are bad or inappropriate and I should not feel them [R]

• I criticize myself for having irrational or inappropriate emotions [R]

Non-reactivity to inner experience

• I perceive my feelings and emotions without having to react to them

• Usually when I have distressing thoughts or images, I feel calm soon after.

R = Reverse-scored item

Baer, Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer and Toney: Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness

Pre-course and Immediate Post-course Assessment of Mindfulness

Comparison of means scores before the course began and at the end of the course using a two-tailed paired t-test with a Bonferroni correction factor suggested that there were significant increases in the following components of mindfulness and psychological strengths: Total mindfulness t(19) =3.591, p= .01, Mindfulness observing t(19) =2.81, p= .01, Mindfulness awareness t(19) = 3.91, p= .001, Mindfulness non-judging t (19) = 2.93, p= 01, Mindfulness non-reactivity t (19) = 3.01, p= .01 The difference in Mindfulness describing/ labelling with words was not significant t(19) = .924). This may be explained perhaps by a having a sample that are already very good at verbal labelling.

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Pre-course and Immediate Post-course Assessment of Related Psychological Strengths

Gratitude t (22) = 2.59, p= .05, Hope Agency t (22) = 2.77, p= .01, Hope Pathways t (22) = 2.02, p= .05, Self-forgiveness t (22) =3.57, p= .01, The difference in optimism was not significant t(22) = .98) nor was the difference in other forgiveness t (22 ) = 1.61 . Life Satisfaction t (22) = 3.44, p = 01

Pre-course and Immediate Post-course Assessment of Psychological Well-being

Summary

• After the course, participants displayed significant

increase in their scores on all the components of mindfulness apart from mindfulness describing/ labelling with words.

• Scores on gratitude, both components of hope and self-forgiveness all increased significantly.

• There were no significant differences in scores for optimism and other forgiveness.