UNABLE TO SWITCH OFF? TENSE… AGITATED… IS WORK GETTING TO YOU?
Article written by Joanne O’Malley
Are you facing another ‘crazy busy’ day? Are you always rushing, trying to get it all done, working flat out just to stay afloat, dealing with problems and distractions non-stop yet hardly ever getting to what is important because the urgent always gets in the way?
What if you could just hit PAUSE, step back and take a few deep breaths? What if you had the skills to calm yourself, so you could return to facing your challenges when you had regained clarity, relaxation and focus? And what if you worked in a way that was deeply fulfilling, connected to what matters most to you and allowed you to enjoy real connections with real people along the way?
Working Harder is not always Smarter
That’s why I started Mindfulness at Work. I could see how colleagues who worked endless hours, often in a state of agitation and ‘continuous partial attention’ were not productive, creative, capable of managing themselves or leading their teams skillfully despite a lot of rushing around. Now, the research supports this:
“The overwhelmed employee us the most significant human capital challenge for Irish organisations. Information overload and the 24/7 work environment are contributing to reduced productivity, reduced decision making and lower levels of engagement.”
Deloitte Human Capital Trends 2014, Engaging the 21st Century Workforce
In 2005, Harvard Business Review stated that overloaded circuits make smart people underperform and
“firms that ignore the symptoms of Attention Deficit Trait (ADT) in their employees will suffer its ill effects.”
“70% of employees are disengaged, leading to lower productivity, innovation and wellbeing and only 8% of people strongly agree that they experience overall wellbeing because of their work.” – Gallup 2013
So, it makes sense that the workplace becomes a place where you are ‘tended to’ as a ‘human being’ rather than a ‘human doer’ and encouraged to thrive. Does’nt it? But, how?
Mindfulness enables optimum performance
“Mindfulness is a foundational skill that underpins the inner factors of growth: self-awareness, self-management, and emotional skills.” Google
Mindfulness enables optimum performance – That’s why leading companies…
Mindfulness trains you to ‘pay attention’ with acceptance of ‘what is’. This training alters how you relate to experience. With practice, you become able to ‘catch’ yourself in challenging moments, so instead of ‘loosing it’ or becoming ‘a victim of circumstance’ you stay steady. Then, you are able to respond in an empowered inspired kind of way to whatever shows up instead of reacting with conditioned patterns of blaming (yourself / event / other people). This self awareness means thoughts and emotions inform your actions rather than hijacking you.

Mindfulness enables optimum performance. People say “LIFE CHANGING”
I’ve been practicing ‘taking a pause’ and mindfulness / awareness for almost 20 years. It has changed my life dramatically and this is the most common feedback I get from participants. The wandering and distractibility of mind that is most peoples’ default position produces stress, fear, anxiety and worry whereas Mindfulness encourages the development of concentration, clarity, emotional positivity, and a calm seeing of ‘what is’ with acceptance.
Mindfulness at Work was established to help people train their minds to be fitter, calmer, more open, flexible, resilient and vital so that they can thrive and be at their best. We’re passionate about helping businesses empower their workforce for success.