What does mindfulness have to do with your business?
Steve Ware not only discovered the profound impact of mindfulness for himself personally, he also brought it into the notoriously conservative corporate environment of IBM. It’s proof that peace of mind and an increased experience of well–being translates to ROI in business. Just in case you needed any.
Steve and I have a conversation about no BS mindfulness, including simple and practical exercises you can use immediately to experience more peace of mind. Whether you’re a meditator or not, I think you’ll find this conversation infinitely relatable.
Here’s some of what we explore:
- How Steve accidentally began teaching mindfulness after 38 years of avoiding silence
- Bringing the peace of mindfulness off the cushion into the real world
- 3 simple everyday practices for mindfulness
- Why your experience sometimes gets worse before it gets better
- A real-time “two seconds of peace” exercise
- The benefits of mindfulness for the corporate world
- A wise lesson from Steve’s Homer Simpson moment
Listen and download the podcast here:
Understand Your Mind For a Better Human Experience
Steve spent most of his life avoiding stillness, but anxiety and suffering drove him to try mindfulness. When his colleagues at work noticed that he was calmer and more centered, they asked if he’d teach them, and the first (and only) mindfulness course at IBM was born.
Sitting in mindfulness meditation can feel scary, but reaps benefits. Burying your thoughts and emotions with overwork or self-medicating doesn’t work as a long-term strategy. Once your busy mind begins to slow, peace naturally arises.
What happens when you sit in mindfulness? At first, many people notice just how noisy it is in their heads, and you can’t control it. You can’t switch your mind off through force, but you can gently withdraw attention and place it somewhere else. As you place your attention somewhere other than your thinking (your breath, sounds, sensations in your body) it gets easier. You put down your mind for a moment and experience peace.
“You don’t think. You’re being thought. Saying I think is like saying I’m beating my heart.” – Steve Ware
Everyone experiences moments of ordinary mindfulness. Steve refers to this as “mindfulness by accident,” such as moments in nature or at the very end of a three week vacation. The one thing every peaceful moment you’ve ever experienced has in common is a temporary cessation of thinking.
“Instinctively we know that we love this. Instinctively we’re all trying to create more moments of mindfulness/presence. We all want more of it, but we’re never taught how.” – Steve Ware
Awareness is a pre-requisite for mindfulness. If you don’t become aware of yourself thinking, you’ll be lost in the trance of thought day and night. Your mind is running you.
Your thoughts are not the enemy; you just need to understand how it works. Steve likens mindfulness to training in the mind’s equipment and building the muscle of attention. As you meditate, you realize your thinking and cultivate the skill of directing your attention elsewhere.
The experience of mindfulness is available anywhere at any time. Steve offers a few simple suggestions for bringing this peace into your everyday life. You can still your mind in the midst of your busy life.
- The next time you’re at a red traffic light, as you stop your car, let it be a cue to stop your mind. “Red light, take two conscious breaths.”
- Really taste just one forkful of your next meal, without distracting yourself.
- When taking a shower, really FEEL the hot water.
“You can’t have a busy mind and notice beauty. You can’t have a busy mind and truly feel peaceful.” – Steve Ware
Ignore the objections of your mind. When you attempt mindfulness, you’re probably going to think you don’t have time or it isn’t making a difference. Notice the little changes because the cumulative effect is huge.
Mindfulness is natural; we’re born in a mindful state. It’s not unicorns and rainbows or a promise to never feel a negative feeling again. It creates more presence and acceptance, which always feels better.
Any time you truly accept something you feel more peaceful. Acceptance silences the inner critic. Steve challenges you to start with accepting one small thing and see what happens.
“It’s not about blocking out the bad. It’s not about clinging to the good. It’s about accepting as best you can as what is, allowing things to be and being present. The more you do that, the easier life gets.” – Steve Ware
Your journey of mindfulness and peace will be messy. It will reflect life with good days and bad days, so be realistic. Focus on the small changes to keep yourself going. When you slow down, tiny changes will happen without trying. You might stop biting your nails or being reactive. You’ll begin to notice more small moments of beauty.
“Thoughts aren’t facts. Even the ones that say they are.” – Steve Ware
It’s been said we think 6,000 – 8,000 thoughts per hour and most of them are repetitive. We’re thinking way more than necessary and it’s harmful to our well-being. Everyone functions better with less thinking. Creative ideas come from the space beyond thinking, and we’re not available for this wisdom when our minds are too busy.
Mindfulness creates real ROI for the corporate world. Steve’s students have reported early returns from sick leave, reduced blood pressure, increased creativity, reduced anxiety and better sleep. All of which directly impacts performance at work.
Meet Steve Ware, Corporate Mindfulness Trainer
Steve is a University of Oxford trained Mindfulness in the Workplace specialist. Although he never set out to learn meditation, let alone become a mindfulness teacher, a period of intense stress at IBM 10 years ago led him to (somewhat reluctantly) try mindfulness. The personal transformation was so great that his colleagues soon noticed and asked him if he could teach them.
This led to Steve studying with some of the greatest teachers in the world and facilitating the first (and only) HR-approved mindfulness programme in the whole of IBM. Within months he had a waitlist of 500+ people globally, with graduates of his 8-week courses reporting :
✔Lower stress levels
✔Feeling happier and more productive
✔Sleeping better
✔Feeling less overwhelmed…
✔…and even returning to work early from long-term sick leave
Since leaving IBM in 2020 he has continued to bring the same transformational mindfulness courses to businesses – big and small – all across the world.
Connect with Steve
Website: https://www.stevewaremindfulness.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-ware-mindfulness
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