Andy’s Quick Hits (244): Being Mindful Improves Relationships With Co-Workers

The topic of mindfulness has been a hot topic for a number of years now. This is not to be confused with meditation which is often lumped together with mindfulness — because they do often go hand in hand.

Mindfulness is the concept of being more attentive, aware, and hence mindful of the world around you whereas meditation is a specific practice that can and often is a part of mindfulness training and practices — but not necessarily.

These researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University wanted to find out how mindfulness practices can impact work environments and conducted a qualitative study with 30 formal interviews, and 50 informal interviews, with managers, professionals, and consultants.

What did they find?

They found that there was a wide variety of mindfulness practises which can be as varied as pausing before starting a meeting or being particularly attentative while listening to a person.

The effects however seemed to also go past the individual themselves but participants noted how this impacted positive relationships and improved relationships in the workplace also positively affecting trust and psychological safety in the workplace. Bothe of which we know contribute to improved group…