Mindfulness and coaching

This article provides an overview of the way we perceive and illustrates related concepts. It also emphasizes the benefits of a high level of mindfulness, discusses scientific findings in this context, provides a way to test mindfulness at home and concludes with a reference to the business level.

What is mindfulness?

According to the well-known professor emeritus Jon Kabat-Zinn means „to be mindful, to be aware of the present moment without judgment.“ In this context, the word conscious means that we decide to consciously direct our attention to the present moment.“

Current science states that an absolute majority of our perception is unconscious. In concrete figures, this means that our brain processes around 11 million sensory impressions per second, of which we only consciously perceive around 40. Our organism therefore filters all the different stimuli in advance until only around 40 remain.

Converted to a distance, only 4 centimeters of consciousness are required for a distance of 11 kilometers of unconsciousness.

These 4 centimeters are about sensory impressions that are perceived through our eyes, such as colors, movement, contrasts, shadows, etc., but at the same time also our current self-esteem, self-confidence, acoustic, olfactory, tactile stimuli or other stimuli invisible to our eyes.

This fact makes it clear how relatively little enters our consciousness and at the same time how enormous our unconscious perception is. Mindfulness is therefore a focus on the present moment. For many people, putting this statement into practice is easier said than done, as some people can do little or nothing with it. This is where coaching comes into play!

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In professional coaching or mindfulness training, you can learn how to deliberately change the focus of your consciousness, regardless of where and in what situation you are. With sufficient training, this ability allows you to perceive many previously unconscious stimuli that are invisible to the eye. This includes, for example, the perception of your heartbeat, your emotions, subtle energetic changes in your environment and also the sensitivities of the other person during an important negotiation.

Distinguishing between reality and reality

Perception can be conscious and unconscious. Your perception is what you take to be true and how you construct your reality. Reality is your perception of how the world affects you. This reality is subjective and shaped by your genetics, values, personality, social interactions and many other factors. You can also think of your reality as the result you get when you see the world through very specific and unique „perception glasses“. Reality, on the other hand, i.e. what the environment „does“ in a purely rational way, is strictly speaking not measurable at all, as a subject must be present in order to measure it. Find out more about the topic here Stress management.

Conclusion: We all live in a world with many different realities.

What are the benefits of a high level of mindfulness?

There are now a number of scientific studies on the effects of regular mindfulness practice. This research proves that mindfulness training has demonstrable effects on physical and psychological symptoms as well as quality of life (see Hölzel & Brähler, 2015). The research findings on mindfulness can be divided into three categories:

1. symptom improvement

• Decrease in depression, anxiety, pain, exhaustion, stress and stress associated with an illness
• Increased quality of life, improved quality of sleep and increased functional ability in everyday life
• Positive effects on stress, negative emotions, anxiety or brooding

2. improvement of biological markers

Mindfulness training is not an intervention in the body, but a change in behavior that has measurable effects on the functioning of the body. For example, mindfulness practice leads to a reduction in cortisol levels (cortisol is a stress hormone), which is considered an indicator of a reduction in the perception of stress.

3. effects on the Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to change in response to life circumstances, experiences and learning. Mental habits, behaviors or psychological injuries have an effect on the brain structure. Regular mindfulness practice and mediation lead to structural changes in the brain. These changes not only influence mood, but also the way in which body signals such as pain are interpreted.

How can I measure my mindfulness skills?

There are many methods for measuring mindfulness. One of these is the so-called „Five Facets Mindfulness Questionnaire“ (FFMQ) according to Baer et al., 2006 and Michalak et al., 2016. These forms of measuring mindfulness can also be used in coaching.

The FFMQ is based on a facet model of mindfulness. Mindfulness is defined by 5 facets: Observing, describing, acting with attention, accepting without judgment and non-reactivity. The FFMQ consists of 39 statements that reflect mindfulness and can be agreed to on a scale. High scores are achieved if you strongly agree with as many statements as possible.

If you are interested, you can carry out the self-test here at any time: CLICK TO SELF-TEST

The effects of mindfulness in professional life

The effects of mindfulness practice are relevant for all people at work and therefore also for companies and organizations. Stress is one of the most frequently cited causes of illness, so a different way of dealing with stress has positive effects not only for employees themselves, but also for companies.

Recognized methods that have proven to be particularly effective are the so-called MBSR-training (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) according to Jon Kabat-Zinn. Some well-known major international corporations such as Google, Bosch and SAP, but also some medium-sized companies are setting a clear example and establishing Coachung of mindfulness into the internal coaching processes. Since 2007, Google has offered its employees a program entitled „Search inside yourself“ for personal growth. The coaching program is a mindfulness course for learning emotional intelligence with the aim of becoming happier, calmer, more creative and ultimately more successful. Daniel Goleman was also involved in the development of this course. At this point, we would like to ask you: How are you and your company doing on the subject of mindfulness and emotional intelligence? Individual advice set up? Have you already had personal experience with mindfulness and coaching? Here is also an interesting article about stress.

Conclusion for the business context:

Particularly in the business world, where we come into contact with the organizational level and the social encounters it contains from our individual level, a multitude of needs arise that need to be reconciled.

The Presence represents a valuable resource or opportunity to shape the interfaces synergistically. A practiced corporate culture with non-judgmental feedback, for example, can be a decisive factor here. Managers also benefit enormously if they are able to regulate themselves to such an extent that there is enough room for empathy and the needs of employees. To ensure that the results are comprehensible and the focus is always steered in the right direction, coaching and training on the topic of mindfulness can bring a decisive advantage to various levels of any company.

Mindfulness is an attitude that can be trained and developed. For more information you can contact us at any time. Trainings are on site and Online possible. Thank you for your attentive reading! Please also read our article about the Big Five.

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