Last week, I was on a plane returning home after several days of promoting my new book when I began chatting with two business owners beside me. We had a friendly conversation and talked about the economy, their business, my new book, and their struggles with retaining and attracting quality employees in today's labor market. After a while, I returned my attention to some work I needed to complete, and they began chatting about various business details. About 2 hours into the flight, I noticed the tone of their conversation had changed. I couldn't help but pick up on the stress and apprehension in their voices, and I quickly understood why. They were discussing firing one of their employees.
The issue boiled down to an employee whose actions had irritated one of the owners.
Apparently, when the owner walks past the employee's office, he observes the employee wasting time. Sometimes, the employee would sit with his eyes closed at his desk; other times, he would be coloring in a coloring book or drawing a picture. And to add to the aggrievance, the employee would sometimes not be at his desk, but walking around the office, or if the weather were nice, he would take a quick daily stroll.
The other owner was willing to look past the "goofing off" as he pointed out that the employee related well with his team and those he supervised. According to his teammates, "he is present and engaged" at meetings and one-on-one time with his colleagues. Yet, besides his partner's objections, the other owner was beyond frustrated.
While they were talking, I reached into my carry-on and took out a few colored pencils and my adult coloring book filled with geometric designs. I lowered my tray table, opened the page I had been working on, and began to shade in sections of the geometric design. It wasn't even two minutes that had passed when the aggravated owner asked me, "You have a coloring book"?
I responded, "Yes, this is a great mindfulness tool".
Then, I began to inform him that mindfulness is a mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the present moment while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. A brief period of mindfulness allows leaders to make better decisions based on facts and data rather than assumptions and mental shortcuts. Mindfulness is more about shutting out distractions, allowing your brain to quiet and focus, and processing information more meaningfully. A brief mindfulness break enables the brain to slow down and take in and process information better.
"Does it work?" he asked.
"Yeah," I replied. "I make better decisions and am more present and engaged with my team after a brief mindfulness break. Sometimes I color, close my eyes, and pray, and sometimes I go for a brief stroll. I encourage my team members to take these quick mental breaks, especially before meetings and when facing decisions".
The two owners began talking between themselves again, but this time, the tone was less agitated. I could hear them discussing the employee in question again, but this time, looking at his actions in a different light. They agreed they needed to keep the employee and get to know him better.
Score one for mindfulness.