“Mindfulness is a state of active, open attention on the present. When you’re mindful, you observe your thoughts and feelings from a distance, without judging them good or bad. Instead of letting your life pass you by, mindfulness means living in the moment and awakening to experience,” according to Psychology Today.
Many of us are drawn to the peace and happiness promised by living life in the present moment, but we often abandon it in our daily lives because practicing it can seem at odds with our desire for future success. But it doesn’t have to be.
Here are six simple ways to find peace of mind in your busy work life:
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Forgive and forget.
Workplace politics are draining, and a waste of time. Don’t let yourself get sucked into drama. Save your mental energy for your own success by forgiving those who slight you, forgetting who said what about whom, and moving on to more important things.
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Breathe before you blast.
Try not to shoot off emails when you’re angry. “If you have ever sent an email you regretted, set rules to follow the next time you get a message that sets you off,” says Wall Street Journal writer Elizabeth Bernstein. “Decide how much time you will wait before responding—10 minutes? 24 hours? It depends on how long it takes you to cool down.” Take a deep breath first and reflect on what’s behind your anger. Anger-driven emails almost always do more harm than good, to sender and receiver alike.
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Stop being judgmental.
Business mistakes are an opportunity to learn, not an excuse to look at yourself or others with negativity. First ask yourself, “Why am I judging?”Assessing mistakes from a neutral perspective allows you and your team to grow from them. Harping on them only serves to bring you (and those around you) down.
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Live with intention.
Personal development gurus often talk about the idea of “intention.” But what does intention really mean? It means to make sure you know why you’re doing what you’re doing. And to do what you truly want to do. For example, if you feel you are wasting time in your current professional role, stop doing it and start something new.
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Take victory in stride.
It’s important to celebrate milestones. But don’t get addicted to success. If you let yourself become too attached to your victories, you will be less able to cope with defeat. And the ability to persevere through failure is essential to success.
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Get adequate sleep.
Research suggests that sleep is vital for learning and memory, and lack of sleep impacts our health, safety, and longevity. (Source: Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School) Enjoy the journey. Life is short, and you will spend a large majority of it working. Running a business can either be depressing, or it can be an incredible ride. It’s up to you. The more you enjoy what you do, the better you will be at it.
This article has been edited and condensed.
Prerna Gupta is Founder & CEO of a stealth startup in a novel area of artificial intelligence. She is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor and author, whose work has been published in the New York Times, Forbes, TechCrunch, FastCompany and Recode, among others. She was previously Chief Product Officer and Chief Marketing Officer at Smule. Prior to that, Prerna was co-founder and CEO of Khush, where she led the company to profitability and acquisition by Smule in 2011. Connect with @prernagupta on Twitter.
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